Archive of Our Own ^beta

"You really are an idiot, you know that?" Ace muttered as he brushed a hand through his hair.

"I know!" Deuce sniped backed at him.

"Why would you let him teach you that?"

"He was… persuasive!" Deuce threw his hands up in the air. "Very, very persuasive. And, well it sounded cool," he said the last part in a small voice.

"I mean," Yuu interrupted, "it does sound a little cool." Seeing the looks Ace and Grim were giving him, Yuu blinked. "What?"

"You're just saying that because you can't use magic," Ace groaned.

"I don't see why you would even wanna when the breathing underwater potion is pretty cool," Grim nodded as he shifted on Yuu's lap that he was too large for. The four had decided to move their conversation from the cafeteria to the courtyard and were taking up some benches far from any prying eyes or eavesdropping ears. It was quiet this time of day, so they were free to be a little loud.

"I mean yeah, but… it's not really the same? If that makes sense?" Deuce shrugged. "It's like… you move much faster and everything feels different. The water's not as cold and you can smell a lot more. It's not as muted."

"Everything did feel kind of dead when we were down there before," Ace said as he scratched his head. "But, it's not like you're going to get any use out of it."

Deuce frowned at that. "…no, but, they did offer to let me swim around in there. In the ocean around their dorm."

Yuu tilted his head thoughtfully as he scratched one of Grim's ears. "I mean, if Azul thinks its okay…"

Ace made a face. "What if they just want to eat you up?"

"Floyd told me they don't eat people." Seeing the three blinking at them, Deuce shook his head. "I had a lot explained to me, alright?"

"That's what they tell people they're gonna eat," Grim gave Deuce a flat look. "Though I guess Azul hasn't caused that much trouble lately."

Yuu nodded. "I mean, he'd watch out for Deuce if only as a favor to me."

"Yeah, he does owe us for everything, doesn't he?" Ace blinked in realization and Deuce could see the gears turning in Ace's head.

Deuce sighed and then shrugged. "I think I might do it sometimes. Swimming around a little. It's nice… having another unique spell that's all my own."

"Other than dropping cauldrons you mean," Yuu chuckled and the other two laughed.

Deuce couldn't stop himself from getting defensive. "Hey! Don't make fun of cauldrons! I've gotten us out of a few jams with them!"

"…yeah man, it's such a 'you' thing," Ace grinned. "Only you would be so single minded that you'd learn a hard, useless spell like that."

Deuce was about to yell at Ace, when Yuu interrupted. "I mean apparently it is really powerful though? Isn't that a bit impressive?"

Ace shrugged as he leaned back against the bench. "How do I explain it: this dumbass has a lot of raw power. Otherwise he wouldn't be able to summon as many cauldrons as he does in a row. Even I can admit that's kind of impressive," he said as he scratched the back of his head.

"You sound like that hurt you," Deuce said, trying not to react to the backhand.

Ace held out a finger to Deuce's lips. "Shush… let me finish. It's kind of like I'm good at Wind magic and Grim's got those Blue Flames. Those are powerful too. But we also have more finesse."

"Hehe!" Grim exclaimed. "Finally you're admitting my talent!"

"Whatever, Grim," Ace rolled his eyes. "But, what I'm saying is, is that, we're also more versatile. Well, I am. But Grim's a cat, so he's working against a handicap." See Grim's peeved look, Ace quickly continued. "This guy," he gestured at Deuce, "took forever to learn the spell to turn lead to gold. He kept turning it to coal instead."

"I couldn't stop thinking of coal after the first time it happened," Deuce pouted a bit. "And it's not like you learned right away. You kept turning it to bronze, then silver."

"…but it wasn't coal." Seeing Deuce glaring at him, Ace groaned. "What I'm trying to say, is you know: magic's about the imagination. The better and quicker our mind is, the faster we can imagine what we want. Deuce is single minded and a bit slower than us. But…" He held his hand out in front of Deuce's face in order to stop his protest. "As painful as it is for me to admit, there is one talent this guy does have: when he does get something, he gets it really well. Like with cauldrons. It's so cemented in your head that you can just toss multiple ones out before it wipes you."

"It was one of the first spells I learned on my own and it was useful…" Mainly for beating up other kids back in middle school. No one could stand in your way when they were smacked with that much metal.

"What I mean is, when Floyd taught you that spell, you somehow understood how it should work and how you should be. Maybe… because Floyd was right there in front of you. Hell, if it'd been Azul teaching you the spell, you'd probably be like… an octopus," Ace grimaced as if imagining something frightening.

"I'd have liked to see that!" Yuu laughed.

"I just… I don't know," Deuce tapped his chin in thought. "It just worked. Somehow. Maybe fear helped? Or else determination." It was hard to say and Deuce really wished he could figure out what it was he had tapped into. Or if it was something about Floyd himself that had been the key.

"…so are we going to Octavinelle?" Grim quipped. "And can I get some Tuna Sushi?"

"Why are we going to Octavinelle?" Deuce blinked.

"So you can show us, duh," Ace laughed.

"Show you?"

"Your weird, fishy tail," Ace rolled his eyes and Deuce choked.

"You can't just ask that!"

Ace frowned as he stood up, placing his hands on his hips. "Why not?"

"B-because it's private!"

Yuu raised an eyebrow at him. "You can do it in front of Azul and company but not us?"

Deuce slumped at that, sensing his inevitable defeat. "That's… different. It'd feel weird going there right away after last night." Maybe even a bit presumptuous.

"…then how about we go to the pool?" Yuu asked. "No one's been using it lately so it should be private enough.

"But I wanted Sushi!" Grim complained but everyone pointedly ignored him.

Ace grinned, "It's a pool date!"

"But I didn't agree to anything!" Deuce complained weakly.

"Why are you guys like this?" Deuce sighed as they stepped into the pool area which was indeed deserted. No one would be swimming right after lunch and the school swim team didn't practice until late in the day.

Ace crossed his arms. "Dude, you can't tell us something like that and then not show us. Besides, you're acting like a girl being asked to show off a swimsuit."

"Am not!" Deuce snapped, knowing he was blushing. "It's just… different showing you guys." And this would be the first time Floyd wasn't around.

"You don't have to Deuce," Yuu said quietly, "But I am kind of curious." He smiled hopefully.

"If we aren't going to Octavinelle, then you can't chicken out!" Grim said, obviously done mourning his sushi platter. "Though I bet I could do it better!"

Deuce frowned and crossed his arms, thinking. His annoyance was beginning to give way to his natural desire to show off and impress others. Also he didn't need Ace and Grim calling him a chicken.

"Okay, fine! But just this once!" Deuce walked to the edge of the pool and glanced down at the enchanted waters. Unlike non-magic pools, the pool at Night Raven College didn't use chlorine but the magic of water fairies to keep it pure and clean. Floyd had been pretty adamant on avoiding anything that was heavily treated, though freshwater itself was fine. Merman's bodies weren't exactly like fish after all. "Alright then!" He clutched his fist and jumped in feet first, letting the change wash over him.

The pool was fairly warm and almost comfortable, though since he'd jumped into the deep end, it took a moment before his fins hit the bottom. Deuce looked up through the water and could see blurry shapes and hear muted shouting. He grimaced and felt his courage briefly falter. Couldn't he just hide under the water until they got bored? But then he'd get ribbed for a different reason and so after a moment Deuce swam up, breaking the surface. He instantly saw three pairs of wide saucer eyes staring at him.

Ace was the first one who spoke. "Holy shit Deuce, just holy shit, this is freaky!"

"…I can't believe that's really you," Yuu said softly as he knelt down by the edge of the pool, leaning in close.

"Nya!" Grim had stepped back on his hind legs and was blinking. "You look just like those horrible twins!"

Deuce crossed his arms. "Well if you guys were just going to insult me-"

"-no man," Ace shook his head as he walked closer to the pool and looked down. "I'll admit, this is pretty cool. Especially for you."

"Heh," Grim smirked as he also approached, "this means it should be a snap for me."

Yuu rolled his eyes. "You can't even transfigure a pencil into a pen yet." Grim gritted his teeth and hissed at Yuu who just waved him off.

Ace's eyes were trailing over Deuce's body, or at least what he could see above water. "Dude, so how much bigger are you now?"

"Hmmm, I guess at least a whole other foot or two with the tail…" And swimming for towards the edge, he rested his forearms on it and let his tail drift out. Not nearly as long as Floyd and Jade were, but there was a lot more mass to him right now, that much Deuce could feel.

Yuu reach out his hand to touch Deuce's arm and then paused. "May I?"

"Uh, sure," Deuce frowned and watched as Yuu ran his hand up and down his arm. It felt strange to feel soft skin along his scales.

"It's so smooth," Yuu said in awe. "And softer than I expected."

Ace went and did the same without asking. "Man, you're right. And he's not nearly as slimy of those guys either." By now Grim had also decided to come and get in on the touching.

"Still kinda slick though," and with that he took a lick. Deuce instantly let go of the edge and pushed away.

Clutching his arm, Deuce snapped at Grim. "Oi!"

"Eww, Grim!" Ace scrunched up his face.

"What?" Grim frowned, obviously not regretting a thing. "Besides, he doesn't even taste like a Mackerel!"

"What, were you going to eat him if he did?" Yuu shook his head and Deuce shuddered. "Besides, look you scared him."

"He just surprised me, that's all," Deuce decided not to think on memories that had been triggered. He was remembering that bite of Floyd's clearly now. Even though the marks has mostly faded from his hip, he could almost feel the sting. He swam to the corner of the pool and hauled up his whole body so that he was sitting on the edge of the pool, with just his tail fin trailing in the water. "Alright no touching this time…"

The other three all walked over now even more wide eyed. "So you're now a mermaid," Ace shook his head. "God I can't believe I said that."

"Merman," Deuce replied sternly. "That's the correct term."

Ace huffed and rolled his eyes. "Whatever…"

"Still," Yuu said after a moment, "it's hard to believe that Floyd taught you this. I'd have thought he'd have taught it to someone like Kalim. Or even pushed it on Riddle."

"Yanno though, that guy, he never thinks…" Grim was sitting farther away now, watching Deuce cautiously. "He might have just been bored."

It was probably true, but it rankled just a little to be told once again that he might just be some kind of toy. Especially after he'd been told he wasn't even allowed to use this new ability to visit places like the Coral Sea on his own. Was it really that bad when they'd safely went to the Atlantica Museum on their own? He knew there were all kinds of stories about people dying in the ocean, but surely-

"-hey dude," Ace's voice broke through his train of thought, "this is neat and all, but there's something I'm wondering about. Now, don't get mad or anything like that, but…" Ace scratched the back of his neck, "I'm just wondering…" There was a bit of hesitation. "Where's your dick?"

There was a long silence in the room and Deuce could feel his face heat up. "W-what the hell!? You can't just ask someone that!"

"Come on! You have to know! You did this for a whole week!" A devilish grin appeared on Ace's face. "Haven't you-"

"No!"

"What? Not even when going to the bathroom?"

"That's different!" Deuce could feel his fuse beginning to burn short now.

Of course Ace never knew when to stop. "But then, wait do you even have a-" finally at his limit, Deuce angrily swished his tail through the water, sending a large wave in Ace's direction, not giving him any time to dodge. The red head sputtered, completely drenched. "Hey! The hell man!" Some of it had hit Yuu who flinched. Grim side stepped most of it, save for a bit that must flicked one of his ears if the sudden gout of smoke was any indication.

"Nyaaa!"

Deuce shook with rage and then shouted, "You fucking stupid bastard!" Deuce let himself change back and brushed a hand through his still wet hair and the straightened out his uniform and decided to march out of there before he ended up decking Ace.

"Deuce! Wait up!" Yuu called out, but Deuce ignored him, still not trusting himself.

Deuce managed to simmer in fury for the next few hours and Ace angrily ignored him, save for a few particularly vindictive jabs and pokes here and there during their classes. The curse of being seatmates.

He did apologize to Yuu and Grim, with a promise to buy the latter a can of tuna. "Don’t' worry about it. Ace was just being an asshole, as usual," Yuu had sighed and said nothing more.

Deuce had felt a bit better once classes were over and he could go to the Track to practice. It was easy enough to lose himself in running and chatting with Jack. Much as Jack liked to chat. He decided right away the wolf man didn't need to know about this new ability. At least not yet.

It had taken a lot of effort to get Jack to respect him after the sea anemone thing and he wasn't sure how something like this might go over. Even if Deuce hadn't made any shady deals this time, it was still him being thoughtless and stupid. Of course, eventually the distraction of sprinting was over and as Deuce finished getting dressed after showering that cursed question came into his head.

Did mermen even have dicks? And hell, how did they do it?

Wait why was he even thinking that? It wasn't like he was going to fool around when he was swimming around, was he? No, that would be weird!

Of course, as he entered his currently vacant dorm room, his mind continued to turn circles. Wasn't it sort of stupid to not know how your body worked? Even if it was just a secondary body that you only used some of the time. Maybe never again. But it wasn't like he was some five year old either.

Flopping down on his bed, Deuce sighed and pulled out his phone. Heart thudding, he typed in a search term. And well, he didn't know what he was expecting, but it wasn't reams of porn sites. Even though logically he should have. Face flushed Deuce forced himself to scroll past to find a site with some anatomical pictures. And yes, apparently there was a dick. All tucked into the genital slit. It only came out all the way when the individual was aroused or the area stimulated, such as during reproduction. A little like a dolphin apparently.

"Well then…" Deuce said to himself and then clicked out. But of course that didn't answer the other question he had. How did you have sex? Wait, did he even need to know that? It wasn't like he was going to have it. At least surely if he did it was going to be in his normal, human body when he met "the one."

…okay, he was probably open to a few flings. Deuce could be honest. But still, he wasn't some weirdo.

Of course now curiosity was getting the best of him and none of the websites were really answering the new, important question of how to get down. For being educational materials, they sure were vague. But well... there was the porn…

Swallowing, Deuce got the courage to finally click on one of the links only to be encountered with a blinking message. "Access to this site is restricted per Night Raven College rules! Repeated attempts to enter it will be met with disciplinary action!"

Sweating, Deuce quickly closed out the site and then shut off his phone. "Well it's not like I need to know…" He said to himself, feeling tense. It was probably just… mermaid on male human porn anyways. He'd never seen it, but he'd heard enough locker room talk to know that it was a popular subject. And as curious as he was, he wanted to know how the reverse worked.

Deuce's brain tried to imagine it but found himself short circuiting both from confusion and the sudden heat pooling down below. "Dammit…" He hissed through his teeth. Just as he was about to think of taking care of the problem he heard the door open and looked over his shoulder to see Ace come in. Deuce's frustrated eyes looked into Ace's sullen ones and they stared at each other for a bit.

It was Ace who broke the silence. "Yo," he said as he tossed his gym bag on the bed.

"…hey," Deuce said after a moment before rolling over to face the wall. The worst part of being in a four person room was the difficult in finding any really meaningful "me" time.

It was a minute before Ace finally broke the silence. "Are you still pissed at me?"

"…no." Well Deuce was still a bit annoyed, but some of that was because he was now effectively cock blocked from his hand. And Ace just had an immensely punchable face. But… "Sorry for splashing you early."

There was a long silence followed by the creaking sound of Ace sitting down on his bed. "Buy me snacks tomorrow and I'll accept."

Deuce nearly wanted to tell him to fuck off, but then shrugged. "Alright. The usual?"

"Yeah." There was a long pause. "That was a weird question I asked though, wasn't it? I mean it's not like you're ever going to have to worry about that."

"I'd say so," Deuce said after a moment.

"It's not like you have a girlfriend or anyone who'd be interested in doing something like that anyways."

"I mean no, I don't have time for that," Deuce said, frowning to himself, feeling strangely unhappy over this train of thought and the likely unintentional dig buried in there.

"Mr. Straight-laced," Ace laughed. "…I mean it doesn't help that we're in a boy's school or anything. Unless you're into that sort of thing," a beat, "And I guess, even if you were, there's not a lot of places to get some alone time in."

No there really weren't. You never knew who might interrupt you in the dorms. Well there was the large, empty Ramshackle dorm, but it was full of ghosts. The woods? Probably safe, if you could avoid the fairies, but who wanted to deal with that? Any intimacy would be full of danger.

Still, something in what Ace had said had felt dangerous, almost searching, so Deuce decided it was time to change the subject. "So how many snacks do I owe you before you accept my apology?"

The night had passed without much incident and Deuce and Ace were officially made up by the end of it, as they often were. Back to bickering and picking on each other. Buying snacks the next morning was nothing more than a formality, but Deuce did it anyways. It blew through a significant chunk of his allowance, but he could admit that he was wrong to splash Ace.

Sort of.

As he shifted his bags on the way back, Deuce yawned though. He'd gotten up early to take care of the trip before breakfast and because he couldn't sleep. The discussion last night had been tickling in the back of his mind, an unpleasant thing and he wasn't quite sure why. Even shopping at Sam's hadn't fully erased the feeling

"Into that sort of thing…" He frowned to himself, turning it over again and again, wondering what Ace was implying.

"Into what, Mackerel?" Deuce instantly froze and stomach flip flopping as he felt an arm rest on his shoulder and looked up to see Floyd smiling at him, a bag in hand.

"When did you-" How did he not even see him in Sam's?

"You were so lost in your head you didn't even notice. I'm hurt," he pouted, obviously lying. Well probably not. It was hard to tell sometimes.

"…then say hello," Deuce sighed as he shrugged his shoulder out from under Floyd's hand and then continued on.

"I wanted to see what you were buying. Your taste is boring though."

"It's Ace's taste." There were a few snacks and drinks Deuce had chosen for himself, but the bulk of them were Ace's favorite things.

"Ah, you two do those sorts of things?"

"Sometimes," Deuce sighed, not wanting to get into it with him. If he told Floyd he was making it up to Ace after a fight, he might have to explain why. And well, for one thing, he had a feeling that an impromptu swimming trip might go against some rule Floyd had. And two, he didn't want to talk to Floyd about sex things. Even though he was likely the person who would have the answer to those things…

…no, don't go there brain.

"…what's on your mind, Mackerel? You're quiet."

"Why are you following me?"

"Because the Hall of Mirrors is that way, dumbass," Floyd rolled his eyes.

"Oh… right," Deuce sighed and suddenly couldn't think of what to say.

"But Mackerel," Floyd paused, "after classes, come swimming with me."

"No. I have Track. And don't you have Basketball?"

"Don’t feel like it. You should cut your club too."

"No."

"Is running around that much fun?"

"It's good for stress." Which you're the current cause of, Deuce thought to himself.

"…then maybe I'll come to your club instead." Deuce froze, because he could sense that this would be undesirable on a number of levels. Floyd stared back at him. "You do hurdles right? It's like Parkour. I like Parkour. I could even teach you a few moves."

Deuce had a million questions and then shook his head. "…after practice I'll go swimming with you, alright?"

"Eh… but then I'll have to wait. I don't have work at Monstro for a week. Remember?"

Oh right… Deuce frowned, even though realistically, that shouldn't be his problem. "…if you leave my club alone, I'll go swimming with you the whole week, is that fine?" He couldn't think of anything else to say to mollify Floyd. But something did light up in the 2nd year's eyes.

"You promise?"

"Yes," Deuce frowned and then after a moment, pulled out the two iced coffees he'd bought to indulge himself and handed one over to Floyd. "We can drink on it. Man to man."

Floyd scrunched up his nose as he looked at the can of coffee and then giggled. "Mackerel, you're so weird." But he opened his can at the same time as Deuce and they drank it both down. "It's so cheap tasting" Floyd said once he finished

"It's nostalgic," Deuce said. "But you promise?"

"Yep, yep," Floyd nodded, "but you have to come see me after your club. I'll make an exception if Goldfishy wants you for anything though."

"…thank you," Deuce said, wided eyed for a moment at that odd consideration.

"I don't need him interrupting us," Floyd scratched the back of his neck as tossed his can into a nearby garbage bin and Deuce followed suit, secretly delighted when his can made it in.

"Ah, yeah I'd rather not offend Rosehearts if I can help.

"Yep," Floyd shifted his bag up. "I have a lot of work to do with you Mackerel, so I want you to be able to focus."

"Work?" He frowned then, feeling concerned.

"Don't worry," Floyd smiled, "I think you'll like it."

Of course, "don't worry" really just meant that Deuce now worried the whole time he was in classes and he had to get yelled at by Trien one time for zoning out.

By now he'd learned that "you'll like it," or "don't worry," could mean anything with Floyd. It could mean fun or it could mean he'd bite you or apparently French you…

And once again he was remembering that kiss in light of other things from last night. All the nonsense from yesterday with Ace had caused Deuce to forget that yes, Floyd had taken his first kiss. Apparently with a lot of awareness of the fact that it would be his first.

What did that even mean? Did it mean anything? Maybe it meant nothing at all. There was always that possibility. Or even that Floyd had done it precisely because he knew it would bother Deuce. Who actually knew what Floyd was thinking? Of course, surely even Floyd had some sense of normal propriety. Merpeople weren't that different, were they?

Azul and Jade were mostly pretty normal people who got along with everyone. He'd seen both of them in Heartslabyul often enough, having perfectly normal conversations with Riddle and Trey like it was nothing. And despite his attitude, Floyd did somehow manage to stay in NRC and not get expelled or suspended. So surely it was just a prank and didn't mean anything intimate.

Which meant there was no need to wonder about even more intimate things or ask him questions about such things least Floyd get the wrong idea. That would be terrible. Yep, utterly terrible.

This new train of thought which started right after classes ran throughout most of his club practice until Vargas gave up on him and just made Deuce run laps for the rest of the time. Which was fine with him, since eventually the strain running meant that Deuce couldn't really worry about what was bothering him. It was also a good way to wear out all that teenage hormonal energy that was no doubt a part of Deuce's problems.

By the time he finished showering, Deuce actually felt almost normal. Even seeing a text from Floyd demanding to know what was taking him so long didn't sour his mood too much. He merely headed to Octavinelle, fully resolved to just survive the day with no weird thoughts at all.

"Floyd-senpai, where are we going?" Deuce asked as he swam after him. Once he'd gotten there, Floyd had merely dragged him into Octavinelle's ocean, after a bit of nagging about being "late." Deuce hadn't realized there even was a meeting time, other than after practice. But he'd also decided to not complain, beyond making a mental note to clarify what an actual meeting time should be in the future.

"I told you to just wait…" Floyd muttered, swimming ahead of him. From behind, Deuce could see the muscles in Floyd's back, surprisingly firm and defined underneath the slick, scaly skin. The long dorsal fin remained flattened, its spines looking painfully sharp. The extra-long tail undulated through the water smoothly, as if its owner was making no effort at all. It was hard not to get lost in watching…

"Mackerel, is there something on your mind?" Floyd said absentmindedly as he continued on, not looking at him.

"Eh… nothing," Deuce muttered.

"Really? You've been real quiet."

"…just thinking."

"About what?"

"Nothing," he said, because admitting he was staring at Floyd might go all sorts of ways, none of them good. At least, Deuce felt like he couldn't imagine a good scenario. Especially if he accidentally blurted out that he'd been wondering about the kiss and also about merman anatomy and how it all tied together…

Oh god why did his brain get back on that!?

"Alright," Floyd said after a moment. "It doesn’t matter because we're here," he said as he stopped say that they'd come across the odd sight of what looks like a bunch of underwater bullseye targets planted into the sea bed. Except they seemed to be made of polished stone and had a faint magic glow to them.

"Target practice?" Deuce tapped his chin trying to figure out what he was seeing.

"Yeah. I'm going to teach you how to use magic underwater."

Deuce blinked as he looked at Floyd. "But why?"

Floyd actually groaned out loud and drug a hand down his face. "Because if you ever want to go to the Coral Sea, you have to learn."

"…I still never said I'm going there." He saw a pointed look from Floyd and felt it bore deep into his soul. "Well, I mean, one day, if I feel like it," he then hung his head.

"Mackerel, listen…" Floyd suddenly swam up and grabbed both his hands and Deuce resisted the urge to pull back, if only because the look on Floyd's face was so serious. Not threatening or angry but focused. "I'm going to say this just once, but you're my responsibility. I'm the one who taught you this, so if you go out and about doing who knows what, it reflects badly on me. Like the other day when you said all that stupid shit in front of Jade and Azul. It made me look stupid."

Deuce would have almost been offended by what he'd said, except, once again, it was clear that Floyd meant what he said. "Floyd-senpai… If that's how you really feel…" He frowned trying to think of how to say it and not possibly flip some switch that would cause Floyd to ruin this moment. "Then I promise, I'll do my best!"

"Good," Floyd let go of his hands. "Because I'm not going easy on you!

"Gah!" Deuce scrubbed his clawed hands through his hair. "I don't get it!" He glared at the target in irritation. The targets were designed so that they lit up when the right elemental spell hit them. They'd decided to start with using water and ice, the elemental magic that Deuce was best at.

"That's because you're not listening!" Floyd threw his hands up in the water. "You can't think the way you do on land. It works more like Crabby's wind spell down here! It pushes things!"

"What's the point of a water spell under water anyways?" Deuce could feel his exasperation growing

"More turbulent. Or cold." Floyd sighed and the pushed Deuce out of the way, casting an ice spell. He could feel the water temperature drop as energy surged forward in a visible pulse, causing the target to light up bright blue. "I did it!" The eel twirled around happily.

"…it stops being impressive the tenth time around," Deuce muttered even though it wasn't true. Floyd was amazing. He'd experienced how good his senpai was during those attempts to steal the painting at the Atlantica museum before. But, being on the receiving end of a spell wasn't the same as just watching it. He could see the whole technique in action, the quick and effortless reflexes, no need to even focus as Floyd did it, like breathing.

"Mackerel," Floyd looked at him, an eyebrow raised, "losers shouldn't mock winners." He then reached out and tweaked Deuce's nose causing him to swim backwards.

"Hey!"

"Hey yourself," Floyd sighed, rubbing his neck. "But we've been at this for two hours now and you're still not making progress," Floyd frowned as he tilted his head. "And I know you're good with water."

"It'd be easy if I could just use a cauldron."

"And I showed you exactly why that wouldn't be a good idea. It sinks slower. You might still get someone with it, but you have to surprise them.

"…it could still work," Deuce sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "And how am I just supposed to learn this!? Everything works weird down here!"

"Crabby would have gotten this just fine" Floyd said and that was the last straw on the back of the camel that was Deuce's patience.

"Then maybe you should have taught him instead!" Deuce snapped as he started to swim off.

"Mackerel, don't you dare turn your back on me!"

Deuce tried to ignore Floyd, but he quickly realized his mistake. Brushing off Floyd when he actually wanted your attention was the worst possible way of dealing with him. But never let it be said that Deuce wasn't suicidally stubborn, especially when angry. He never liked being reminded of the fact that Ace was a much better magician than him. Quicker, more imaginative…

It didn't take long to feel his tail being gripped and Deuce was yanked back and spun around. "When I said don't turn your back-" Floyd didn't have a chance to finish spitting out his sentence before Deuce threw a punch or rather tried to because Floyd caught his fist. "You're on thin ice!" It was stupid, Deuce knew that. But he was riled up and tried again, only to have his other hand caught. That wasn't actually a deterrent and on instinct, he tried to slap at Floyd with his tail. He connected, enough to get Floyd shoved back, but not loosen his grip. "Oh fine! You wanna do this, then we'll do this!" Floyd shrieked.

The next thing Deuce knew, he was head butted and saw stars. But Floyd wasn't done and suddenly he was throwing the weight of his body into Deuce's, forcing the two of them down to the sea floor, till Deuce's back crashed into the ground. It didn't hurt as much as it would have above, the water and soft, silky, sand below slowing his impact. But it still left him feel dazed from the impact, which was only emphasized by Floyd pinning his weight on top of him.

Damn, he was heavy too, Deuce thought. They lay there like that a moment and as the fog cleared from Deuce's brain and eyes, he could see Floyd looking down at him, furious. Was he going to get strangled for this? The thought suddenly cut through surge of hot rage he'd felt early, though not enough to make Deuce quake.

"Mackerel, this is what I mean by embarrassing behavior. You're just a tiny fish and I'm a big, scary eel. I eat things like you for breakfast down there," Floyd snapped his teeth. "No one just fucks with an eel."

"I know that!"

"Then why did you get so mad? Because I mentioned Crabby?" Floyd frowned as he said it.

"Yes!"

Floyd was quiet, but didn't move at all, instead his weight shifted a little as he sighed. "Mackerel, you're with Crabby all the time. I'm on the basketball team with Crabby. You both had the same shifts when you were at Monstro and we paired you together. Of course I'm going to compare you, you idiot."

Deuce was silent, feeling frustration and irritation growing. "Then teach him. He knows all about it anyways."

"…I suppose you also told Shrimpy and Earless Seal…" Floyd groaned. "No wonder Crabby's been looking at me all funny." There was a beat and Deuce could actually feel Floyd's tail start to wind around his, as if try to bind him further. "Mackerel, are you jealous? Of Crabby?"

Deuce flinched then, his heart pounding. "No," he lied as he looked away. "Just annoyed. You taught me this all on a whim and now you're so serious for some reason. And you keep doing confusing things!" And had to bring up Ace of all people.

"Confusing? What the fuck is so confusing?" The whole length of Floyd's body was pressed against Deuce's and suddenly he was very aware of everything. Uncomfortably aware of every muscle in Floyd's body, as well as its coldness. "Mackerel… I’m this close-"

"-why the fuck did you stick your tongue down my throat the other day!? Who fucking does that and brushes it off!" It came so fast that Deuce didn't immediately realize just what he'd said until he saw Floyd's expression, utterly gobsmacked.

"You're mad about that?"

"Yes," he said flatly, because suddenly he was realizing that the way their tails were aligned was a bit too convenient for certain things. Potentially, assuming certain things worked that way. He could feel a bump along Floyd's tail, similar to his own. Subtle, with softer scales leading into a crease and, god why was he thinking of that now? Why was his stupid, stupid brain always like this?

"Mackerel… I felt like it. That's all."

"Please," Deuce rolled his eyes. "'Remember who gave you fins?' Remember when you said that? I'm never going to forget that…" And something sparked in his mind then as he remembered a lot of little details from that day. "Were you jealous of your brother? Or Ashengrotto-senpai?"

And for once, he saw Floyd actually flinch. "Oi, you're really asking for it."

"Senpai, what is it you want? Really. Because even though I've figured out that much, I'm pretty dense. I need to know what it is." He was being an idiot, but Deuce had never been good at backing down.

"So you can run away?"

"…I don't know." Deuce really didn't. He could honestly have just gone to a teacher and told them to get Floyd to leave him alone. Or just ignored him and holed up in Heartslabyul. Let Riddle deal with the problem that Floyd was. It would be worth getting beheaded once or twice. And Floyd would have become bored by the effort. Probably.

"You're annoying." Floyd was pressing down even harder against him, grinding against that spot, though not in a way that was at all satisfying. "You want to know so badly?"

"Yes! Assuming you know why?" Sometimes Deuce had started to suspect that Floyd was just as clueless about Floyd as the rest of the school. And this seemed to be one of those moments.

"…you're really pretty, Mackerel," Floyd's voice was soft now. "You know that? Like I didn't think you were going to be so pretty when you changed. Just kind of goofy," Floyd giggled. "Hell you still are because of how dumb you are. But," he paused, "you made my heart stop." Well that definitely wasn't what Deuce had expected.

"I don't know what I'm supposed to do with that," Deuce said, feeling his heart thudding. His first confession and it was like this? Why did this guy keep taking all of these important moments from him?

"…you don't have to do anything. Just listen to me when I ask you something."

"That's not how it works," Deuce frowned as he tried to once again push Floyd off but with no success. It wasn't just his size that was the problem, but the power behind it. So he gave up for the moment and instead tried shift his tail for a moment, even though that meant more of that really unfortunate stimulation was happening. "You can't just tell a guy that and expect him to react normally. It's not fair."

"You're the one who isn't being fair. You're so ungrateful and you keep-" there was a long pause and suddenly Floyd went quiet. "Mackerel, stop moving. Now."

Deuce was about to protest when he felt something poking him, rubbing against that sensitive area of his and froze. He looked up and saw an ugly brownish staining Floyd's cheeks. Was he blushing? "Floyd-senpai is that…"

"S-shut up!" But despite that he wasn't letting go and he realized he could feel the heart beat hammering in Floyd's chest. "You stupid, stupid…"

There was a lot going through Deuce's head right now. Panic, mortification, and a growing heat that he wasn't sure how to contain. Wait why was he…? Oh God. Oh god he had to pull away before… He could see Floyd's eyebrow raise suddenly.

"Mackerel, I know I keep saying it, but you are so fucking stupid," Floyd said as he let him go and swam back a little ways but stayed in arms reach. Deuce looked at Floyd, casting his gaze downwards. He could see that below Floyd's hips the genital slit had opened up and poking out was what appeared to be some kind of penis. It was about as big as an average human one, but looked far more slick and tapered into a point.

"Why are you staring?" Floyd hissed through his teeth, placing a hand over his face.

"I-I, just…" Deuce stammered only to have Floyd suddenly reach down and grip something on Deuce that he hadn't realized was even there. Shuddering, Deuce looked down and realized that he was also sporting an erection, a much bigger one than Floyd's. "What are you doing?" He shouted and swatted Floyd's hand away.

"…heh, you're a pervert, aren't you Mackerel? And big for your size." It was quite a bit bigger actually too and thicker than Floyd's but that wasn't the point right now.

"I'm not a pervert! You're the one who pinned me down and told me that crap!"

"And you asked! You could have just let me alone!"

"How? When you don't leave me alone?" Of course, the stupid absurdity of arguing when they were both sporting boners like this wasn't lost on Deuce.

"Do you want me to leave? Right now?" Deuce was about to say yes, only something about the wording caused his voice to stick in his throat. "Mackerel," Floyd's gaze softened a bit, "how about for once, I give you a little reward?"

"A what?"

"You're so…" Floyd grumbled to himself but then sank a little lower, resting one hand on Deuce's shoulder. "It'll feel good," Floyd said as he reached with his free hand and touched Deuce's dick like it was nothing and he felt his brain short circuit.

Realistically he should have tried to swim away again, or any of the other million, logical reactions to this situation. But instead he felt his hips jolt and bit the inside of his mouth. Suddenly Deuce was remembering what Ace had said about there being no where to get some alone time in this school, even if you had that inclination. That thing that had been gnawing at the edge of his brain was suddenly out in full force.

He cautiously, without really thinking about it reached out to Floyd to do the same and gripped him only to have Floyd freeze. "Mackerel…"

"No?" Deuce frowned, letting his hand remain there, slack on Floyd's length.

"I didn't say that," Floyd said as he moved his hand again. Feeling a bit emboldened, Deuce let his hand run across it, fascinated by the feeling. While it had looked smooth, it was slightly sticky, with a clear layer of mucus, though not nearly as thick as that which coated Floyd's body. The skin was soft and velvety, almost too much so, with a heat in it that was so different from the eel's cold skin. The tip was pointed and curved up slightly, much like what Deuce currently had. There were no thick veins jutting out or foreskin though. There was a slited opening at the top, but it wasn't nearly as long as a human's.

Deuce's breath hitched a little though as he felt Floyd's hand continue to stroke him. It seemed like the whole area was profoundly sensitive and he had to wonder how it hadn't just popped out before. He looked up at Floyd's face and was surprised by how hazy the expression was, flickers of reaction coming across it.

"Floyd-senpai, is it any good?"

"Clumsy. So Clumsy. I'd do a much better job," Deuce wanted to retort only for Floyd to let go of his cock and brush Deuce's hand away from his. He lowered his body down so that they were rubbing against each other. "Press up against me."

Floyd's voice was soft, hardly anything close to an order, but Deuce started to move up against him anyways even as he felt Floyd do the same. They were quiet for a while, save for small moans as they frotted against each other, guided by an almost natural, primal instinct that overwrote the pure bizarreness of the situation. The heat and warmth was far too good for something this simple and only matched by the look on Floyd's face, soft and almost dazed.

Eventually, Deuce did feel himself reaching his climax, a sensation both familiar and different. There was no tightening sensation in his balls, everything being tucked away as it was. But otherwise, he felt the build of tension and then at once an eruption and he gritted his teeth as he found release, a habit from having to get off discreetly one too many times.

"Hehe.. so fast Mackera-" Floyd paused, closing his eyes and grimacing as a shudder went through his body.

"Shut up," Deuce muttered, though there wasn't much heat in it, instead letting his body relax and unwind as he looked down between them, seeing something white and cloudy drift through the water. "Is Ashengrotto-senpai going to be mad?"

"What he doesn't know won't hurt him," Floyd sighed as he rode out the last of the orgasm, relaxing against Deuce. Somehow he felt even heavier than when he'd first pressed Deuce down into the sea floor, though it was actually far more comfortable this time. Deuce felt relaxed, all the tension from before gone. And there was a bit of clarity in his mind, mixed with some curiosity.

After a longer moment of silence, he decided to speak. "Senpai, does this mean-"

"-it doesn't need to mean anything. Just don't do anything like that with Jade or Azul."

"I didn’t' plan on doing anything with them."

"Yeah but don't do it anyways."

"You can't just order me around like that," he softly and after a moment, curiously, reached his hand up to touch Floyd's hair. It was soft, much softer and finer than his own, the teal strands easily sliding through his fingers to drift in the water. "I just need to know what to expect."

"I dunno what to tell you."

Deuce felt a prick of annoyance, but let it slide. "Well like you said, I'm stupid. And I don't always get things like this. So I do need you to tell me something. Anything."

"Ask better questions."

And he had to screw up his courage then, because he knew he was asking something dangerous. "Do you like me?"

Floyd looked up at him then, face frowning. "I like everyone at this school. Well okay, I don't like some of the fourth years. But I like most of my classmates…"

Deuce sighed, because of course. "I meant, you know…"

"…it's nothing sappy or gross like 'love' if that's what you mean. I just think you're pretty. Even though you're not as squishy as I'd normally like. Well the cheeks are," he smirked as he reached up and poked Deuce's face. "I dunno though. When you have legs, you're just… cute. A six. But we're in a school of eights, nines and tens so it's not a big deal. But with fins…" He laughed then. "You're a ten."

"Oh… is that why Ashengrotto and Jade-senpai were…" It explained certain comments the two them had made when Deuce had been down there. As well as all the touching.

"Mmmm, yeah. Like if you went down below to the Coral Sea, they'd all be hitting on you. You'd be popular."

"Hehehe, that's kind of nice to know," Deuce couldn't help but laugh. Really despite what some people thought of him, Deuce did like to think he looked nice. And somehow, knowing he made an attractive looking merman was making him a bit giddy. "Though… I guess what you're saying is you like me for my body?"

"What? Is that so bad?" Floyd leaned his forehead against Deuce's then and looked in his eyes. "Or are you saying you want me to be your boyfriend?"

"No!" Deuce flinched at his own voice. "I mean it's not like we've ever really gotten along."Floyd frowned. "We had fun when we were on vacation together.""Hmmm, I suppose you're right." For a value of fun, though Deuce could admit it hadn't all been bad. "And…" He trailed off thinking for a moment, before he decided. "I mean, I'd like to learn. How to use magic underwater. If you're still willing to teach me."

"As long as you keep doing what I say and as long as it's fun for me," Floyd said and then he blinked. "Mackerel's suddenly not so fighty. Did you jizz your brains out?""

"No!" Deuce chose that moment to push Floyd away, who complied. Both of them were pretty fully sheathed by now, though the afterglow remained. "Though… I do feel relaxed," he as he righted himself up and then raised his arms and stretched. "Not enough to practice more magic today."

Floyd snorted as he crossed his arms. "Wasn't going to offer. I feel like you'll just piss me off again."

"…'m not that bad," Deuce grumbled as Floyd swam up to him.

"Pretty bad. You can't hit the broad side of a shipwreck."

"Oh yeah!? Let me show you right now!" Deuce shouted as he swam back towards the targets.

"I said I wasn't interested!"

"Shut up and just watch me!"

"Mackerel, I ought to squeeze for doing that," Floyd growled as they walked through Octavinelle's halls.

"But I did it! I hit the target!" Deuce pumped his fist, feeling unusually proud.

"And you blew sand into my eye," Floyd muttered, rubbing his right eye for emphasis.

"We got it out" Deuce shrugged. Which had been a struggle with how Floyd had whined and wailed like a small child.

"It still stings!"

"I'm sorry, but I still did a good job!" Other Octavinelle dorm members walked by eyeing the two but saying nothing.

"Fine! Fine!" Floyd spread his arms in annoyance. "You did good! Now kiss me and make it better!"

Deuce turned, paused and turned red. "Hah?"

"My eye! Kiss it now!"

"N-no," Deuce stammered and turned away. "Besides, you're the one who said we aren't even-"

"-that's different!"

"No, it's not!"

"What do you want to date!?"

"Not so loud!" Deuce looked and as they approached the Hall of Mirrors which had emptied out. "And no, I don't. Not really."

"Not really? And you complained before about me being confusing," Floyd said as he crossed his arms. There was a long silence as Deuce turned to face him and they stared at each other for a long moment.

Damn, he had a point. "Well," Deuce scratched the back of his ear, "I don’t want to date but I don't mind the physical part of it."

"Ehhhh…" Floyd gave him a long stare and Deuce's heart started beating a mile a minute. Then the Merman smiled. "I didn't think you were that dirty."

"I'm not!" Deuce hissed between his teeth.

"I didn't say I minded," Floyd chuckled.

"Oh," Deuce frowned, not sure how to respond. "I mean I'm not saying I want to do it whenever."

"Nah, I don't either," Floyd said as he let his arms hang at his sides. "But it seems like you learn a lot better when you're not tense. Especially if you just got off, so maybe…"

"T-that's not…" Of course once again, he thought about that convo with Ace. This guy was obviously inclined that way and he also had a place that seemed to be private enough. What was there to lose except possibly a finger, which might be a small price to play for some stress relief. "I mean… if it happens again, I wouldn't mind," Deuce tried to say it non-chalantly.

"So we're sex friends now?"

Well that was one way to put it but then, after a moment, Deuce extended his hand. "Sure. Sex friends and mentor-student."

"Eh?" Floyd's face screwed up then he reached out and took Deuce's hand, giving it quickly, loose shake. "Mackerel, you're so silly."

"I'm in your care, Senpai."

"…yeah," Floyd's smile softened a bit and he nodded. "I'll take good care of ya."