Work Text:
Loki had never been in the ocean. It wasn’t something that he thought about often, but when he found out his family was going to be staying at a beach house for a month of the summer, he wasn’t sure what he was going to do. He didn’t even know how to swim. Whenever he went in a pool, he always stayed in the shallow end where he could stand. The thing about the ocean that terrified him the most was that it was completely unknown to him and most of humanity. Loki also didn’t like to think about the possibility of drowning or getting bitten by a shark. Watching shark week for a week straight the year before definitely didn’t help.
So Loki was 22 years old and had never stepped foot in the ocean. Maybe it was a little weird, but he was okay with it. He never had much of a desire to go in and had only been to the beach a few times as a kid. Living on a beach in southern California for a month of the summer was going to be a big change for him.
He spent the beginning of his stay reading his books inside. Thor kept begging him to go surfing with him, but Loki couldn’t get himself to. The thought of trying to balance on a flimsy surfboard with the deep ocean beneath him full of creatures that Loki didn’t even know of was very unsettling. He preferred to stay inside and relax.
On the fifth day of their vacation, Loki’s mother had enough of his avoidance of the outdoors.
“Loki my dear, you need some sunlight. You are so pale,” she told him.
“I’m perfectly fine here,” Loki responded. He was seated on the couch reading a book and he had no intention of getting up anytime soon.
“Your father and I are spending a lot of money to spend the month here. Please go outside and enjoy it,” she pleaded.
It wasn’t his fault that they were spending so much money. They didn’t even ask him if that was what he wanted to do for a vacation. Loki was having a great time catching up on all of the books he wanted to read, but he knew there was no point in trying to explain that to his mother. She was never going to understand. Loki sometimes forgot that normal people liked being outside and swimming in the ocean.
“I’m not going swimming,” Loki told her.
“You don’t have to. Just bring your book outside. It will be a nice change,” his mother said. He supposed that he could compromise.
Loki walked along the beach with his backpack filled with books, a towel to sit on, and his water bottle. He made sure to walk away from the house so Thor wouldn’t notice him and try to make him go in the water. He was thankful that he remembered his sunglasses because the sun was ridiculously bright. There were no clouds in sight.
After about 15 minutes of walking, Loki found some large rocks along the shore. He figured that if he sat beside one, he could find some shade. He placed the towel on the ground and his sunglasses beside him, and then resumed his spot in his book. He was at the climax and didn’t want to put it down for a while.
Loki was thankful when he felt a breeze for the first time in an hour or so. The cool air that brushed against him instantly cooled him down. However,
Loki was distracted from his book when he noticed a seagull in the corner of his eye. The bird swooped down to the sand, picking up Loki’s glasses as it flew away until it dropped them into the water. They weren’t deep into the ocean, Loki saw them land only a few feet past the shoreline, but he was still hesitant to get them. The water wasn’t clear enough for Loki to see through it, so he wasn’t even sure exactly where they fell. The glasses sank to the ocean floor and Loki was going to have to go in up to his knees to get them, and he wasn’t comfortable with that. He had no idea what kinds of fish and crabs would be over there and he didn’t want to find out. Loki also didn’t even know what saltwater felt like. Did it burn, or did it feel like regular water? What was its temperature?
Loki stood at the shoreline for a few minutes as he contemplated whether he actually needed the sunglasses. He definitely didn’t go outside in the sunlight often enough to need them every day, but they were a gift from Thor. He bought them for Loki when they found out they were going on vacation and he was most likely going to be disappointed if he found out Loki lost them because he was too scared to go into the water and get them.
“The water isn’t poisonous, you know,” a man said. Loki jumped in his place, startled that there was someone else there. He thought that he was alone.
The man was in the water to Loki’s right. He was lying on his stomach, but propped up on his arms so his face and chest weren’t under the water. He must have been in the water for quite a while because his hair was completely wet. He also had a goatee that was neatly trimmed and was shirtless with the lower half of his body still underwater.
“I’m aware,” Loki said. He wondered how long the man had been watching him.
“So what are you waiting for?” the stranger asked.
“I’m just looking,” Loki told him. He didn’t have to explain himself to someone he didn’t know.
“You should get your glasses before they go deeper,” the man said.
Maybe Thor would understand. He knew of Loki’s strange fear. Thor liked to pick on him sometimes, but he also wouldn’t want Loki to do something that he was uncomfortable with.
“It’s okay. I don’t need them,” Loki responded.
The man raised an eyebrow. “You’re just going to leave them there?”
“Yup,” Loki replied.
“That’s a shame. They were nice,” the man hummed.
“They were,” Loki agreed.
Loki really wished that the stranger would swim away. He was making the situation more embarrassing than it already was. Loki knew that his fear was somewhat childish, but he didn’t need judgment from a random man as well. If the man cared so much about Loki’s glasses, why didn’t he get them?
“You’re scared,” the man said, as if he finally realized.
“I thought that was quite obvious,” Loki said.
“I can get them for you, but I don’t want you to freak out,” he told Loki.
“Why would I freak out?” Loki asked.
Instead of answering with words, the man swam towards the area where the glasses fell. As the man got closer to the shoreline, Loki was able to tell why he thought that he would freak out. The man didn’t have legs. Instead, he had a long red tail with orange and yellow fins. Once Loki got a closer look at him, he noticed that he had gills on the sides of his neck as well.
After the man (was he a man?) retrieved the glasses, he swam all the way to the edge of the shoreline so he was mostly out of the water. Loki was able to grab the glasses from him without having to touch the water. He was absolutely speechless.
“Use your worlds, darling,” the man said with a comforting grin.
“Uh, thanks,” Loki finally told him.
“You’re freaking out,” the man observed.
See, this was one of the reasons why Loki was scared of the ocean. He didn’t know what was in it, and he definitely had no idea that there were actual mermen swimming around.
“Are you going to eat me?” Loki asked the merman.
The man burst out into laughter before replying, “What? No, of course not.”
Loki sighed in relief and took a seat on the sand. His legs were feeling kind of wobbly, probably from shock. He sat only a few inches in front of the man.
“My name is Tony, by the way,” the man introduced himself.
“I’m Loki,” he said.
“So why are you scared of the ocean?” Tony asked curiously.
Answering this question was always complicated. People rarely understood Loki’s reasoning, but the ocean was never a place where Loki wanted to go. Maybe one day that would change, but Loki still felt a sense of fear about it.
“I’ve never gone in it. I don’t know how to swim,” Loki answered.
“There is time for you to learn. I can teach you,” Tony offered.
“Not today,” Loki was quick to respond.
It wasn’t a bad offer, Loki realized. If he ever was going to learn how to swim from anyone, it would be best to be taught by someone who literally swam all the time. Tony was a creature of the water. Loki doubted that anyone knew how to swim better than him. He would be learning from the best of the best.
But that was a decision for another time. He was not stepping into the ocean today.
“Alright,” Tony said simply. “What brings you here, then?”
“My family is staying at a beach house for the month,” Loki told him.
“And you were going to stay out of the water the whole time?” Tony asked. Loki could tell that Tony didn’t ask it in a way that was making fun of him. It was more of a question out of curiosity.
“Yes,” Loki nodded. “It’s childish, I know, but I don’t like the idea of swimming in a body of water where I can’t see or know what else is swimming in it with me. I also like having the ground beneath my feet.”
“Humans haven’t even discovered half of the creatures that live here,” Tony said.
“Clearly,” Loki smirked, gesturing to Tony’s tail.
Mermen and mermaids were supposed to be pretend. Loki never had much of an interest in them, but plenty of girls in grade school loved The Little Mermaid . But no one had any idea that they were real.
“There aren’t many of us left, but we’ve learned how to hide,” Tony explained with a quick wink. “For someone that has a fear of the ocean, you are treating me more normally than any other human I have ever met.”
Tony had a point. Loki had no idea why he was being so nonchalant about it, but Tony was nice and didn’t make fun of his fears like most people did. He actually enjoyed his company so far.
“It would be rude to be scared of the person who saved my sunglasses from drowning,” Loki told him.
When Loki noticed that the sun was beginning to set, he figured that he should make his way back to the house before it got dark. He didn’t want to get lost.
“I should go,” Loki said. He almost felt bad leaving Tony. It was nice to talk to someone other than his family.
“Get back safe,” Tony said as he began to retreat back into the ocean.
“Thank you again,” Loki told him, referring to the sunglasses.
“Thank you ,” Tony responded.
As Loki walked back to the house, he couldn’t think of a reason why Tony would thank him. Loki did nothing for him.
The next day, Loki’s mom forced him to go outside to the beach again. He had the choice of either hanging out with Thor who would probably try to force him in the water, or escaping to another part of the beach. The choice was obvious.
Loki set up his towel and book in the same place as the day before. He made sure to put his sunglasses back in his backpack so they wouldn’t get stolen by a seagull this time.
“You’re back,” Tony said from the water.
Loki picked up his towel and placed it along the shoreline so he could sit closer to Tony.
“I didn’t expect you to be here,” Loki told him. It was definitely nice to see Tony again, but he really didn’t think that he would find him there again.
“I come here often. Most of the humans don’t find this place,” Tony said.
“Am I intruding?” Loki asked. He didn’t mean to invade Tony’s private spot. He would leave if Tony wanted him to.
“No!” Tony exclaimed. “It’s nice to have some company.”
“Oh, okay,” Loki replied. He was happy to stay.
There was never a break in conversation the whole time that they spent together. It had been a while since Loki felt like he was free to be himself while spending time with someone.
“What is the ocean like?” Loki asked. He still didn’t want to swim, but he was curious to hear what someone who lived in it had to say.
“It’s absolutely beautiful, Loki. There are always fish swimming around, dolphins, and the coral on the ocean floor is so colorful that you wouldn’t even believe it. When I’m swimming and can only see the ocean going on for miles and miles, I feel free,” Tony explained. He had a look of pure joy on his face that Loki envied. He couldn’t recall feeling like that about anything.
Loki never thought about it that way. He saw the endless waves of the ocean as a threat and something that was unknown. But if Tony saw it differently, maybe Loki could try too. It would definitely take time for Loki to conquer his fears, but he wanted to experience something that made Tony so happy.
“That sounds wonderful,” Loki told him.
“You never thought the ocean was wonderful before,” Tony said.
“You’re right, but it is something that you love and even I can appreciate that,” Loki replied.
“That’s very kind of you,” Tony said.
Loki didn’t think it was anything exceptional. He respected that everyone had different things that they were passionate about. He guessed that he learned this as a kid when everyone didn’t understand why he always had a book in his hand and never wanted to play sports with the other boys.
“What’s life like on land?” Tony asked him.
Loki found himself struggling to come up with an answer. He wasn’t unhappy, but he felt like he was at a point in his life where he didn’t have much going on. He just got his bachelors in English Literature but didn’t know what he was going to do next.
“A lot less swimming and more walking,” Loki answered.
Tony let out a laugh before saying, “Well, obviously. But I meant, what do you like to do? What are your hobbies?”
“I read a lot of books,” Loki told him. He hoped that Tony didn’t find him to be boring. Were there even books for mermen? Wouldn’t the pages get wet?
“I’ve noticed. What do you read about?” Tony asked.
“I try to read books from all genres, but I like stories about action or adventure the most,” Loki responded.
“Does that mean you are an adventurous person?”
Loki couldn’t help but chuckle at that. “Not at all.”
He liked to play things safe and wasn’t much of a risk taker. Loki didn’t even move out of his home for university.
“I think befriending a supposedly mythical creature is pretty adventurous,” Tony said.
“I guess you’re right,” Loki agreed.
It was definitely something he never saw himself doing. It honestly didn’t even phase him how Tony wasn’t human. He clearly didn’t look like one considering he had a tail and couldn’t fully leave the water. But Tony was intelligent and kind and Loki didn’t think he was very different.
Loki visited Tony every day after that. His mother and brother occasionally asked him where he ran off to during the day, but he didn’t tell them. Most of his friends were Thor’s friends first, so it was refreshing to have a friend of his own. He also didn’t want to explain how his new friend was a merman. There was no way that Thor would believe him.
After spending a lot of time together, Loki felt really close to Tony. He felt like he could tell him anything. There were only two weeks left of his vacation and he didn’t even want to think about leaving Tony behind.
Another thing that happened as Loki spent more time with Tony was that the ocean became more inviting. He still didn’t go in, but it seemed less scary than it used to. If it could be Tony’s home, maybe it wasn’t so bad. Loki thought that maybe he would at least try to swim before the end of his stay in California, as long as Tony was there with him.
“Do you ever wish that you were human?” Loki asked curiously.
It was a rainy day but Loki decided to see Tony anyway, eager to spend as much time with him as possible before his vacation ended.
“Yeah, sometimes,” Tony admitted, looking down at his tail. “It gets lonely in here,” he added, referring to the ocean.
“I’m sorry,” Loki said.
Loki frequently tried to avoid the company of others, but he didn’t realize how hard it must have been to have no one. Thor was annoying most of the time but even he had his moments, and Loki was sometimes happy to spend time with him.
“It’s fine. Talking to you has been nice,” Tony told him with a warm grin.
“I’ve enjoyed talking to you too,” Loki said honestly. It was rare for Loki to like someone enough to see them consistently and he hated thinking about leaving him.
Tony looked around with wide eyes, as if he was looking at something that Loki couldn’t see. “It’s going to storm. You should go inside, Lokes.”
“I don’t want to,” Loki admitted. “I’d rather stay here with you.”
Tony held Loki’s hand in his own, and Loki realized that it was the first time they ever touched. The merman’s hand was damp from the water of the ocean, but it was smooth and not much different than a human’s. It felt nice.
“I’m not worth getting struck by lightning,” Tony said, giving Loki’s hand a gentle squeeze.
“Where will you go?” Loki asked. Tony didn’t have the option to stay safe inside.
“I have a hiding spot,” Tony replied with a wink. “Fishermen on the other hand, are much more of a problem.” He then swam away, leaving Loki alone on the beach.
For the first time in his life, Loki wasn’t excited to go back inside. He wished that he could spend more time with Tony. His company was much more enjoyable than Thor or Loki’s parents’. Loki stared out at the water, wondering where Tony swam off to until he felt a large gust of wind, followed by thunder. He ran back to the beach house, hoping that Tony was safe wherever he was.
The storm ended up being really bad. Trees were blown over and there was some damage to the houses along the shore. Loki really hoped that Tony was alright. Staying in the ocean during the storm could not have been easy. The thought of Tony getting hurt made Loki feel sick. He couldn’t imagine the merman without his glowing smile.
Loki’s heart dropped into his stomach when he arrived at their normal meeting spot the next day. There were fishing boats scattered throughout the water. The only thing that Loki could picture in his mind was Tony getting caught by a hook or net. What if he didn’t see them before trying to swim to Loki? Loki felt absolutely helpless stuck on land, unable to warn Tony before he tried to swim to their meeting spot.
He had to do something.
Loki couldn’t believe what he was about to do. It was something that he was afraid of for as long as he could remember.
He was going to swim.
Loki had to find Tony and warn him before he got hurt. He couldn’t let anything happen to Tony. Without any hesitation, Loki ran into the water. The water didn’t burn like he childishly expected it to, which was good. The sand at the floor was making it hard for Loki to run in quickly, but he was still able to move. When it got too deep for him to stand was when Loki started to have issues.
Running into the ocean despite not knowing how to swim was probably not one of Loki’s best ideas. He didn’t regret it though, because it was his best chance of being able to find Tony before he went anywhere near the fishermen. Unfortunately, Loki wasn’t going to be able to get much further. He was barely able to stay upright in the water without the support of the ground. He really regretted never learning to swim, because his arms were getting tired and keeping his head above the water was becoming more challenging with each minute that passed.
Loki was sure that he was going to drown. His vision was getting spotty due to lack of oxygen. All that he cared about was Tony’s safety, and he really hoped that he was okay. He wasn’t able to get to him to warn him, but maybe that was a good thing. If he wasn’t near Loki, that meant that he wasn’t near the fishermen.
Loki wasn’t sure why none of the fishermen noticed him literally drowning not far away from their boats. Were they blind?
When Loki’s head fell completely underwater, he felt something wrap around his waist. He was quickly brought up to the surface and he immediately gasped for air. It was hard for Loki to focus on what he was seeing, but he was able to notice Tony’s concerned expression. His brown eyes were filled with worry as he held Loki close to his chest. Loki tried to say something to him, but he coughed up the water trapped in his lungs instead. He continued to cough for a few moments until no more water came out, leaving a burning sensation in his chest and throat.
“I’m going to take you somewhere, okay?” Tony whispered into his ear. Loki nodded weakly in response. He couldn’t do much else.
Loki felt himself being carried through the water as Tony kept his head safely above the surface. Everything passed by in a blur, but it felt nice to finally allow air into his chest. The burning diminished with each breath.
Loki wasn’t sure if he felt Tony gently kiss the top of his head before he placed him down on the shore, or if his brain was just oxygen-deprived.
After a few more moments of catching his breath, Loki propped himself up on the sand, supporting his weight with his hands as he sat in a long-sitting position. He noticed that Tony was completely out of the water, sitting only inches to his right. Tony’s red scales on his tail were glimmering in the sunlight and Loki couldn’t look away.
“What were you thinking?” Tony asked, causing Loki to finally lift his gaze. Tony looked shaken.
“I needed to make sure you were safe. There were fishermen and I knew you would have to swim by them to get to me,” Loki told him.
Tony’s eyes widened. “You went in the ocean to try to warn me, even though it’s your biggest fear?”
“I had to make sure you were safe,” Loki said simply.
Tony’s face softened. “Oh,” he said, his tone barely above a whisper.
Loki didn’t know what to say next, so he decided to take in Tony’s presence instead. The merman looked absolutely beautiful sprawled out on the sand. His hair was starting to dry and Loki suddenly felt the urge to run his hand through it, but he refrained. Loki wished that they didn’t have to live in separate worlds. He didn’t know what he was going to do when he had to leave California. The thought of leaving Tony behind made Loki feel like he was drowning all over again.
Loki almost yelped in surprise when Tony reached over and grabbed his hand. It wasn’t the first time that Tony had done that, but it felt just as good.
“I was so scared, Loki,” Tony said, looking absolutely terrified. “Please don’t do that again.”
“I won’t,” Loki promised. He had no plans to go into the ocean on his own any time soon.
“I thought I was going to lose you,” Tony told him, eyes glued to their intertwined hands.
Loki’s grip tightened on Tony’s hand, not wanting to let him go. “I don’t want to lose you either.”
“That wasn’t how I wanted your first time in the ocean to go,” Tony said sadly.
“Maybe in time you can show me properly,” Loki suggested. The thought still scared him, but he trusted Tony to keep him safe. He wanted to see the beauty of the ocean that Tony told him about.
Tony’s face lit up, the end of his tail fluttering in excitement. “Really?”
Loki nodded, trying, but failing to suppress the smile on his face.
Tony chuckled softly to himself. “If you weren’t still catching your breath, I’d kiss you right now.”
Loki took a deep breath, surprised, but happy that Tony wanted to kiss him. Loki had been wanting to for a while, so it was nice to have his feelings reciprocated.
“I think I can manage,” Loki smirked.
Tony wasted no time, using his arms to drag himself closer. Loki cupped Tony’s face with his hands and leaned in, pressing his lips to Tony’s. The merman’s lips tasted slightly of salt, but they were soft and Loki couldn’t get enough. Loki smiled as he continued to kiss Tony, feeling absolutely thrilled to be so close to him. Tony’s lips left a slight chill against Loki’s own when he pulled away.
“Well, that was nice,” Loki said.
Tony let out a laugh that sounded like music to Loki’s ears.
“You’re incredible, Loki,” Tony told him fondly, sending a chill down Loki's spine.
“How is this going to work?” Loki asked. The timing was unfortunate, but he had to know.
“I can change into a human form,” Tony responded.
Loki’s eyes widened. “What?”
“It doesn’t feel as natural, but I can change my form when I want to. It’s been a long time since I’ve done it,” Tony explained.
As wonderful as that sounded, Loki didn’t feel as happy as he should have. He didn’t want Tony to be stuck in a form that was uncomfortable so they could be together. Loki didn’t see how he was worth that, because someone as kind hearted as Tony deserved the world.
“I can’t let you do something you don’t want to do for me,” Loki said.
Tony reached for Loki and placed a stray piece of his hair behind his ear. “I want to do this for you. I want to be with you, Loki. Maybe we can live near a beach so I can go for a swim whenever I want, but there is nothing that I want more than to spend my life with you.”
Loki felt butterflies in his stomach from the thrill of their new relationship. It had been a long time since he was this excited about something, and it was all because of Tony.
“That sounds perfect, Tony. As long as you’re happy,” Loki replied.
“I will be happy as long as I’m with you,” Tony said.
Loki felt the same way. He couldn’t imagine anything better.