Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Long ago there was once a community of merpeople who had been blessed by the gods with the ability to walk on land. The legend goes that there was a young mermaid who was so in love with all creatures of the land that she prayed to the gods to grant her the ability to walk on land with them. Amused that a creature of the sea cared so deeply for those of the land, the gods granted her the ability to transform into any land creature she saw. The only catch was that she could not return to the sea. She eagerly accepted, and with her new found ability, she traveled the earth, discovering new creatures, transforming into every animal she met. For years, she discovered and learned all about the land creatures. Her favorite creatures were the humans. She loved how they played and learned and laughed. Eventually even falling in love with a human. Even though she loved the land creatures, she began to long for the sea, and prayed to the gods to allow her to return to the sea. 

The gods were aghast someone would want to return their gift. The elder gods decided that they would allow her to return to the sea, but since she was ungrateful for their gift, she would be forced to give up her ability entirely. The young mermaid wept, for she could not imagine never seeing all her land dwelling friends, and lover ever again. A young god, moved by her tears and love for her friends, spoke up and he convinced the elder gods to grant her mercy. They would allow for the young mermaid to return to the sea, and keep her ability, but she would not be able to hold her transformations for longer than one day before she would be forced to return to the sea, or else turn into sea foam. 

The mermaid accepted the agreement. She went on to have several children who inherited her ability. As generations passed, the ability to transform became limited. Individuals could no longer call upon the ability to transform into any land creature they encountered, but instead, their transformation was predetermined by the gods at birth, resulting in merpeople with the ability to change into anything from birds, to snakes, to tigers. The agreement that the mermaid had with the gods still stood, as no merperson could stay on land longer than one day.

It became a rite of passage for young merpeople on the eve of their 20th year to climb upon the shore and discover their transformation, which was always cause for celebration. It was also a practice to have the village elders present at these celebrations, as a person’s transformation could lead to them playing an important role in protecting the village.

It was also strictly forbidden for anyone under the age of 20 to leave the sea. While the mermaid of legend had befriended humans, they soon forgot their friend, and many a merperson had been killed by the hand of man, having been mistaken for a wild animal.

Of course, this rule did nothing to deter the future village head, Gojo Satoru.

“Alright men,” the young boy of twelve floated right below the ocean’s surface, his snow white hair glowing orange from the distorted rays of the setting sun, “Today, is an important day in history. We're gonna learn what our transformations are!” He boasted with hands on his hips. “Now, who’s gonna go first?”

The two other young boys were silent. Nanami Kento, the blond of the group, spoke up. “We thought you were going first. It was your idea after all.” His slate blue tail twitched as it kept him floating in place. The other boy, Haibara Yu, nodded in agreement, his deep green tail seemed to shake with excitement. Satoru looked at the small group and rolled his eyes.

“That's exactly why I can't go first. What fun would that be?” He observed the group again, “Hold on! I’ve got it! Last one to find a conch shell goes first. Ready, set, go!” Satoru took off, before the other children had time to react. Quickly, the other boys took note and began their frantic search. 

“Found one!” Satoru shouted. 

“I’ve got one too!” Kento stated.

“Yes! Got one here!” Yu swam up to the other boys only to realize he’d been last, “Aw what? No fair…”

“Okay, Yu goes first!” Satoru shouted. The trio swam up to the surface, heads now bobbing on the water. They hung back away from where the waves were breaking, “Well, what are you waiting for? Go on, Yu.” 

“I’m going! I just… was making sure there’s no humans. Their village is pretty close.” The young boy pointed quite a bit ways down the shore. There in the distance was a large castle. “Grandma said the village was near the south side of the island so we gotta be careful.”

“Well, they are over there, and we’re over here. So go!” Satoru gave Yu a shove, getting him caught in the next swell of waves heading into shore. The brunette shot their leader a dirty look, but continued swimming toward the shore. The two merchildren bobbing in the water watched with bated breath, as their friend slowly dragged himself out of the water. They watched in fascination as seafoam began appearing around their friend who shouted in surprise. The foam fully coated the boy so they could no longer see the shape of him. Suddenly, a brown dog burst forth from the seafoam. 

“Yu! You’re a dog!” Satoru whooped. The dog barked at the boys and ran around the beach excitedly before running into the water. Again, seafoam covered the creature and this time Yu emerged from the foam.

“That was crazy! What was it like?” Satoru gripped Yu’s arm tightly, bursting with excitement. Yu was all smiles as he was greeted by his friends.

“It was so weird! I felt this tingling all across my skin, and then I couldn’t see through the seafoam and all of a sudden, it just happened!”

“Okay! Kento’s turn!” The blond rolled his eyes, but his friends could tell he was just as excited as them. Kento pulled himself up onto the beach, and the process repeated. This time, a beautiful sandy blond colt emerged from the seafoam. Looking to the sea, the young horse whinnied and reared, and his friends hollered and cheered from their watery location. The colt ran back into the water and Kento appeared next to them a moment later. 

“How do you feel!?” Yu’s eyes were bright.

“I… that felt so weird! It felt so normal, but also not-normal? But at the same time.” Kento explained. The two boys turned their attention to Satoru.

“Okay Satoru! Your turn!” Yu stated.

“Oh man! I hope I change into a bear! Or a wolf!” Satoru shouted as he quickly dove through the waves excited at the prospect of his changed form. He pulled himself up through the shallows to lay in the sun. He started to feel the tingling feeling the other boys had mentioned, and he was covered in seafoam.

Satoru closed his eyes, feeling his body change. Just as quickly as it started, the feeling vanished. His eyes snapped open and he crawled out of the foam. The first thing he noticed was that he still had hands. Looking below his waist, gone were the rough scales of his deep blue tail, in their place were a pair of long pale legs. Sitting in the sand, he reached down, touching the two new appendages. He almost couldn’t believe it; he could change into a human! He quickly pushed himself up off the beach, standing on unsteady human legs. Wobbling, he looked down, observing himself. Gravity on land was an odd feeling; always having a part of his body constantly pressing against something solid wasn’t uncomfortable exactly, but he was surprised human feet were more sensitive than he thought. He rubbed his hands on his thighs, not used to the feeling of soft skin, when he suddenly noticed there was something different… Well, there was something missing. 

“Holy crabs, Satoru! You’re a girl!” Yu’s voice could barely be heard over the crashing of the waves. Embarrassment immediately flushed Satoru’s cheeks. He scowled angrily at his friends who were falling over themselves with laughter. This discovery was a low blow to his already sensitive self image. His whole life everyone had described him as beautiful, with his striking aquamarine colored eyes, sand white hair, and deep navy blue tail that always shimmered too much for his liking. Though he was only twelve, he could tell that he was built differently from the other meremen; his thin frame was built more for speed than it was to fight off danger. All of that paired with the knowledge that he could transform into a girl… It was embarrassing. Part of him was glad he found out with only these two present; gods forbid if he had actually waited until his 20th birthday to be exposed to the whole village. He was just about to tell his friends to eat sand, when he noticed that they were no longer bobbing along the surface.

“Oh! Hello…” Satoru jumped as he spun around to face the new voice. A young human boy in a green yukata appeared out of the forest that lined the beach. He looked to be about Satoru’s age, his dark onyx hair was tied back in a tight top knot, a few strands hung loose, framing one side of his blushing face. But what caught Satoru’s attention was the boy’s sparkling violet eyes. Even in the fading sunlight, they seemed to shine from within. Satoru felt his heart skip a beat when their eyes met. The young boy suddenly blushed deeply and averted his gaze. “Um… I’m sorry. Are you okay?” 

Satoru’s face flushed anew, as he realized that he was fully exposed. He didn’t know too much about the human world, but he knew enough that his nakedness was something to be embarrassed about. His hands quickly covered his lower region as he dashed back into the waves. 

“Wait!” The human boy shouted as Satoru ran clumsily into the ocean. He felt the tingling feeling again as the seafoam quickly covered him, transforming him back to his normal finned self. He sped away from the shore into the deeper open water.

Satoru let out a deep breath of relief once he was fully submerged in the water, his face flushed and heart pounding in his chest.

“Satoru!” Yu’s voice cried through the water. Satoru winced, as the brunette boy tackled him into a hug from behind, sending them tumbling under the waves. “Are you okay? What happened? We saw the human, and dove right away!” Kento swam up meeting them.

“Nothing happened.” Satoru said roughly, shoving the frantic young merboy off himself. 

“Did that boy see you?” Kento eyed him, causing Satoru to squirm. 

“No! Well… Maybe. It’s getting dark anyway, so it’s fine. Besides he only saw…” Satoru trailed off, embarrassed to finish his sentence. He was so angry at the gods. He was a boy! Why had they cursed him with this transformation? His friends' transformations had both been male; why was he different? Was it because he turned into a human? That had to be the reason. He had never heard of any merperson with the ability to turn into a human. It had to be some sort of cruel joke. The first merman in history who could change into a human, could change into a woman.

“What did he see, Satoru?” Yu’s question brought him back to the present, and he couldn’t hold back the way he snapped at the brunette.

“He saw a girl! And he will never see that girl again, because she’s dead!” Satoru’s sky blue eyes darkened with a furry that the two merboys had never seen before. “She died today, because I’m never going back on land again. And if either of you say anything about what we did today, I’ll… I’ll banish you both!” He spun back around and took off. 

Satoru ignored his friends as they called out to him. He torpedoed his way through the hidden tunnels, sneaking back into his family’s cavern, where he curled into himself. As he let the calming currents of the water rock him to sleep, Satoru silently vowed that he would never step foot on land again.

Chapter Text

Satoru tossed and turned unable to sleep. He could feel the temperature change in the water, a clear sign that there was a storm on the horizon. He sighed, and climbed out of the small cavern bed. He ran his fingers through his hair, untangling the knots that the currents had tied, and flexed his fins. Tonight wasn’t the first night he’d found himself too restless to sleep. It was a regular occurrence these days. The elders had noticed the dip in his performance, and they had chalked it up to excitement of his fast approaching 20th birthday. 

Stupid old shrimps. They were only half right. It wasn’t excitement he was feeling, but dread. In only two weeks his secret he kept so closely guarded since that day, would finally be revealed. That he could transform into a human woman. Satoru shuttered, partly from the chill in the water. In two weeks he would become the laughing stock of the village mermen. Not only that, he would probably become even more of a puppet for the village elders. He didn’t know exactly what they would have him do, but whatever it was would probably involve missions to covertly protect the undersea village from humans. He sighed. He needed some fresh water. Swimming out of his chambers into the lava tunnels, he followed the path he knew by heart. Even without his naturally heightened eyesight, or the soft blue glow of the bioluminescent algae that lined the tunnels, he knew every turn like the back of his hand. After all, it was his duty as the next village head to know. Yet another burden that had been thrust upon him since birth. 

Satoru made his way out to the open water. He swam along the shoreline, slow and lethargic, imitating the nurse sharks that would frequent the shallows. It was a camouflage tactic that most merpeople used when swimming this close to shore. Not that he currently ran the risk of being spotted by a human, since it was the middle of the night in the heart of winter.

Satoru stopped swimming at that realization and decided to breach the surface. Flicking his hair out of his face, Satoru took in his surroundings. The storm clouds above crowded together, a low rumble of thunder told him that they would release soon. Off in the distance, he saw the orange glow of lanterns and torches from the samurai castle. It dawned on him that this was the location where he had made his embarrassing discovery all those years ago. He hadn’t even been paying attention to where he was swimming. He let out a dry laugh at the irony of it. Tilting his head back he whispered to the dark and angry sky.

“You gods must think you are so funny and clever to curse me the way you have.” He thought back to that fateful day. He had kept his promise and had never stepped foot on land again, but he had not forgotten the feeling of the transformation. He winced as his mind drifted to thoughts of the young human boy who discovered him. He was just thankful that the boy hadn’t seen him transform. That would have been disastrous, for many reasons. He had threatened his friends with banishment back then to keep his secret, but at the end of the day, Nanami and Haibara wouldn’t have told anyone, even if he hadn’t threatened them. 

Satoru floated on his back staring into the dark clouds, letting the growing current carry him along. The moment of tranquility was broken when he heard someone yelling on the shore. He floated upright, sinking his tail back beneath the waves. Scanning the shoreline he searched for the source of the yelling. There! A small yellow glow of a lantern outlined the silhouette of a man standing on the beach. He looked like he was standing right where the waves met the sand. Rather dangerous with a storm approaching. The man seemed to be yelling into the sea. 

Ignoring the warning bells that were ringing in his head, Satoru swam closer in an attempt to hear what the man was yelling. He could only hear parts of the shouted message, as the waves and increasing wind drowned out most of the humans' words.

“I want… choose… love...Traditions be damned!” Satoru chuckled at the butchered phrase. Sounds like he and this guy would get along. He felt the rain start to sprinkle and deciding he had heard enough, Satoru turned to swim back out to sea, when he got caught in the pull of a large wave that hurled him head over fin towards the occupied beach. Sharks! He was way too close to the shore! When he finally got his barings, he realized he was about thirty feet from the shore, the water just deep enough for him to feel the sand brush the tips of his fins. 

“Hello?!” Satoru looked around, and realized that the shout had come from the man on the beach. Double sharks! His damn hair could be spotted a mile away. “Are you alright?! Don’t panic! You need to swim to shore!” 

Unsure of what to do, Satoru panicked and dipped below the waves. He had to get out of here now! He glanced back and saw a shadowy figure had entered the water. No! The stupid human followed him into the water! Was he trying to rescue him? He needed to think of a way to get the human to turn back to shore without exposing himself, when suddenly the human was knocked over by a rogue wave. The current was strong, a clear sign of the strength of this impending storm, and the man didn’t stand a chance as he was pulled into the ocean’s grip. For a moment, Satoru was relieved; if the human drowned, then there was nothing to worry about. He watched the man struggle to break the surface, only to be knocked down, and pulled along by the unrelenting current. 

He should leave. The human was on his own now and not his problem. 

If the human died, Satoru was guaranteed to be safe. Satoru watched as the process happened again and clenched his fists. Would he really be okay if this human drowned? It was due to his own carelessness that this man was in the water in the first place. The man broke the surface just long enough to shout.

“Help me! Someone, help us!” 

‘Us’ The human really had been trying to save him. But there was no way he would be heard over the churning waves. Satoru shook his head. 

No, he couldn’t let this man drown. He had to save this stranger.

Satoru quickly sprung into action. His strong tail propelled him through the water toward the shadow of the man, who was fighting for another breath of air, as he was pulled further down the shore. As Satoru came closer, he noticed the young man’s features; he had taken off his shirt exposing his broad shoulders, his long dark hair created a soft black halo around his face, perfectly framing his sharp fox-like eyes.

The human seemed to notice Satoru’s fast approach, (surely he just looked like a shadowy figure under the dark waves) and turned his face toward him. For a brief moment, time seemed to stand still. Blue met violet, and Satoru realized this was the boy who had seen him all those years ago. Satoru knew that humans couldn’t see well at night or in the water, but in that moment, he would have bet his left gill that the man could actually see him.

Just as quickly as it happened, the moment ended, and another wave sent the human tumbling through the water toward a section of submerged lava rocks. Satoru bolted and wrapped his arms around the man’s torso, the human’s battered body gone limp. The scent of iron muddied the water.

Crabs! He must have hit his head. 

Satoru quickly pulled him up toward the surface. The storm was fully upon them now. Breaking the surface, Satoru struggled to keep the unconscious man’s head above water. Fighting against the unrelenting current, Satoru continued to push them toward the shore, using the crashing waves to gain momentum. Finally, Satoru reached the shallows. He pulled the man’s unconscious body as far up the sand as he could. It occurred to Satoru that he wasn’t sure if his transformation would happen with the rain pelting from above, but he had to get this man out of the freezing water. Seeing no other options, he rolled the human onto his back, his limp arms dangling over Satoru’s shoulders, and his head hanging just as lifeless. Satoru panted as he pushed himself up and dragged the two of them up the sand away from the crashing waves. His tail was a deadweight behind him, and the added body weight of the human was crushing him. When he finally felt they were far enough away from the waves, Satoru dumped the man off his back, and rolled over, his chest heaving from the effort. It was then he noticed the seafoam forming around him. He was able to change!

It happened as quickly as he remembered, the itchy, tingly feeling, followed by a sharp snap, and it was over. As the seafoam vanished, he looked over to the dark haired man, ice flooding his veins as he realized his chest was not moving. No! He couldn’t be dead! Not after all that. Satoru quickly pushed himself up and started shaking the man. 

“Please! Wake up! You’re on land now! Breath!” Satoru winced at the chime of his own voice. It sounded nothing like his deep tenor. The man remained silent to Satoru’s pleas. Satoru panicked. What could he do? What can he do? One of the elder’s old stories flashed in his mind. Back in the days of sirens, if they deemed a human worth saving after luring them into the waves, sirens would breathe air into the sailor’s mouths, helping them to breath under the waves. Not knowing what else to do, Satoru took a breath of air, and blew it into the human’s mouth. 

Nothing. 

He tried again. 

And again.

“Breath!” Satoru shouted. He breathed again into the man. 

The body under him suddenly convulsed. Pulling back, Satoru watched as the human rolled over and vomited up copious amounts of seawater. 

“You’re alive.” He whispered. 

The man rolled onto his back and looked up at Satoru. 

Again, violet met blue. 

“Y-you saved me.” His voice was hoarse and his eyes were unfocused, and all Satoru could do was nod. The icy rain pelted them, but all Satoru could feel was the warmth unfurling in his chest as he stared at this man. Who was he?

“Master Geto!” A voice called, just barely heard above the rain and sea. “Geto-sama, where are you!?” Both sets of eyes widened. Satoru turned to run back to the sea, but he was stopped by the hand that grabbed his wrist. 

“I’m here!” The man, Geto apparently, shouted back. Violet eyes glanced at him. “We’re over here!”

Chapter Text

This was very bad.

Satoru sat in a large tatami floored room wearing borrowed robes that were too small for his (surprisingly tall) human frame. In front of him was a cup of steaming liquid and a bowl full of human food which he was hesitant to touch. After he and Geto had been discovered on the beach, the search party had been a flurry of activity, wrapping him and Geto in blankets and robes. They spoke too fast and asked too many questions and pushed him along toward the castle, and he was helpless to follow. 

As they entered the surrounding outer walls of the castle, Satoru had never felt more like a fish out of water than he did at that moment. The structure was huge, and intimidating. He’d never seen anything like it under the sea. He was so caught up in the building that he didn’t notice that someone was speaking to him.

“Are you injured?” The voice came from a short brown haired woman with a small mole under her eye. Satoru winced at her voice. Everything was so loud above the water. He shook his head no. “Perfect, please come with me.” Seeing no other option he followed the woman. She took him into a large building where she guided him to a small room where she assisted dressing him. 

“The young master’s mother wishes to see you. Seeing as your current wardrobe is…” She looked him up and down. He was still wearing the thick robe he’d been cloaked in on the beach, “Lacking… I’ve been asked to provide you with some of my attire.” He blushed at her statement, and blushed even harder when she had him disrobe. Dressed in a simple, but extremely well made dark blue yukata with a butterfly pattern, the woman, Lady Shoko she’d told him, left Satoru alone in the main hall where he was told to wait for the Lord’s Mother. 

Satoru thought he was doing well, all things considered. Sure, he’d been discovered by humans and then taken to the massive castle that the whole undersea village warned him from birth to never go near, but at least he was alive. That was good, right?

The door slid open, startling Satoru. A frail woman dressed in an ornate kimono entered the room. Though she looked ill, there was an air about her that commanded respect. It sent a chill down Satoru’s spine. Two young ladies assisted her, helping her to the cushioned seat across from Satoru. With their mistress seated, they silently removed his untouched food and exited the room leaving them alone. The elder woman looked him over expectantly, yet her expression remained unreadable.

“Do they not teach manners from where you’re from, girl?” Her voice was stern but soft. Satoru blushed and bowed his head. He had no idea what was considered customary on land, but hoped that this would suffice. As the future village head he had suffered through several lessons on how to behave in high society, but he felt so out of place here and truly couldn’t think straight. The lord mother hummed, more or less satisfied with his display. “Tell me your name, girl.”

Satoru swallowed. “My name is Gojo Sa-“ He paused. He couldn’t give them his real name, could he? Satoru would be an odd name for a woman. It would be the equivalent of naming a boy Megumi; just embarrassing. “My name is Gojo Tohru, my lady.” 

“Hm. I’ve not heard of your family name before. Where are you from?” Satoru was thankful his future training had also included how to keep a good poker face. 

“I come from a land far away from this one.” He lowered his head in respect, “Forgive me, but I’m afraid your ladyship has not heard of my home.” 

“I’m inclined to believe you, as I’ve never seen someone with your unique complexion before. Such striking features…”

“Your ladyship is too kind.” Satoru felt nauseous at the comment. Even among the merpeople his white hair and bright blue eyes were considered odd, but having this stranger say it out loud in his current body had his skin crawling. 

“Indeed. Tell me something, Gojo-san,” Satoru squirmed under her gaze. “What were you doing on the beach this evening? While I am thankful you were there to save my son, it is curious that you were found alone with him in such a… compromising state. What with you and your lack of dress, and my poor Suguru’s injury… you must understand this doesn’t bode well for you.” Satoru felt his heart skip a beat; so that was his name, Geto Suguru. He felt that warmth grow in his chest again, but was quickly sobered by the lady’s stone cold gaze. She was right; a man and a woman found alone on a secluded beach in the middle of the night would cause suspicion. Not to mention Satoru’s nakedness. Then to make matters worse, Geto’s head injury seemed to also add suspicion to the situation.

“My son makes it no secret that he’s not overjoyed by the fact he will have to go through with his arranged marriage soon, as he wishes to marry for love. I would hate to learn that you may be the reason behind his apprehension on the matter.” The woman’s eyes spark with fire. 

“Your ladyship, I assure you-“

“You best think carefully about your next words to me my dear. For even if you deny being involved with my son, there is still the question of why he was injured on the beach. Head wounds like that don’t just happen.” Satoru could feel his stomach churn. First this woman accuses him of having relations with Geto, now she’s accusing him of trying to assassinate him? Did this lady have a personal vendetta against him?

“I-“

“Mother,” Satoru whipped his head around at the sound of Geto’s voice, “I hope you are treating our guest well. After all, this is the young woman who saved my life.” Satoru couldn’t help the blush that rose to his cheeks as he met Geto’s eyes. 

“Suguru! What are you doing here? I was informed that your injuries required you to rest.”

“You were informed correctly, mother. However, I was informed that you were interrogating our lovely guest, and wished to clear the air before any assumptions were made.” Satoru watched as Geto prostrated himself before his mother. That must have been what she expected him to do earlier upon entering the room. Satoru made a mental note should he ever need to use it in the future.

“Mother, what happened on the beach this evening was entirely my fault.” Satoru couldn’t help but to silently agree. “I left the castle grounds in an attempt to clear my head after today's marriage meeting with Lady Utahime. I found myself on the beach, and caught a glimpse of someone in the water, and dove in to rescue them.” Satoru felt his heart race at the thought of Geto wanting to rescue him. It was utterly stupid and completely unnecessary, but flattering all the same. “Unfortunately, I didn’t realize that a storm was moving in and was swept up in the swells.” Geto pulled himself up into a seated position. “As we are all aware, I sustained a minor head injury, which I assume happened under the waves.” Geto gently touched his forehead, “It’s a bit fuzzy, however, I do recall seeing bright blue eyes. When I awoke again, I was on the beach with…” Geto looked back at him, his violet eyes soft, “My apologies, I don’t seem to know my savior's name.”

“It’s Gojo T-Tohru, Geto-sama.” Satoru felt himself stumble over the fake name. He silently wishes he could have told him his real name. Something told him that hearing Geto-sama say his given name would cause him to unravel.

“Gojo-san,” Geto lowered his hands to the floor and bowed his head, this time toward Satoru. “Thank you for saving my life this evening.” Satoru couldn’t think straight. How was this man so pretty? His heart was going to beat right out of his chest.

“Suguru dear, we don’t know-“

“Mother, with all due respect, I am the master of this estate now, and I would like for us to put this matter to bed. It’s been an eventful evening and I believe we could all use some rest. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ll be showing Lady Gojo to her room for the evening.” Geto stood and bowed, gesturing for Satoru to do the same. Following his lead, Satoru left the lord mother behind as they made their way through the seemingly endless halls. 

“I apologize for my mother’s behavior.” Geto spoke suddenly. Satoru blinked in surprise. 

“It’s alright. Her ladyship was just concerned for your well being, Geto-sama.” He heard the dark haired man chuckle. 

“Please, no need to be so formal with me. Call me Suguru.” Geto- or Suguru rather, turned back and smiled. 

“Uh, okay… Suguru.” Satoru prayed to the Gods, hoping the dimly lit halls were dark enough to hide his blush.

They rounded a corner and they were greeted by the woman who had helped him dress earlier. She was standing outside a room smoking a pipe, and appeared to be waiting for them. 

“So, how did it go?” 

“You were right to send for me, Shoko. My mother was really pressing our poor Tohru.” Oh so he was also going to call him by his first name too. Satoru did his best to suppress the blush dusting his cheeks, suddenly wishing he could hear his real name spoken from Suguru’s soft lips.

“Tohru, huh? Thought you would have had some sort of fancy name given your looks.” Shoko took another puff off her pipe.

“Sorry to disappoint?” The two humans chuckled at his reply.

“Shoko, please show Tohru to her room for the evening.” Suguru said as he placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. 

“Yeah, sure thing. Follow me, Tohru.” Wait, his own room? They weren’t going to let him leave? He wasn’t sure how long he had been on land, and there was no way it was close to 24 hours, since the sun had yet to make an appearance, but Satoru did not want to risk turning into seafoam. He had to get back to the water.

“Oh, um, I don’t really need a room. If you would allow, I’d like to leave. My family will be worried about me.” This comment earns him a look from Suguru.

“Is your family close? I don’t recall the name Gojo on our manifest.” Ah sharks. He’d run into this issue with his mother too. 

“Y-yes, they are close. But we’re not from the island. We’re just passing through, which is why you may not recognize the name.” Satoru hoped his lie would cover his tail enough for him to get out of here and back to the ocean. Suguru looked concerned. 

“Under normal circumstances, I would gladly allow you to leave, Tohru, but you’ve been through a lot this evening, and I cannot, in good conscience, let you leave in the middle of the night. If you wish to leave in the morning, I will not stop you, however, I ask that you at least get some proper rest, and a warm meal.” Satoru watched as Suguru gracefully took his hand, and held it between his own large hands. “Please? It will give me some peace of mind.”

Well how was he supposed to say no to that? 

Satoru nodded, his voice failing him as a light blush covering his cheeks. Suguru smiled warmly, “Thank you.” His blush only deepened when Suguru brought his hand to his lip and kissed it. “I will take my leave now. Goodnight, Lady Tohru. Lady Shoko.” The young lord bowed and made his way down the hallway, disappearing around a corner.

Chapter Text

Lady Shoko took him the rest of the way to his own private room. The spacious room was sparsely furnished. To his right there was a small inlet where two hand painted tapestries hung on either side of a pot that had a single branch sticking out of it with three little white flowers. Was that supposed to be some sort of art? An altar maybe? He knew sometimes humans considered odd things like that beautiful. He turned up his nose at the display, preferring the wild and untamed look of the kelp forests and coral reefs. He noticed then the room also hosted two torches giving the space a soft warm glow. Overall, he would describe the room as… cozy. Not necessarily something Satoru was used to in the sea. In the center of the room some sort of bedding material (he assumed) had been laid out. 

“Well, this is you. I’m about three rooms down to the left. There are also tons of guards milling about, so don’t worry too much. You’re safe here.” 

“Yeah, sure I am,” he scoffed. Shoko gave him a funny look and he realized he’d said that out loud. He threw his hands up in defense, “I mean! I just-”

“Relax, I understand,” Shoko smiled softly, “you’re a woman in a palace crawling with men you don’t know. But trust me, no one will try anything.” Satoru felt the world spin as her words struck him. In all that he had been through, he’d forgotten that he was in fact a woman right now, and his secret being revealed was not the only threat he should be worried about. While his normal body wasn’t as buff as other mermen in his village, he could still hold his own in a fight. Combat was something that he greatly prided himself in, and practiced every day. However, this current body did not have the same muscle mass he had so painstakingly worked to build. He could feel that he was still strong in this form, however, the techniques he learned underwater probably didn’t translate very well to fighting on land. If he were to be attacked in this form, he might be able to perform some evasive or disarming moves, but in a battle of brute strength, Satoru worried he might not win.

He startled as he felt a gentle touch on his arm from the brown haired young woman, “Hey, it's okay. Really, you can trust me.” A mischievous glint twinkled in her eye, “If you doubt me, trust that Suguru won’t let anyone harm you.” A deep blush covered his face. Was it that obvious?

“Don’t worry, it’s not that obvious.” Gods, was this woman a mind reader? “I’ve just seen that doe-eyed look on a lot of people lately.” Shoko sighed, “Not that Suguru even notices them. I’m sure you picked up on the fact that our lovely prince isn’t too keen on the idea of having to marry soon.”

“I might have heard him shout a thing or two on the beach…” His reply pulled a laugh from Skoko.

“I bet you did!” She giggled, “I thought he grew out of that silly habit.” Shoko noticed his confused look and elaborated, “When Suguru was younger he used to run away from the palace to scream his problems to the ocean.” 

“Well, I mean, it’s understandable not wanting to go through with something just because it’s tied to tradition.” Satoru couldn’t help feeling a little defensive of the young man he had saved. Satoru thought back to his own situation and almost felt guilty for thinking he and Suguru were going through similar issues; being forced to marry someone you didn’t love was very different than going through a presentation ceremony. You could live with embarrassment, but you couldn’t truly live without love. 

“Hmm…” the dark haired woman hummed, cocking her head to the side, “You sound like you know something about that.” 

“Oh no! I mean, I wouldn’t know anything about that specifically . I’m not royalty or anything, there are just some personal family traditions that I don’t agree with as well…” 

Satoru noticed Shoko pause then, looking him up and down, a curious look on her face, then she shrugged, “Well that’s too bad you don’t know anything specifically about that kind of situation. If you were from some sort of high bred family, you might have had a chance at being his bride.” Satoru almost hated how his stomach did a flip at the thought. The young woman stretched and groaned in a very unlady-like way. “Anyway, it’s already wayyyyy past my bedtime. Makeup can only hide so much of these eyebags. If you need anything, the guards make their rounds every hour, or you can come find me.” With that, she slid the door shut leaving Satoru alone. 

He exhaled, finally feeling like he could breathe again. He walked further into the room taking in all the possible entrance and exit points. He padded over to a shojo screen on the opposite side of the room, sliding the screen back. The room led directly into the central private garden. Across the way, he noticed a lantern swinging in the wind, and the shadow of a guard passing in front of the dim light. Sighing he slid the door shut. He hoped he would be able to escape unseen  in the darkness, however, after observing the guards on patrol that idea was out of the question. While Shoko said the guards were there to protect him, they would also stop him from escaping.

Sliding the door back into place, he noticed a polished piece of metal in a stand over in the corner that he had missed upon his first inspection of the space. He knelt down in front of the object, which was about the size of one of the trays the serving girls had used to take away his food earlier. That was a rather odd thing to display. Clearly they cared a great deal for this item considering how polished it was. He walked closer to the object and realized he could see his reflection clearly in the item. Wait, this must be one of those ‘mirrors’ humans used to look at themselves. The only ones he’d ever seen were tarnished and damaged from being lost to the sea. He ran a hand through his short shaggy hair, which was thankfully unaffected by his transformation. 

He took a moment to take in this odd body. He pulled the top of his clothes down, exposing himself to the mirror's reflective surface. Over-all, his torso remained more or less the same as his mer-half; his chest only swelled out slightly (thank goodness), and his waist was a bit more tapered, with a slight feminine curve down to his hips. From his navel down, however, everything was foreign. He pulled the robe back over his shoulders, not ready to face the reality of what lay below his waist. 

He glanced at the bedding on the floor. Maybe he should lay down for a bit. It's not like he could escape, and he could benefit from a little shut-eye. Besides, he still had several hours until he was in a life threatening situation of turning into seafoam. He hesitantly laid on top of the bedding, wiggling around until he was comfortable. It wasn’t the worst feeling in the world, but the weight of his own body against the floor was a little unnerving. Satoru didn’t want to admit it to himself, but he missed the sway of the currents that would normally rock him to sleep. He tossed around a little longer, until he found a position that felt comfortable enough for him to settle. Maybe he would just rest his eyes for a bit… just until he saw the sunlight…

Chapter Text

Satoru awoke to a small girl delivering him breakfast. He pushed himself up from the bedding, his body aching in protest. Going from sleeping in a weightless environment to sleeping against any surface clearly did not agree with his joints. 

He stifled a yawn as the young girl brought him the strange white substance the servants the evening prior had brought him, but thankfully this time they brought him a fish. Well, it appeared to be a fish. The poor creature had been split open and roasted. He recalled hearing that humans sometimes cooked their fish using some form of controlled fire. He was hesitant to try it, but his stomach demanded he eat something. He picked it up with his bare hands and took a small bite.

“It’s amazing!” He said aloud. He shoveled the fish into his mouth, hoping it would be enough until he could get back to the water and eat properly. The young girl in the corner giggled. Satoru nervously glanced over in her direction, fearing he’d done something to embarrass himself. The girl blushed deeply and averted her eyes a second too late to avoid being caught staring. Satoru, frowned. He’d clearly done something odd, but he couldn’t figure out what. Did humans not eat fish? Maybe they didn’t eat the whole fish? Which would make sense considering they didn’t have to worry about scavengers like they did in the open water. Looking back at his food, he eyed the white substance and figured he would at least give it a taste. He went to grab the stuff with his fingers when he heard the girl clear her throat. Looking back at her, she made an odd hand motion, then pointed towards his plate. He noticed two long sticks resting next to the bowl that he’d missed before. Grabbing them, he held them in his right hand, cocking an eyebrow as he looked back at the girl. She nodded and motioned again with her hand to use the sticks to pick up the food. How the hell he was supposed to pick up these tiny pieces of food with these things was beyond him, but he knew he’d look odd if he didn’t try. 

Several minutes later, he’d successfully gotten two bites of the stuff in his mouth, but the damage was done, as pieces of the stuff had fallen to the floor, and on his robes. Overall, the food was okay, but not worth the struggle to eat with those things. He placed the utensils back where he’d found them on his plate. He was eager to get out of this gilded prison, and the young girl seemed to know exactly when he was done eating, and cleared away the dishes. She flashed him a sympathetic look as she did, then exited the room. 

Satoru huffed. How embarrassing to have a child judge him for how he eats. His sour mood didn’t last long, however, as the young woman from the night before appeared at his door.

“Good morning Tohru,” Shoko smiled kindly, but didn’t move to sit down, “Sleep well?” Satoru nodded, “Eat breakfast?” Again he nodded. “Perfect. That means we can meet with Mr. High-and-Mighty and get you back home.” 

Home . 

After the night he had the idea of going home sounded almost too good to be true. 

But…

He shook his head. No, he was happy to return home. He smiled, and stood; bits of his breakfast tumbled from his lap. Shoko looked him up and down, “But first, let’s get you changed.” 

“Okay! This is where I leave you. Suguru wanted to show you around the grounds a little before you head home. Just make a left here, and his royal pain in the neck should be waiting for you in the garden.” Shoko bowed to Satoru, “It was nice meeting you, Tohru. I hope I see you again.” Satoru bowed back, finally catching onto the customs of humans.

“Likewise. And, uh, thank you for your help.” And Satoru genuinely meant it. The younger woman smiled.

“Hey, that’s what girlfriends are for.” She winked and Satoru kept the smile plastered on his face. Right, girl- friends. “Good luck out there.” With that Shoko headed back down the long hallway where they had come from. Satoru sighed and walked in the direction that Shoko had pointed him. Hopefully, after this last interaction he could finally get back to the water. The idea of leaving was heavy on his mind for several reasons. It was still early in the day, but his presence in the underwater village would be missed. Honestly, he wouldn’t be surprised if the elders had already rallied a search party for him; it wasn’t everyday that the future village head went missing. 

He was also worried about his transformation. He still had some time until the 24 hour limit expired, but he could feel the fatigue of being on land for so long taking its toll on his body. His joints ached, and he could feel a slight stinging behind his eyes as if they were drying out. 

But underneath all of these worries, there was another thought that he didn’t dare linger on. It had been hovering in the corners of his mind since he fell asleep the night before; its deep purple eyes glowing, and a low sweet voice whispering things that made his heart flutter. 

I don’t want to leave.

The second the thought took shape he would squash it. He had to. If he allowed it to take shape in his mind, it would only lead to trouble.

Just then, Satoru caught sight of Suguru standing in the garden, a few members of his court standing off to the side. The young man seemed to be watching something intently in the water feature that snaked its way through most of the garden. Satoru felt his heart skip a beat at the sight of Suguru in the weak winter sunlight. His dark hair was tied back into a neat bun, with a few strands hanging loose on the one side of his face. His sharp features seemed more defined as he focused intently on the water before him. A cold wind caused his thick blue robes to flutter in the wind, pulling the young lord from his thoughts. Satoru shivered, less from the wind and more from the smile that appeared on Suguru’s face when he saw Satoru. Suguru met him halfway in the garden and bowed.

“You look stunning.” Suguru hummed. Satoru just nodded in response to the young lord's comment, finally coming out of his stupor. The garment he currently wore was a pain in the ass, regardless if it made his eyes pop (so Shoko had said). It was a bright blue, the same color as the sky on a crisp fall day, with intricate silver flowers which crawled across the garment as if they were growing from the material. Rather than the lighter material that he was given the evening before, this was a little thicker and had multiple layers to fight the cold air. To make things worse, he couldn’t adjust the tightness of the belt as easily as the robe. Shoko had called it a kimono, however, he felt like it was more appropriate to call it a kill-mono, because he was actively dying wearing it. 

… Okay, it wasn’t that bad. If he was being honest, it wasn’t particularly uncomfortable, just a little more restrictive than he would have liked. 

“Yeah, thanks. It’s a bit much if you ask me.” Satoru replied casually, lifting a long sleeve to inspect the stitching, “I mean, how am I supposed to move around in this thing?” He shook his arms, demonstrating his limited mobility, and looked up upon hearing a small chuckle from Suguru. 

“Oh, my apologies. I selected the kimono personally because, well,” the young lord blushed, “I thought the color would look nice with your eyes…” Satoru’s cheeks instantly burned crimson.

“Oh! Um, what I meant to say was, I’m just not used to wearing clothes.” He replied. Suguru’s eyes widened, and Satoru quickly backpedaled, “I mean wearing clothes that are this nice!” 

“R-right. Of course.” The two of them chuckled, a loud and awkward silence hung between them. Satoru wished he could bury his head in the sand. What was wrong with him? He’d never acted like this before when talking to anyone in the village. Then again, no one in the village had ever made him feel like this before. No one had those deep purple eyes that reminded him of the inky depths of the sea at sunset. 

Thankfully, before he could spiral too much, Suguru spoke up, “I know it is a little chilly and you must be getting back home but, I was hoping, as long as you have a few moments, would do me the honor of accompanying me on a walk through the gardens?” Satoru stared at Suguru, unsure of how to answer. The ghostly thought from earlier reared its beautiful head, whispering to him again.

Just a little longer. Let me enjoy this just a little longer.

“Sure. But not too long. I really do need to get going.”

“Of course, I understand. A young woman such as yourself would be dearly missed.” Satoru mentally flinched at his words and hoped it didn’t show on his face how Suguru’s words affected him. Of course; he was a woman right now. That’s why Suguru was being so nice to him. If Suguru knew the truth about him, things would be very different. He briefly wondered how Suguru would react if he were to discover that not only was he not human, but also a man. If he had transformed into a human man, would Suguru still treat him with such kindness? He doubted it. The thought sat bitterly in his mind. The idea shouldn’t bother him as much as it did, however, he couldn’t help it. Suguru was being nice to him because he wasn’t himself, he was Tohru . 

Suguru motioned for him to follow, and they began walking through the frozen garden, and Satoru did his best to banish those heavier thoughts from his mind. A few court members followed behind them and Suguru leaned over to Satoru and whispered in his ear, sending shivers up his spine. “My apologies for the circus following us. After last night’s events, my mother thought it best we be chaperoned.”

“Well, I guess that means I won’t be rewarded for saving your life then.” Satoru chuckles, then catches himself again, “I-I mean, not that I expect a reward, I just meant-” but Suguru is already laughing, making his stomach do stupid little flips, causing the small thought in the back of his mind from earlier to take root.

I want to hear him laugh more.

“If it were fully up to me, you would be rewarded, however, my mother still has yet to accept the fact that I am the new Lord.” The dark haired man sighs as they approached a large gazebo in the corner of the garden. “I must apologize again for everything that happened last night. Truly, it was my own carelessness that led to my injury, but I’m glad I dove in to save you, even if it was you who ended up saving me.”

“Ah, seriously, don’t worry about it,” Satoru grinned, “Although, I have to know what was going through your mind when you dove in.” They entered the gazebo and Satoru leaned back against the railing, smirking as he questioned Suguru, which only caused Suguru to laugh again. Satoru’s stomach fluttered as he felt heat building there. 

“I could ask you the same question. Why were you out in the ocean in the middle of winter?” The young lord cocked an eyebrow at him. Combined with his easy smile, and sharp eyes, it was a deadly combination, and part of Satoru wanted to tell him the truth right there; that he wasn’t human, that he wasn’t a woman. But he couldn’t do that. Instead he decided to play coy.

“Nope. Sorry, I asked you first.” Satoru crossed his arms, waiting for Suguru’s answer. The young lord looked him up and down before stepping closer. Satoru’s breath caught in his throat as Suguru leaned forward, resting one hand on the railing behind him, essentially pinning him in place. Suguru searched his face; for what Satoru hadn’t a clue. The young lord huffed out a chuckle, and stepped aside, leaning against the railing next to Satoru. 

Rather than answer his question, Suguru asked one of his own. “I assume you’ve never been inside the palace walls?”

“N-no?” Satoru cleared his throat, the question catching him off guard, but thinking quickly he answered. “I’m afraid in all the years my family has passed through here, we’ve never received an invitation.”

“How long has your family been coming through the area?” The young lord’s question carried weight, and Satoru wasn’t sure why, but he knew that his answer would be very important to Suguru. 

“Not too long, a few years.” He lied through his teeth, something he knew he shouldn’t do, but couldn’t help, “Why?” He noticed a slight pink rising to Suguru’s cheeks.

“Ah, well… It’s sort of silly.” Satoru couldn’t help but roll his eyes, feeling the tension lighten between them slightly.

“You already brought it up, just spit it out.” Honestly, Suguru was just as bad as his own village elders. He hated when they would float around the issue, and he was constantly pressing them to just cut to the chase. He only realized this was an improper thing to say as a lady when Suguru chuckled at his response.

“You really aren’t afraid to speak your mind are you?” His violet eyes twinkled and Satoru grinned right back, forever thankful the lord never took offense to his sharp tongue.

“Nope. Now tell me.”

“Fine, fine. You see, it was probably about eight years ago now. I had been scolded by one of my tutors so I decided to run away from the palace.” Satoru’s eyes widened in surprise, “Don’t look at me like that. I wasn’t always the rule follower you see before you.” 

“Right. I’m sure you’ve completely changed,” he smiled at Suguru, loving how easy it was to talk to him.

“And I’m sure you were also an extremely well behaved child.” Suguru volleyed back. Satoru shrugged; if only the man knew.

 “Of course I was. Please, continue.”

“Thank you, I will.” Suguru smiled smugly, “Anyway, I ran away to the beach. The same one you rescued me at, actually. I was there all day sulking just watching the waves, just wanting them to be scared they couldn’t find me. Around dinner time, I got hungry and decided I wasn’t too mad at them anymore, and as I was leaving I heard shouting back on the beach and of course, I turned around to investigate.” 

“Of course,” Satoru nodded along.

“Of course,” Suguru smiled, “I’ve always felt compelled to help others, as you know first hand, which is why I dove in to save you last night. So, I wanted to make sure they were okay.”

“Are you sure it wasn’t just plain old curiosity?”

“Would you like for me to finish the story or not?” The lord chuckled, and Satoru waved for him to continue. 

“Anyway, I returned to the beach to see a young girl with short white hair standing stark naked on the beach.” Suguru blushed at the memory, just as Satoru felt his heart pound in his chest. “I was so surprised to see her, and I remember asking her if she was okay, and even from the distance I was away from her, when she turned around…” Suguru looked at him with an emotion in his eyes that Satoru recognized, but was afraid to name, “She had the most beautiful blue eyes I had ever seen. It was as if they held the ocean within them.” Satoru felt as though his heart was about to leap out of his chest. So, Suguru did remember him.

“Tohru, I have to know,” Suguru gently took his hand, and Satoru let him. “Was that girl you?” Satoru was so surprised at how soft his hands were. The way those violet eyes stared at him had Satoru’s voice frozen in his throat.

He couldn’t help but to tell Suguru this one truth. He wanted Suguru to know the truth; all of it. He deserved to know the truth; Suguru deserved everything. All he had done since he stepped foot on land was lie to Suguru’s face, and the thought made him sick. Hells, it was even his fault that Suguru almost drowned last night. He was bad for the poor man’s health, and he did not deserve such kindness from Suguru. He didn’t deserve Suguru.

So he nodded.

Unaware of his inner turmoil, Suguru’s eyes sparkled at his answer, pulling his slender frame closer to his.

“I knew it was you. Tohru, I… I’ve looked for you ever since that day.” Satoru was so shocked by his reply, his heart twisting in his chest. Suguru had been looking for him all these years? He supposed that made sense, after all, if he saw someone naked as the day they were born run straight into the ocean, he probably would have a hard time forgetting them too. “Forgive me if this is too forward, but… I thought you were the most beautiful girl I’d ever seen.” A light pink dusted the lord’s cheeks, “And I still think that.” Suguru pulled his hand toward his lips and placed a soft kiss on his knuckles. Satoru’s face flushed fully, he could even feel the heat in the tips of his ears. 

For a moment Satoru let himself live in this moment. He could pretend that Suguru was saying this to his normal self; pretending that Suguru was calling him handsome, that he’d been searching for him , and not Tohru. He felt his body press close to Suguru, far too close for what was considered polite during a chaperoned walk. But he didn’t care, because Suguru had been looking for him, and Satoru had never forgotten the young purple eyed boy who’d seen him on the beach. One of the court members suddenly coughed loudly, causing the two to jump apart. 

“Um, y-your lordship is too kind.” Satoru said loudly as he blushed. He didn’t miss the way Suguru’s face reddened. What was he thinking? He couldn’t be indulging in things like this. He was literally a fish out of water! And Suguru was a lord! Whatever was going on between them would only result in pain. He stomped down the soft fluffy thoughts, trampling over the delicate hope that had grown without his permission. 

“Y-yes, well,” the dark-haired man cleared his throat, and stepped back, suddenly remembering they weren’t alone. Satoru wanted to beach himself for how much he missed Suguru’s warmth. Suguru extended his arm, “Shall we continue our walk?”

Satoru looked at the extended arm, then back up to those striking purple eyes. He felt something building between them, and while he knew he shouldn’t give in, he couldn’t help what happened next. “I have a better idea.” Without giving it another thought, Satoru grabbed Suguru’s arm and started running through the garden. He heard the chaperones give a shout of surprise, but the two of them were long gone before anyone in the court could even give chase. He heard Suguru behind him laughing, so contagious he let out a whoop of laughter as well as they ran like children through the palace grounds.

Just a little longer, then I’ll leave and never come back.

Chapter Text

They rounded a corner, and then another where Satoru paused, panting with his hands on his knees as he looked left, then right. Running was way harder than he thought it would be; how did humans do this?

“Lady Torhu,” Suguru panted behind him, “Do you even know where you are going?” 

Satoru shot him a smile, “Does it really matter? As long as we’re out of the sight of that circus that was following us.” The two of them huffed out laughs. Satoru inhales deeply, finally catching his breath, “Besides, even if I don’t know where to go, I assume you do.”

“True.” Suguru gave him a sly smile, “But on the other hand, I could just have us run around in circles… or I could just trap you here.” Satoru whipped his head around to stare at the lord.

“You wouldn’t.” Satoru stated firmly, finally deciding to head to the left.

“You sound awfully confident.” Suguru follows closely behind, “Especially, since I just confessed that I have been looking for you for a long time.” Suguru quickly pulls Satoru back from rounding a corner where a group of different court members were strolling, his strong hands coming to rest on his curved hips. Satoru does his best to squash the thoughts that arise with the feeling of Suguru’s strong hands on him. 

“Well, I hate to break it to you, but if you keep me here, I’ll die.” Satoru whispers as he looks behind him, flashing his crystal blue eyes at the young lord. Suguru’s mouth forms a small little ‘o’ of surprise, before he chuckles.

“Very funny. Don’t you worry, I’m not so cruel as to keep you trapped here. Besides, I have a feeling that even if I let you walk away today, it won’t be the last time I’ll see you.” It was Satoru’s turn to look surprised.

“Now who sounds confident, Suguru?” He questions, not waiting for an answer as he pulls away from Suguru. The court members pass by them unaware of the unchaperoned couple. They continue on their little escape route and Suguru guides them outside the palace inner walls. They continue on to a shaded path that winds its way through another garden. From what Satoru could guess, they must be near where the servants live as there were smaller dwellings and everyone they passed seemed to take a moment to bow or nod in greeting to Suguru as they walked by.

As they walked, Suguru confirmed his suspicions, and began pointing out different buildings explaining their purpose, who lived there and so on. They had just passed the rice reserves, when Satoru heard the clash of wooden training tools echo down the road. He grabbed Suguru’s sleeve making the man pause in their walk.

“Is that where your training grounds are?” He asked excitedly, instantly hating how honey sweet the question sounded coming from his mouth.

“Ah, yes. Though I’m sure a lady such as yourself would have no interest in such things like-”

“May we watch?” Suguru was clearly taken aback by his question. Of course he was, what woman would want to watch something so barbaric as fighting? What woman would want to oogle the samurai, when they had the young lord on their arm? Satoru noticed Suguru’s hesitation and pressed further, “Please?” He batted his eyelashes playfully, testing how much Suguru was willing to give him. This could be a fun new game…

“Uh, of course.” 

Satoru couldn’t help the wide smile that appeared on his face. They made their way over to the training grounds. A large dirt ring sat in the middle of several buildings, where two men were currently sparring with long wooden naginata shaped poles. Both were wearing what appeared to be heavily padded navy blue training clothes, bearing the crest of the lord’s house. One man seemed slightly older with a goatee, and deep-set eyes, and the other man was the most generic looking individual Satoru had ever seen. He was clean shaven, and much smaller than the other man. Though he seemed younger than his opponent, it was clear that years of anxiety had aged his face significantly. The smaller man was skilled but it was clear he was inexperienced with this type of weapon. Satoru observed their fast movements, each round only lasting a few seconds, with the older man winning each time. 

“The taller man is Yaga. He grew up side by side with my father and taught me everything I know about combat.” Satoru suppressed a shiver as Suguru leaned down to speak into Satoru’s ear, “His opponent is one of our newest recruits, Ijichi. He showed great promise coming from a prestigious family, however, he seems to struggle welding some weapons.”

“Obviously,” Satoru scoffed, crossing his arms, “His form is all over the place. He’s trying to swing it like a katana. Look, see?” Satoru pointed as the man swung wide and missed. “His hands are too close together, which is limiting not just his power, but his motion when he swings. He needs to let the staff flow and rotate with his swings.” He looked over at Suguru, expecting the man to agree with his observations, only to find him staring wide eyed in shock. Satoru’s throat felt tight, and felt the heat rise to his face. Crabs, were human women not supposed to know basic combat? The mermaids in his village were trained on how to weld basic weapons, so how was he supposed to know human women didn’t? Even if Satoru had known that women weren’t well versed in weaponry, he knew deep down he wouldn’t have been able to hold back the comment. The mistake Ijichi was making was so obvious it was painful to watch. He nervously glanced over at Suguru who was only a few inches from his face, clocking him with a quizzical gaze.

“Lady Tohru, do you really know how to use a naginata?” 

“Well, I mean, in theory… I was taught with a similar weapon.” Okay, a javelin style harpoon wasn’t exactly the same, but wielding weapons underwater still followed the same method of letting it flow with your body. Cutting through water required controle and finesse; you can’t fight against the pressure of the water.

“I would love to meet the family that taught such a fragile looking daughter such a dangerous weapon.” Suguru’s laugh had his knees going weak. He really needed to get out of this place; forget weapons, it was Geto Suguru who was dangerous. “Excuse me for a moment.” Suguru stepped away from him and Satoru watched as the young lord entered the ring. The whole crowd of men paused and bowed at his approach. Suguru waved for them to rise, and began speaking to Ijichi, who looked like he was about to pass out having the young lord single him out. The two exchanged a few words that Satoru couldn’t catch, before Suguru motioned for the young man to hand him the wooden weapon. He nodded at Yaga and both took up a fighting stance.

The next few seconds were a blur as Suguru charged at the older warrior and the two engaged in an intricate dance of their blades. Both had incredible reaction times, and just when Satoru thought one would be landing a finishing blow, the other would dodge at the last second. Yaga swung low, and Satoru held his breath as he watched Suguru stumble as his left foot was taken out from under him. The lord recovered quickly, and blocked the next swing with his staff. The older man let out a laugh. 

“Keep an eye on your weaker side, young master.” From where he was at the edge of the ring, Satoru could see Suguru smile back at the older man. Suguru took the blunt end of his weapon and whacked Yaga in his left side, and the older man doubled over, the wind knocked out of him. Suguru swung his weapon around himself, holding the wooden blade to Yaga’s neck; a clear sign of victory. The men around the ring applauded and cheered for their lord’s victory. Suguru bowed and handed the tool back to Ijichi.

“That’s how you should be using this weapon.” Satoru heard him say to the young man, before heading back to his side. “Well, what do you think, Lady Tohru? Do my skills meet your high standards?”

“Well, you’re not terrible…” That was the understatement of the year. Suguru Geto was probably the most skilled among these men; himself excluded, of course. How he longed to spar with Suguru. What would it feel like to go all out with someone who could hold their own against him? A bitter pit grew in Satoru’s stomach as he realized he would never have the opportunity to know. 

“What was that? Not terrible? Was that almost a compliment, Tohru?” Suguru leaned in close teasingly. Satoru chuckled and pushed the man away.

“Yeah, don’t let it go to your head, pufferfish.”

“What did you call me?” Suguru laughed again, cocking his head to the side, “A pufferfish?”

Satoru instantly blushed, realizing his slip-up “Y-yeah. It’s uh, an inside joke with my friends.” Suguru gave him a half puzzled, half amused smile, “Because pufferfish swell up, and-”

“No need to explain, I understand the comparison, Lady Tohru. A pufferfish, huh?” The young lord smiled to himself. “I like it. It’s clever.” 

Satoru smiled back, relieved that Suguru didn’t think him too odd. The two left the training grounds and made their way back to the front gates where Satoru had entered the evening prior. The two stood side by side as they gazed up at the large wooden gates. 

“I appreciate you spending time with me this morning.” Satoru turned to look up at Suguru. Though he was tall in his woman form, Suguru seemed to be just a few centimeters taller than himself. He couldn’t tell if he loved or hated their height difference. 

“Of course,” Satoru took a moment to bow slightly to the lord, “I appreciate you offering me your hospitality.” Suguru smiled, and Satoru noticed a twinkle in his eye.

“Well, I appreciate you accepting my hospitality.” The lord bowed back. 

So this is the game you want to play?

Satoru smirked back, “Well, I appreciate you gifting me this fine kimono.”

“I appreciate you saving my life.” 

“I appreciate your mother not taking mine.” They both chuckled, sharing a soft smile as their eyes met. Suguru stepped closer.

“I appreciate that as well.” He reached forward and gently took Satoru’s hand in his. It struck the merman then just how much larger Suguru’s hand was than his in this form. Where Satoru’s fingers were thin and dainty, Suguru’s were calloused and large. Definitely not the hands one would expect from a high born lord. “Lady Tohru,” Suguru’s voice took on a more serious tone, “I would appreciate it, if you were to accept my invitation to visit me again.”

Satoru felt himself getting lost in the purple gaze of the young lord. Visit again? Was that something he could do? He knew it was something he desperately wanted to do. 

“I…” He felt Suguru’s thumb stroke his knuckles, his skin tingling in its wake. 

“Please?” Satoru made the mistake of looking into those deep amethyst eyes. Those same shining eyes that would appear to him in half remembered dreams growing up; eyes which now held the promise of something so amazing and incomprehensible, that turning away from them now would be the biggest regret of his life.

“Okay.” He breathed out, “I’ll come back. I don’t know when, but I’ll come see you again.” Satoru’s answer earned him a smile that stole the air from his lungs. 

“That’s enough for me.” Suguru lifted his hand and pressed a kiss to Satoru’s fingers. “Until we meet again, Lady Tohru.” 

He doesn’t remember his walk back to the beach. Satoru’s head was full of soft laughs, purple eyes, and impossible promises of the future. In a daze, he stared at the water from the edge of the woods, the salty breeze, usually so comforting, was oddly suffocating in the cold winter air. He glanced down at the kimono he still wore, and his heart broke knowing the item would not survive in the water. For a brief moment, he considered just tossing the item into the woods to be ravaged by the elements, or dragging it out to sea to become lost among the currents, as if doing so would erase this whole experience from existence. 

But…Satoru didn’t want to forget. He wanted to be selfish, to keep these memories close and cherish them.

He would keep it here on land. Even if he broke his promise and never returned to see Suguru, he could at least keep this single token as proof that it was real. And if he did come back, he would need it again to cover his nakedness. He stripped the garment off his person, shivering as he avoided looking at this foreign body he’s occupied for the last fifteen hours. It was fine when he was covered, in fact he hardly thought about it, but fully exposed, it reminded him that he didn’t belong to this world. That he was a liar; a creature of the sea that had no right to exist above the water and mingle with its inhabitants the way he was intending.

Using the innermost robe to wrap up the beautiful blue and silver fabric, he dug out a shallow hole, before stowing the kimono under a large rock. It was a poor attempt to preserve the delicate needle work, but it would have to do. He brushed the sand and dirt off his knees and hands, sighing as he made his way back to where the treeline met the beach.

Satoru paused, glancing around the vacant beach. After hours of being surrounded by humans, it dawned on him that he was finally alone. Only the sound of the waves crashing on the beach and the occasional cry from an unseen bird kept him company now. He stared out at the vast sea before him, an odd melancholy settling in his chest. Yesterday, he would have felt at home looking at the dark gray waves, rushed toward their welcoming embrace with abandon. Now, he felt nothing. 

A chilled indifference.

He knew why. 

Satoru trudged through the sand to where the waves kissed the shore, and dove under the freezing swells. He felt his body change, returning to his true form, but the weight in his chest lingered. The gods had truly cursed him; Satoru knew this the moment he realized he could transform into a woman. Hells, they must have cursed Suguru too; the two of them were just some sick joke to the gods who clearly had nothing better to do than mess with the insignificant lives of mortals. 

As he swam under the churning waves he finally allowed his mind to approach the thought he had shoved into the deepest recesses of his mind while he had been on land. The one that had haunted him all morning, causing him to linger far longer than he should have. The thought that he knew would be his undoing.

He loved Suguru Geto. He loved him deeply. The worst part was he knew Suguru loved him too. Worse still, despite knowing that this love was not sustainable, Satoru fully planned on seeing Suguru again.

Chapter Text

“Do you have any idea how worried everyone was, Gojo?” Nanami asked, which only elicited a groan from Satoru as he tried to swim past the burly merman. Unfortunately, his escape route was strategically blocked by Haibara who grabbed Satoru by his fins.

“The council thought you’d been kidnapped or even worse, killed!” The younger brown haired merman cried out, creating enough drag to get the white haired merman to give up his attempted escape. “Of course Kento and I knew that wasn’t true, and we told them that you were fine, but we were really worried too.”

“Well, I’m fine! Like I told the elders just now, I took a swim to clear my head.” Satoru huffs as he flicked his tail out of Haibara’s grasp. “That’s all. Got a lot of big things coming up soon, you know.“ Satoru held up his fingers as he listed them off, “Becoming the village head; embarrassing myself in front of said village once they learn about my transformation. Oh! And we can’t forget how I’ll be the elders' pet goldfish once they learn I can transform into a human.” He said as he hit the side of his head with his palm mockingly, “It’s a lot to think about.”

“Really? Is that what you’re going with?” Nanami crossed his arms, unbelieving of his friend's story. They floated in the center of a massive lava cavern. It was the central hub of their village, full of bustling shops and homes. The duo had bombarded Satoru the second he had exited from the tunnel leading to the council’s meeting chambers, not even giving him a break in-between interrogations.

Satoru steadied his nerves and met Nanami’s gaze, “Yep.”

“That’s interesting, because both Haibara and I know of all the places you go when you ‘clear your head’, and you were nowhere to be found.” Nanami stated, his tone firm, almost challenging.  

“You must have just missed me each time.” 

“Gojo, please. We are your friends.” Nanami sighed tiredly. “We just ask that you be honest with us.”

“You already know we would never tell anyone where you were.” Haibara rested his hand on Satoru’s arm, “You know you can trust us. We are just worried, it's not like you to be gone for so long without at least one of us knowing where you were.” His junior’s soft smile and kind eyes struck Satoru’s heart. He could never lie to Haibara. He let out a defeated groan. 

“Ugh! Fiiiiiine. I’ll tell you,” Satoru quickly glanced around the cavern, “but not here. Let’s head to the hideout.” Haibara’s eyes widened with excitement, while Nanami sighed and shook his head.

“Really!? We haven’t been there in ages!” The brown-haired merman couldn’t contain his excitement as he backflipped, starting in the direction of their childhood clubhouse. “Let’s go guys!” 

About ten minutes later the trio found themselves floating before a large kelp forest. The three of them carefully swam through the long slimy plants and soon found what they were looking for. The entrance to a portion of forgotten tunnels the village no longer used. It used to lead to the main cavern but a collapse deep within the tunnels cut the entrance off from the rest of the village. Combined with the increase of human activity on the surface in this area, it had all but been abandoned, making it the perfect place for the three of them to get into trouble during their pre-teen years. Haibara quickly began brushing stray sand off the soft sponges they’d used as seats, and made himself comfortable on the bright purple one. Nanami did the same and frowned at the accumulation of sand on the stone ledge they’d used as a table back in the day. Gojo chose to remain floating, unable to bring himself to sit still, as he paced the cavern. 

“Alright, enough swimming around the anemone; where were you, Gojo?” Nanami asked again. Satoru sighed; he truly admired Nanami’s one-track mind sometimes, unfortunately, now was not one of those times. He ran a hand through his short white hair, trying to think of the best way to break the news to his friends of the events that had transpired in the last 20 hours. 

“Okay, well… I did actually pop out for a late night swim. That part of the story is true. Thought it would clear my head a bit with everything going on. However, I may have omitted one or two important details.” His friends were silent as they waited for him to continue. “So, while I was swimming, I may or may not have breached the surface; which should have been fine! Like who in their right mind is out on the beach in the middle of winter at night?”

“Wait, so you were near the shore?” Haibara asked.

“I mean, kinda? I didn’t mean to get that close, but I did because I heard someone yelling, and wasn’t paying attention to the incoming storm and the waves… anyway long story short, I ended up inside the human palace and I’m now sort of courting the human prince. Crazy right? Anyway, it's totally not a big deal, and we shouldn’t worry about this at all .” Satoru tried to laugh it off, to make light of what was happening, but unfortunately his friends were not taking the bait. Nanami was the first to speak.

“I’m sorry, you are going to have to repeat yourself.” The blond pushed himself off the sponge seat, drifting closer to Satoru. “I clearly misheard what you just said, because it sounded like you just said that you went on land and are now somehow romantically involved with the human lord.” Satoru sighed; looks like he’ll need to give them the extended version of his trip. 

An hour and a half, and several somewhat awkward questions later, his two friends were fully caught up on what had transpired during Satoru’s time on land.

“Okay… So let me see if I’ve got this straight.” Nanami says, rubbing his forehead in frustration. “This prince saw you in the water and tried to rescue you, but instead you rescued him. He then insists you stay the night, and somewhere in-between you staying there, and coming back this afternoon, you are somehow courting the prince? And told him you would come back?” The blond drags his hand down his face, “How do you even- What- Gods, I can’t even think of a single thing I can say to you about this situation!”

“I mean, I guess you could say I’m irresistible?” Satoru shrugged and chuckled sheepishly. He was currently floating on his back, flicking his tail back and forth to keep himself in place.

“More like irresponsible! Gojo, do you even understand how serious this situation is? The danger you are putting yourself in? The danger you are putting all of us in?!”

“Look, it was fine the first time, right? He saw me in the water, but doesn’t even remember it. Besides, I was careful; no one suspects a thing.”

“So you are going to see him again?” Haibara spoke up for the first time, his brown eyes shining with excitement.

“Of course I am.”

“Of course he’s not.”

Satoru and Nanami pause, meeting each other's gaze.

“You can’t actually be serious.”

“You all are so worried over nothing! Is it the best idea? Probably not, but I mean, I could use this as an opportunity to help us out down here. Persuade the prince to stop fishing where our villagers live and stuff like that. And it’s not hurting anyone, so what’s the big deal?” Something akin to guilt twisted in his stomach. That wasn’t exactly true. He knew that whatever was going on between him and Suguru was not sustainable, and at the end of the day, they would only end up hurting each other.

Nanami took a deep breath, the gills on his neck flaring. He stared long and hard at Satoru before finally exhaling defeatedly. “There is no talking you out of this, is there?” 

Satoru thought back on all that had happened. The entire encounter should have scared him off from ever wanting to go back on land again, but instead, he was drawn back to the lush shoreline, a soft silky voice calling to him. Purple eyes twinkling at him, full of mirth, laughter, and something more. Satoru knew in his heart that he couldn’t resist the siren call of Geto Suguru. Was it selfish? Absolutely, but he needed his friends to understand. He shook his head and sighed, “No, not really.”

“Oh, Satoru…” Haibara was looking at him, eyes wide and shining, “You love the prince, don’t you?” It wasn’t a question, but a statement. It was also the first time the phrase had been said aloud, and Satoru knew how utterly ridiculous it sounded. How could he be in love with the human prince that he had known for less than a day? It didn’t make sense, he hardly knew the man! But that wasn’t the full truth, was it? He had never forgotten those sparkling violet eyes from all those years ago, and Suguru had told him he had searched for him ever since that day on the beach. There was something deeper between them that Satoru couldn’t begin to explain to his friends, but hoped they understood when he replied to Haibara’s question.

“I think I might…” He sighed and sank down, flopping on his back and laying across the stone table, “I sound insane, don’t I?” 

“Not at all.” Haibara said with a smile. “It’s like the stories your grandmother used to tell us, about the first mermaid who fell in love with a human. I think it's romantic.” Satoru looked up and met Haibara’s warm eyes, and smiled. He had a feeling Haibara would understand.

“It’s idiodic.” Nanami’s stern voice broke through their little moment. He poked Satoru in the side, causing Satoru to yelp. “But, you’ve always been an idiot, so I guess it’s not entirely surprising.” Satoru rolled off the table to avoid another attack to his ribs, but he smiled wide at his friends, glad that they were supporting his decision. “The question now, however, is how you plan to continue sneaking onto land without alerting anyone here. Your presentation to the elders, and subsequent appointment to the village head is in less than two weeks. Your absence will be sorely missed if you disappear like that again.”

“Yeah, so I thought about that on my swim back and here is what I’m thinking. Imagine this: I present myself to the elders and they find out that I can transform into a human and–”

“A human woman !” Haibara interjects excitedly.

“Yes, Yu, a human woman ,” Satoru continues, doing his best to hide his disdain for that little detail, “they discover what I’ve known for years, and they are all surprised! They are going to think, ‘Wow! The first merperson in history that can turn into a human! We can use this to our advantage!’ And I will wholeheartedly agree. Then on my ‘first trip’ to the surface, I can ‘befriend’ the leaders on land and start making legal changes that protect our village, which will be easy since I already have that connection.” Satoru crosses his arms and nods, “It’s a perfect plan. I help the village, fulfill my role as their puppet, and get to spend time with Sug– t-the prince.” He stuttered a little at the end. Honestly, for coming up with the plan in less than three hours, he felt like it was a pretty good one.

“No one will suspect a thing!” Haibara cheered as Satoru nodded along to the young mer’s praise. The two then looked at Nanami who had yet to speak. 

“That’s… not the worst plan.” Nanami mumbled as he stroked his chin, lost in thought. 

“What are you talking about? It’s a great– wait, you agree?” Satoru sat up straight, slightly surprised that rule-follower Nanami was agreeing with his plan. The blond sighed. 

“I mean in a general sense, it is at least a plan that won’t rouse suspicion, but you will need to be careful. If changes happen too fast on either side, there is a chance one party will become suspicious, and it is more dangerous in this case if the humans become suspicious. Then there is also the fact that you are lying and manipulating the prince that you claim to care about.” Nanami paused and met Satoru’s blue gaze. “Is that something that you are okay with doing?”

“I…” Was it something he was okay with doing? On the one hand, he would actually be able to spend time with Suguru and not have to hide it from the elders; the fact that he was slightly romantically involved with the prince could be his little secret. On the other hand, if Suguru ever found out the truth, and he was able to look past the whole half-human half-fish thing, would he be able to forgive Satoru for using him politically? On some level Satoru was sure he would understand, but more than anything the prince would probably feel used. What if he ends up thinking that Satoru used him the whole time, and that everything they built together was all a lie?! Satoru shook his head. He was getting ahead of himself and Nanami was still waiting for his answer. “It’s technically not lying if I tell him I love the ocean and want to protect it. And I think the beach is an important place for him too, so it will be fine.” Nanami shakes his head but concedes. 

“Fine. We will help you with this plan.” The blond mer crosses his arms, and Satoru can hardly believe what he’s hearing.

“Really?” Satoru flips over off the table, sitting on the sponge next to Haibara, who is giddy with excitement. “You both are going to help me?” Haibara wraps his arms around Satoru and laughs.

 “But I highly recommend that you do not go back on land until after your presentation to the village elders.” Nanami, always the party pooper, chides him. “It will be safer for everyone that way, and we have time to get a more solid plan together on how you plan to…” Nanami’s droning voice is soon drowned out by his and Haibara’s excited chattering about the price. “Satoru, are you listening to me? You need to stay off land until your presentation, okay?”

“Yeah, yeah, I heard you. No problem.” 

Chapter Text

Satoru did not wait until his presentation to go back on land. He could hardly wait the four days he did out of courtesy to Nanami, and Haibara. 

He was currently strolling with Suguru in their garden, once again chaperoned, but this time with more physically fit looking court members. Initially, he was unsure of how to go about getting back into the castle, as he couldn’t really just walk up to the front gates, could he? Wearing the same clothes that he had been gifted by Suguru (with a few more dirt stains than last time), he decided it was worth a shot and spoke to one of the guards outside the gates. He was immediately let inside and they directed him to a room where he waited for Suguru. 

Despite his impromptu visit, Suguru was glad to abandon his prior engagements, and even invited Satoru to attend a tea ceremony with him later that afternoon. The whole affair sounded impressive considering he had no idea what tea was, nor why it was special enough to have it’s own ceremony, but nonetheless, Satoru was looking forward to witnessing such a unique human custom. Thankfully, after seeing Satoru’s blank expression, Suguru took pity on him and gave him a brief rundown of what to expect. As they wasted the day away, they enjoyed light conversation on their promenade around the gardens. 

“It was odd how quickly they let me through the gates. I thought for sure they would question me.” Satoru holds up one of his sleeves to cover his face, partially to muffle his feminine sounding voice, and partially to fight off the chill that nipped at his nose. He glanced over at Suguru to see a similar red on his cheeks from the cold, however, at his words they darkened in their hue.

“Ah yes, well… I may have given my guards orders to notify me immediately should a Gojo Tohru appear at the gates… and maybe let them in, no questions asked.” Oh. That shouldn’t make him feel as special as it did. 

“Well, that’s…” Satoru unexpectedly locked eyes with Suguru feeling the air leave his lungs. He blushed, looking away. “That’s extremely dumb of you.” 

“I beg your pardon?” Suguru laughed.

“Then beg.” Satoru winked back, covering up his embarrassment with a joke and leaving Suguru dumbfounded behind him. Suguru picked up his pace and was back at his side quickly. 

“Why is that dumb?” Suguru questioned. His navy blue robes shone in the sun, and Satoru could see the embroidered silk deer flash in the sunlight on his broad shoulders as they walked. This man and his stupid good looks were so distracting. 

“Well, anyone could have pretended to be me, and could have just walked in here.” Satoru turned suddenly when Suguru suddenly snorted with laughter. 

“Y-your joking, right?” Suguru wiped a tear away from his eye. 

“No?”

“Lady Tohru, I don’t know if you have noticed, but you have a very unique look about you. I highly doubt there is anyone who looks like you… I know I’ve never seen anyone as beautiful as you in my life.” Just when he thought Suguru couldn’t be any more charming, he goes and says something that proves Satoru wrong in the best way. This human and his way with words were going to be the death of him. “Not only that, but the robes I gave you actually bear the crest of my family.” Suguru reached out and gently ran the back of his fingers against the collar of Satoru’s outer robe. “Just here, our emblem is stitched into the silk. It’s meant to blend in flawlessly with the garment, but all guards are trained to recognize it. Think of it as your key to the castle.”

“Oh… Well… you could have mentioned that. I was worried they would turn me away.” Satoru mumbled behind his sleeve. 

“No, you are welcome anytime, as well as your family, should you like to bring them around while you are on the island.” Suguru smiled and guided them back towards the main house. It must be time for tea. 

“Family?” Satoru asked as he rubbed his hands together to warm them. How would that work? He was the only one who could turn into a human. He saw Suguru’s confused face and suddenly remembered his lie from his first visit. “Right! Well… as you know we aren’t from the island, and it’s just my parents and I. They can’t make the trip as often as I do. Their… ailments restrict their travel.” None of that was technically a lie, right? 

“So, you travel alone?” Suguru raises a concerned eyebrow. Crabs. Knowing him, he’d assign him an escort to deliver him to and from this pretend home, and he definitely couldn’t have that happen. 

“No, of course not. I travel with some friends from my home.” 

Please stop asking questions!

“Right, of course.” Suguru said as the doors to the tea room opened. The room was set sparsely as many other rooms in the castle, but this room seemed a bit different. A small fire pit sat on the floor with an earthen pot, and along one wall there seemed to be a short raised shelf built into the wall. There was also lots of equipment in the corner of the room that he assumed would be for making this mysterious tea. Based on the briefing Suguru had given him earlier, they weren’t supposed to talk much during the ceremony; something about meditation or the like, and for that, Satoru was thankful. He really didn’t want to lie more than he had to.

“So… what business do you and your friends have on the island?” 

“Oh, my family runs a small business. We make fantastic fishing equipment, and my friends help me bring it to the island when we receive orders.” Nice, technically not a lie; their fishing tools and nets were far superior to those of the humans, and it gives him an excuse to not visit for days at a time. This was a pretty solid backstory he was creating for Gojo Tohru, and while he was relieved that he successfully created this backstory, he still felt… off about the whole thing. The more he told Suguru, the more the lord was learning about ‘Tohru’, not him. Is this how it would always feel; like he was setting Suguru up with someone else? This body wasn’t his, not really…

“Well, you should bring some wares with you next time. Your family may just become the royal family’s personal supplier.” Suguru’s deep voice brought him out of his own thoughts. 

“Oh, yes, of course.” And Satoru wanted to throttle himself. Thankfully, their conversation ended there as a beautifully dressed woman arrived and began making the tea. Overall, Satoru finds himself slightly bored by the whole affair, and once the tea is served it doesn’t taste like much, but he does enjoy the novelty of hot liquids, and drinking in general. As the ceremony wraps up, Suguru offers his hand to him, and helps him rise from the floor, only to find his legs failing him as it feels like he's being stung by millions of baby jellyfish. He stumbles forward, tripping on his robes, but thankfully, Suguru is already there to catch him. Satoru swears he can feel Suguru’s warm hands all the way through his layers, and heat ignites in his belly, which travels to his face. 

“Careful, Lady Tohru. Your legs must have fallen asleep from not moving so long.” Satoru can’t form a single thought under his warm violet gaze, but nods in agreement. He didn’t know legs could fall asleep. He straightens, and Suguru removes his hands, and he instantly misses their warmth. 

“Thank you.” He mumbles, and he’s glad he does, because Satoru is instantly graced with a dazzling smile from the young lord. 

“It’s only fair. I must return my debt to you somehow.” 

Satoru can’t hold back his eye roll, “Oh this game again?” 

“What? You don’t enjoy our game?” Suguru asks, a smile in his voice. “I think it’s quite fun.” Satoru smiles at this because it is fun. It’s easy how they can banter back and forth and not worry (for the most part) about offending the other. As Suguru leads him out of the tea room, Satoru can’t help but wonder if this banter would be the same if he was a man. He shakes himself, not wanting to sour his mood. 

“Well, if we are going to play this game, then I don’t really think that stopping me from tripping really counts as a credit toward your repayment to me for saving your life.”

“No? Well… what about an invite to a dinner party in my honor?”

“In your honor?” Satoru scoffs, “Shouldn’t the party be in my honor?” Suguru laughs. 

“I would hold several parties in your honor if the council would allow it.” He says seriously, taking Satoru’s hand in his and it takes all of Satoru’s willpower to not completely melt under his touch. 

“W-well, if it’s not in my honor, I’m sorry, but I won’t be attending.” He crosses his arms childishly.

“Well, it would be considered rude to turn down an invitation from the lord himself.” Satoru made a face at that comment.

“Then you severely underestimate how rude I am.” He snarks back.

“I think I have a pretty good idea, actually.” Suguru chuckled, “Which is why I am personally inviting you to attend a dinner party that is actually being held in my honor in a few months.” Satoru paused in their stroll. “It is a celebration of my coming of age, where I will officially take over power from my mother.” Something about this rings a bell in Satoru’s mind. Is this the celebration that Suguru had been yelling about on the beach the night he almost drowned? The one where Suguru was expected to take on a wife? The thought of Suguru marrying someone else makes Satoru’s blood boil. Was this man really inviting him to what was essentially his wedding day?

“I think I'll be busy that day.” Satoru says, lightly brushing him off, but of course, Suguru is not deterred in the slightest. 

“Truthfully, I am breaking all protocall by inviting you, and the party will be dreadfully boring but…” Again, he takes Satoru’s hand in his, and strokes his thumb over his pale skin. “I don’t know when I will see you again, and I need a reason for you to come back.” The look that Suguru gives him pierces his heart, and he’s suddenly weak in the knees again. 

“I… I can’t make any promises about the party, but… I promise I will come back to you before then.” He can at least offer him this solace. Even if it breaks Satoru’s heart in the end, he wants to spend as much time as he can with the man before some woman steals him away. And what would that mean for his brilliant plan if Suguru married? If human marriage was anything like the mers, then Suguru would turn to his new bride for answers when it comes to major decisions, as well as his advisors. He and Suguru wouldn’t be able to continue their current relationship, that was certain, but what even was their current relationship? He was a woman currently, and as far as Satoru could tell, Suguru didn’t have any female advisors, so that option was out. Satoru was interested in Suguru romantically, and it’s clear that Suguru was as well, but even if they were to try and pursue a relationship, would tradition allow Suguru to marry a commoner? Then that begs the question: could Satoru even stomach the thought of being intimate with Suguru while in this body that wasn’t really his? And if Suguru were to marry another woman, but wanted to keep Satoru around as a concubine, could he imagine sharing Suguru with another? Gods he was getting ahead of himself. How could he even do any of those things when his time on land was limited to 24 hours?

“-Tohru. Lady Tohru?” Warm hands suddenly cradled his face, “There you are.” Again, Suguru’s voice pulled him out of his spiral. “Did you hear what I asked you?” Satoru bit his lip sheepishly, and shook his head. He had been so lost in his thoughts that he’d not heard a single word the lord had asked him, but it was clear that Suguru didn’t seem to mind, as he simply smiled and stroked his cheek.

“I asked if I–” Suguru cut himself off, and Satoru cocked his head to the side. “I-I asked if… If you would be staying for dinner.” Suguru looked disappointed by his own question, and Satoru knew in his heart that was not what the young lord had asked him. Again, Satoru found himself unable to tell the lord no, and stayed for dinner. They were joined by Suguru’s mother, who did exchange simple pleasantries, but on occasion Satoru would catch her glaring at him in a way that made his skin crawl. At least this time his mother wasn’t berating Satoru for trying to kill or seduce her son. At some point Suguru offered him a strong smelling liquid and explained it was a fermented beverage called alcohol. He tasted the offering and instantly found himself choking and gasping for air.

“Oh my,” Lady Geto commented at his reaction, “It seems that our guest is not accustomed to the strong flavors of liquor.” The lady took a small sip of her own cup. “At least we know our dear ‘hero’ isn’t a lush.” 

“Mother, please.” Suguru chides as he rubs a hand on Satoru’s back, trying to soothe his coughs. His mother simply rolls her eyes, and shortly after dismisses herself, claiming the need to rest. The two of them enjoy the rest of their meal in peace, and before long, Satoru finds them at the gates of the palace bidding Suguru goodbye.

“I sincerely hope that you will think about my invitation.” Suguru says quietly, and Satoru can’t help to get a little lost in his violet eyes as he says this.

“I… I will consider your invitation. But know I don’t have anything appropriate to wear. Truthfully, all I have is what you have gifted me.” He raises an arm as if to express this, and Suguru again only smiles at him.

“You won’t have to worry about that at all. I will have something made especially for you. In the meantime,” in a flurry of movement, Satoru finds his shoulders covered with a warmth that smells so much like the man in front of him, he nearly faints, “Please take this cloak, while we work on expanding your wardrobe.” Satoru examines the fur-lined cloak and pulls it close around his person. 

“Careful Suguru… I might come to expect this kind of thing every time I visit.” 

“I hope you do. I’ve come to find that I rather enjoy… spoiling you, Lady Tohru.” Satoru can do nothing but swallow, his stomach doing somersaults at Suguru’s words. The young lord takes Satoru’s hand in his, and places a kiss on the back of his hand, his lips lingering just a moment longer than they should. “Until we meet again, Lady Tohru.”

“Until we meet again.” Satoru manages to squeak out, and before he leaves, he’s graced by that beautiful smile. He finds himself promising he would return within the next few days to have the palace tailor take his measurements. It would be difficult with his presentation ceremony happening in a little over a week now, but Satoru is able to convince himself that this would be for the greater good if he could continue to build his relationship with Suguru. No other reason…

It was bitterly cold as Satoru walked through the underbrush to the secluded beach. His head was in the clouds after spending the day with Suguru, but thankfully, he had enough sense to turn down the offer of an escort, claiming that his friends would meet him down the road at their usual meeting place. Again, all lies which made bile rise in Satoru’s throat. 

Satoru finally arrived at the stone he had hidden the robes at the first time and sighed as he began stripping down. If Suguru was going to get into the habit of gifting him clothes, he would need to invest in a trunk of sorts to preserve the clothing. As he undressed, he let his mind drift to a world where Suguru gifted him the finest mens robes. He would live in the palace with Suguru, never having to worry about transforming into seafoam, or lying to Suguru. They would spend their days together, sparing, hunting, and enjoying each other's company. He was just about to remove the last underlayer when he heard something from behind the bushes. Startled, he quickly pulled the robes back over his body and turned towards the noise. 

“Well, well… what do we have here?” 

Chapter Text

“Well, well… what do we have here?” A young man suddenly appeared from the underbrush. He looked like a common fisherman, his clothes dirty and tattered, hardly thick enough to keep out any sort of cold. In his right hand he held some sort of bottle, and Satoru could smell a stench rolling off the man that smelled suspiciously like the liquid Suguru had offered him at dinner that evening. “Little late for a pretty thing like you to be out here. Or did you just get done with your last customer?” Satoru swallowed, pulling the thin garment tighter around his body. He may not be familiar with human customs, but he wasn’t dumb. He knew exactly what this man had on his mind based upon the way he grabbed at himself. 

“It’s a little late for you to be harassing strangers on the beach. Leave me be.” Satoru said, but his voice wavered, the high-pitched tone only seemed to excite the man. 

“Oh, come on. Don’t be like that. I bet you got one more round in you for Nayoa.” The drunkard, Nayoa apparently, stumbled forward, and Satoru didn’t stick around to see what exactly ‘one more round’ would look like. He took off toward the beach; his only chance at safety. The white robe billowed behind him, the ties long undone. Unfortunately, Nayoa followed, and despite his drunken state was able to gain on Satoru about halfway to the water. He grabbed at the robe and yanked Satoru backward, causing him to fall into the sand, knocking the wind out of him. “See? I knew it. You look so much prettier on your back.” Satoru was panicking, he couldn’t breathe let alone think straight as he tried to shove this man off him. “Quit fighting!” In the dim light of the moon, he could see the man raise his bottle.

This is it. This is how I’m going to die. 

He shut his eyes, and waited for the blow to land. But suddenly Nayoa cried out. Satoru opened his eyes to see a large brown dog chomping down onto the man's arm. It was Haibara!

The drunk released his grip on Satoru, fully focused on the dog attacking him. As Satoru watched from where he still lay gasping in the sand, Haibara was biting and snarling at the man. Then suddenly Nayoa struck Haibara with the bottle originally meant for him. The blow was enough to get Haibara to release his jaws from the man’s arm, and shove the dog off him.

“You crazy bitch! Sleep with the dogs then!” Nayoa shouted as he ran off towards the trees. Satoru looked back over to where Haibara’s furry form lay deathly still on the beach. The seconds felt like ages as the air finally returned to Satoru’s lungs and he was able to move. He ran over and picked up his inured friend, and sprinted into the waves where the two of them immediately transformed back into themselves. 

“Stay with me Haibara,” Satoru slapped his face trying to keep the young merman awake, “Please, stay awake.” 

“S-satoru?” Haibara sounded confused. Satoru cradled the younger in his arms close to his chest as he propelled them through the water, the iron smell of blood permeating the water. He entered the caves where some mers were already popping out of their caverns at the smell of blood. Nanami was suddenly at his side as they swam toward the medicine woman’s cave. 

“What happened?” The blond was fully focused on the brunette in Satoru’s arms.

“I was— we were on the beach, and there was a man… He-he attacked Haibara.” The merman in question was hardly breathing, his gills not even making the slightest movement, “He tried to save me from being—” Satoru couldn’t finish his sentence and bile rose in his throat. His thoughts were all over the place as they entered the medicine woman’s cave. How would he explain this to the elderly woman? Would she believe him if he said they had been fooling around in one of the abandoned caverns and he hit his head? It was unlikely.

The elder seemed to be expecting them and already had her salves in hand; she like the others could smell the blood before she even laid eyes on them. After a quick inspection of the wound, she slathered the gash in a thick slime which instantly stopped the bleeding. Satoru hovered nearby, unable to take his eyes off his friend. Nanami fared no better.

“Will… Is he-” The old mer was quick to cut Satoru off.

“He’ll live. Now leave. Let me work.”

The council of elders wasted no time in calling an emergency meeting. Satoru floated in the center of a dark cavern, woven kelp screens hiding the faces of the numerous elders on the council. The edges of the cavern only illuminated by the bioluminescence of jellyfish. Why the council insisted on secrecy he’d never understand. He already knew all the names of who was on the council; being the next in line as village head, it was his job to know. It was a privilege his grandmother currently held and should have been passed on to his parents before him, were it not for their untimely demise nearly two decades ago.

However, until he was in that position, he would be treated like every other mer. 

“Gojo Satoru. Future leader of our great village,” His grandmothers voice rings out in the cavern. After his parents passing as a child, she had taken over as his guardian. It was a nice enough upbringing, warm, but strict. “It has come to this councils attention, that this evening both you and Haibara Yu were attacked… on land.” A few grumblings come from behind the screens and he feels the current in the water shift. “Do you deny this?”

Satoru doesn’t lower his head at the question and stares strongly at one of the screens, “I do not.” More murmurs. He can’t make them out, but he knows what they are saying. That he’s too arrogant, disrespectful, and a handful of other remarks about his attitude. His grandmother had taught him well in how to stand his ground, however, in these instances her teachings went underappreciated by members of the council. 

“As future head, this council is sure you are aware of the fact that no mer’s are permitted on the surface until after their presentation ceremony. A ceremony that neither you or Haibara have participated in yet.” She pauses again, and it takes every ounce of will power in his body not to groan and roll his eyes. 

“I am aware of our tradition.”

Just get to the point already and punish me.

He could feel his grandmother’s icy gaze on him even through the screen. Though she had been warm to him as a child, now an adult, she had grown stricter with him. As he mostly blocks out what she says to him, he has a passing thought that Suguru’s mother and his grandmother would get along famously. “Then pray tell, what exactly you two were doing on the beach at such a late hour, and how Haibara’s injuries came to be?” Her question brought him back to the present. He couldn’t help but smile inwardly. He’d been prepared for this question.

“It’s no secret to the council that it’s a test of courage for mers of our age to venture onto the beach shortly before their presentation. I know for a fact a good number of this council has also done this.” He pauses to glance around the room, knowing for a fact five out of the twelve gathered here partook in this exact activity; bragged about it even. His statement is met with defining silence. He takes a deep breath and continues. “Haibara and I partook in this test of bravery and while we took every precaution, we were unfortunately discovered by an unruly man who found pleasure in abusing animals.” Not a lie, but also not the truth. He dares to glance around the room. “The man attacked me first, and Haibara attacked him but was struck on his head with a glass bottle, knocking him out. After Haibara’s attack, the man wasn’t too keen on staying around and fled. As soon as I was able, I managed to drag us both back into the water and brought him in for medical attention.”

There were murmurs around the cavern when he finished his story. Though the reason why they had been ashore was a lie, everything else about his retelling was true. After a few minutes of more mumbling and blocking them out, his grandmother spoke again. 

“It is clear that both you and Haibara have suffered greatly from this incident already. The council sees no reason to further punish either of you for your actions. You are dismissed.” He blinks in surprise. This outcome was… unexpected. He bobs his head in acceptance and expresses his appreciation. Was this actually happening? This was too good to be true, but he wasn’t going to stick around for them to change their minds. He spins and heads toward the exit, thanking his lucky starfish when his grandmother’s voice cuts through the water again. “Gojo, on your way out, alert the messengers to notify the village that there will be a gathering in the main cavern tomorrow morning.” He freezes at the exit, looking back over his shoulder. 

“Of course. May I tell them what the meeting is for?” 

Satoru floated along the back wall of the cavern, near the medical branch. Crossing his arms, he flicked his tail angrily as the large crowd around him murmured with curiosity as to why the council would call such a meeting. He already knew why, but had been told by the council to keep it under the surface until the announcement. They all waited anxiously, watching the entrance to the council chambers. Nanami joined him then, just as three of the council members appeared, along with his grandmother. Her silvery, snowy hair seemed to glow in the dim lighting; her tail, once a brilliant blue, had now faded to a dull navy. At their appearance, the crowd quieted.

“The council has come to a decision!” Satoru refused to flinch as the voice of his grandmother echoed in the large chamber. “We’ve always known of the dangers of the surface world. We have these rules for a reason. To keep not only our children safe, but our whole way of life.” Even from a distance, Satoru could see her icy blue gaze pause on him. “It’s high time we separate ourselves entirely from the surface world. It’s done nothing but cause us grief and pain. From this day forward, no mer is to ever step foot on land.” Satoru stiffened and cries of distaste rose around him.

“Forbid the whole village?!”

“You would forsake the goddess’s gift!?”

“This is outrageous!”

“Silence!” His grandmother’s voice slices through the noise. “The council’s decision is final. Any mer discovered sneaking onto land will be shackled for two phases of the moon. Again, we do this not only for the safety of the individuals, but for the safety of our village.” Again, the crowd was in an uproar. Shackling was typically reserved for those in society who ran the risk of exposing mers to the human world, and consisted of placing an engraved stone ring on the base of their tail, hindering their land transformation. It wasn’t painful, but it wasn’t something that he could let happen.

Nanami spoke up then, his voice strong but soft under the roar of the crowd around them. “They are serious, aren’t they?” Satoru kept his mouth shut. On the one hand, he was thrilled with the outcome. No one would ever learn his secret, but this made everything all the more complicated. His perfect plan, smashed to bits like a ship upon the rocks. 

“Yeah. They’re serious.”

“What will you do?” It was a fair question. He had no plan now. While his presentation would have been humiliating it was at least a viable excuse for him to visit on land. But now he would be trapped, expected to be found under the sea at all times. Not only that, if he was discovered it meant being trapped under the sea for weeks, yet another thing he couldn’t let happen. 

“Guess I’ll lay low for a while.” He could feel Nanami’s incredulous gaze upon him. 

“Guess its not just bottom feeders who lie at the bottom of the sea.” The younger man sighed, a sound far too burdened for someone his age. “Look Satoru, I know Hibara and I said we would help you, but after what’s happened, I don’t know if—“

“I don’t expect you or Haibara to take risks for me again.” Satoru cuts him off before Nanami can continue. “I’ve only been up to the surface twice, and he nearly died trying to protect me. I might be doing something selfish, but I can’t ask you both to risk your lives. Not even I’m that selfish.” 

Nanami doesn’t say anything, but Satoru can tell he wants to say more. He probably wants to tell him that its dangerous for him on the surface too, that he should give this up, that there is too much at stake. Satoru can’t disagree; risking his life to just see a man who he has no future with? It’s not just stupid, it’s the definition of stupid. Yet, Satoru finds that he can’t stay away. With every minute he spends with Suguru, he falls more in love with him. Satoru heaves a heavy sigh as the two of them leave the cavern to check on Haibara’s recovery. 

As they swim, it dawns on Satoru that anything he does regarding the surface will now be on his own. It’s a jarring thought, and for the first time since he decided to pursue Suguru, Satoru finds himself questioning if what he is doing is really worth it.

Chapter Text

In the days that followed, things seemed to move incredibly fast.

Since the surface ban, he no longer had to go through with his full presentation; however, there was still a big to-do about it. He was officially welcomed as the new village head, with his grandmother officially sinking down from the position to join as one of the members on the council. It was standard practice in the village, as they found having young minds in positions of leadership allowed for a more rounded perspective on decisions. 

At least that was how it was presented to the villagers. It was true that Satoru was now officially the village head, but he quickly learned that he was not the one in charge. The council still held most of the decision-making power, with most of the elders still looking to his grandmother for final say on items. So what did they need him for? Turns out, he was to be the face of the council. He would sit in on the meetings where the villagers would come to voice their complaints or bring up issues in the village, and he was to sit there and reassure them that the council would “take their concerns seriously,” and “find a peaceful solution.” He was so frustrated by the whole ordeal. Why had his grandmother spent all that time teaching and educating him on leadership when he was essentially a glorified complaint department?

The worst part, though, was that his new duties kept him stuck under the waves. Each day started off with him being pulled from his sleeping sponge by his grandmother, and dragged to the council chambers where all the old blowfish were already waiting for him. They would discuss the issues brought up the day before and spend the morning discussing the matters and what was to be done, and who would be assigned to do the task. Then they would break for lunch, and when they reconvened, they would hold an open space for villagers to come voice new complaints. Late afternoons were for follow-ups on old solutions to make sure they were resolved. He was allowed two days off per week, but being the new head didn’t allow him to move about the village easily. Anyone who saw him was quick to pull him aside and congratulate him, or thank him, or just talk his ear off. So yes, while he had his free days being the new face of the village made moving around the caves impossible. 

On top of all that, because he’d been so wrapped up in his new duties, he still had not been able to visit with Haibara once he’d woken up. He woke up about two days after the announcement of the surface ban, and Nanami had informed Satoru during one of his quick lunch breaks that Haibara was still restricted to the medicine woman’s quarters to keep an eye on him so he didn’t go belly up. Nanami also told him that he’d spoken with Haibara about not being able to help him anymore when going to the surface. Oddly enough, Haibara hadn’t put up much of a fight about it. He really wanted to speak with Haibara face-to-face and thank him properly for saving his life, but it was truly proving to be impossible.

Which is why he was currently spending his off-day in his personal cavern, telling his grandmother he was too tired to swim about the village, a lie he knew she didn’t believe, but let him alone anyway. He sighed deeply and closed his eyes, letting the flow of the water move him whichever way it wanted. As he flowed with the current, his mind conjured images of sparkling violet eyes and warm, strong hands. During these quiet moments, he wondered how Suguru was doing. 

He hoped Suguru was doing okay. Satoru had promised the night he’d left that he’d return in a few days to get measurements by the palace tailor, but it had been nearly two weeks since then. Did Suguru hate him? Or was he worried? The what-if’s got harder to ignore on days like this. He tried to convince himself that this is how it had to be; that it was better for both of them in the long run. After all, if Satoru kept showing up he was going to get Suguru’s hopes up about the possibility of having a future together. Which, again, they couldn’t have. 

So yes, even though it felt like the weight of the whole ocean was pressing on his chest, this was for the best. 

“Psst! Satoru!” Satoru opened his eyes. Was that…? “Psst!” A mop of brown hair popped out from around the corner of his room.

“Haibara?” Satoru flipped himself upright. “What in the hells are you doing here? You’re supposed to be resting.”

“I got the all clear! And the first thing I did was come see you!” His junior swam into the room and wrapped him up in a tight hug. “I’m so glad you’re okay.” 

“That’s my line, you sunfish.” He hugged his friend tightly. “I wouldn’t… I–” He felt his throat close up as memories of that night resurfaced. “You saved me that night, Yu.”

“And you saved me! That’s what friends do, Satoru.” Haibara finally released him and smiled. “Which is why I’m going to save you again. Right now!” Haibara grabs his arm and starts pulling him toward the tunnels that lead to the main village cavern. 

  “What are you talking about?”

“I’m going to help you get to your prince!”

Satoru immediately pushes backwards, staring at his junior. “W-what? No, you can’t help me anymore. I don’t want you getting–”

“Satoru,” Haibara grabs his wrist, tighter this time. “What happened last time was not your fault. I happened to be nearby and saw what was going on. You didn’t ask me to come help. But we are friends, and I know you would have done the same for me.” Satoru is so touched, he can’t even speak. “I know the risks, but so do you. Besides,” Haibara smiles, “I’m not the one going to the surface.” Satoru can’t help but laugh at his friend. So, he lets himself be drug along through the village as Haibara makes a big fuss about how the new village head needs to help him right away. “It’s super important! And urgent! Not dangerous though!” 

Satoru does his best to hide his smile as they swim at a brisk pace through the underwater tunnels. His heart is pounding in his chest as the exit appears in front of them. Finally, they make their way into open water, and for the first time in nearly two weeks, Satoru feels like he can breathe again. They swim for a while still and find the secluded beach. It’s a cloudy, drizzly day, so there is no chance of anyone seeing him as he climbs out of the water. Satoru feels the bubbles on his skin, and as soon as he’s able to stand, he looks back to the sea where he sees a small brown mop of hair floating in the waves. A thin arm waves at him, before disappearing completely from sight.

He shields his eyes from the drizzle and suppresses a shiver as he quickly makes his way to the location where he stowed the clothes that Suguru had given him, which are thankfully still there. They are muddy and wet, but it will have to do. He throws the damp clothes on, as well as the cloak, which weighs nearly double now that its soaked through. He feels his teeth chattering as he makes his way toward the castle. By his best judgment, it's still early in the morning, which means Suguru should be in his study reviewing various documents. As he trudges through mud puddles, it suddenly hits him that he’s going to see Suguru.  

His heart skips a beat. He’s really going to see him. 

  He picks up his pace, and the palace comes into view. Two guards at the top of the gate see him approach, and the door is opened for him. The guards give him a look as he’s escorted to a waiting room, and he knows how he must look, but he doesn’t care. Not even a little, because he’s going to see Suguru. He sits patiently, even though he feels as though he’s going to vibrate out of his skin. All thoughts leave his mind, and all he can think is Suguru, Suguru, Suguru…

“Well, look who it is.” Satoru startles at the voice. 

“Shoko!” The brown-haired woman smiles at him. Today she’s wearing a simple light green kimono with a warm yellow obi. It seems rather simple, but once again, a closer look reveals the level of quality of the garment. 

“Yo,” she walks into the room, looking Satoru over. “You look like you got caught in a typhoon.” He chuckles, only slightly embarrassed now. 

“Well, you try keeping these robes clean walking on muddy roads.” He holds up an arm, the sleeve covered in a spectacular smattering of mud. “You should see the other guy though. Threw a clump of mud right at his head for splashing me.” Shoko’s laugh is like sweet music to his ears, its familiar and warm. 

“Well, perhaps our prince will see him on his way back to the palace tonight.” The wind suddenly leaves his sails at her words. “Suguru was called away on some lord business about two days ago. He sent word yesterday he would be returning late this evening.” Satoru knows he should hide his disappointment, to look away, to hide his face with his sleeve, or any number of things. What he does, though, is nearly cry. He’s risking everything by being here and Suguru isn’t even home. He’s risking not being able to see Suguru for nearly two months to see him today, and he’s not even home! 

All he can manage to get out over the lump in his throat is a small, “Oh. I see…” 

He flinches when Shoko openly laughs at him. So much for palace decorum. “Oh my god, you look like someone just told you your dog died. Relax, Tohru. The moment the guards alerted me of your arrival, I sent our swiftest messenger to notify Suguru. He’ll most likely be back before dinner now.” He feels her tug on his arm, forcing him to stand. “Which means we only have a few hours to get you presentable before he arrives.” 

He’s suddenly swept up in a makeover he didn’t ask for. The first stop is what Shoko calls the bathhouse. She forces him to strip and has one of the attendants scrub him down from head to toe. Mer’s are no strangers to nudity, but seeing other nude female humans has him blushing and feeling more out of place than normal. When they start pulling him toward the baths, he adamantly refuses, unsure of what would happen if he fully submerged himself. Apparently, this is an odd thing to refuse, but the attendants do not question his decision (he’s a personal guest of the young lord after all). Next, Shoko has him dried and dressed in several layers of silk, even more ornate than what he has already been given. This time, he is garbed in a floral pink kimono with a beautiful pattern of camellia flowers. Shoko does what she can with his cropped hair, taking a small golden clip and pinning it out of his face.

  “Personally, I never understood the fascination with long hair,” Shoko says as she pins the clip, “It gets in the way of everything.” The last thing she does is pull out a small lacquered box, which Shoko opens to reveal several small brushes and containers. “I’m also not one for makeup, but I think some of this suits you pretty well. Have you ever worn it before?”

Satoru shakes his head. Yet another human custom that he and other mers found strange: human women painting their faces with colored creams. He knew it was another way humans chose to decorate themselves, but the practice was impossible underwater. Mers preferred more permanent ways of beautification, such as piercings, jewelry, hairstyles, and tattoos; many things that some humans would consider taboo. As he watched Shoko pull out a small bowl and brush, he was fascinated by how it changed from a shiny green to a bright blood red. “How about just some color on the lips to start, and then some pencil on the eyes? You’re already pale enough that we can forgo the face cream.” Unsure of what to do, he lets Shoko take his face in her hand. “Make a face like this.” She pulls back so he can see her face. She opens her mouth slightly, not unlike a fish, and he does his best to mimic. “Eh, close enough.” The brush coats his lips in the stuff, and it’s an odd feeling having his lips stick together slightly without having eaten anything. She has him close his eyes, and he lets her darken his lids, with only a small mishap of stabbing his eye once.

  When she is finished, he looks in the gold-plated mirror and hardly recognizes himself. His lips are the same color as an anemone he once saw as a child; a dazzling red with iridescent shades of green if the light hit it just right. The red coloring around his eyes was just as striking, making his blue eyes sharp and bright. 

  “Oh, he’s going to have a fit when he sees you.” Shoko’s comment has him blushing, “No, seriously. You look amazing. If Suguru wasn’t already courting you, I might like a chance to court you.”

“Sorry, Shoko, I don’t think you would be able to handle all this.” Once again, his mouth moves before his brain can catch up, but he’s not too worried. This is Shoko after all, and his comment has her laughing again. 

“Yeah, I don’t even think Suguru has a handle on you.” She wipes away a tear from her eye, “You are one of a kind.”

He simply smiles at her, flicking open the fan Shoko brought in with his outfit. “You have no idea.”