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"In the lonely hour of noon the naiads sat with their water-pitcher at the spring-sending forth from it the warbling brook."
Tubbo’s creek is off set to a large river that runs down the moors of England. His water creeps into the soil far beyond the actual creek. The land is soggy and unusable for man’s selfish needs such as farming and building. It’s an honour to be gifted somewhere peaceful to spend the remaining six thousand years of his life. Tubbo knew other mermaids who guarded smaller areas where human life thrived.
Mermaids are strong, the strongest have sunk entire human ships. They have lured even the strongest of men with promises of poetry and divinity before drowning them to protect their homes. But one, as allocated to each creek, is not enough to fight a hoard of angry humans. Despite the longer lives, they are still mortals.
Tubbo cuts a blade of grass with his nail, with the care of a mother with her child, before he eats it, letting the years of life in the grass wash over him. It soothes the emptiness in his chest a little, where his lungs breathe in the air meant for the creatures made of Tubbo’s and his elders' very own mud. It warms the blood which is so deep in his body, it leaves his skin a pale blue. He was yet to close the hole where his soul should be and everything screamed to try and create a false one that’d make him hole.
With that thought, Tubbo dived back under the dark waters, letting the ice wrap around him like a hug. He shut his eyes and let the world confine itself to the suspicion of the water that crushed his body, not even minding the pressure.
The winter air passed and the lilypads and dandelions sprouted. Tubbo had swam up and brushed his fingers against the leaves. The pink petals of the flowers broke the monotony of browns and greens. With millenia and no worries, watching the flowers became his favourite pastime.
Spring ended with rain. Summer dried his marsh but still no man claimed it and autumn came and went. Winter arrived again and the Gods gave Tubbo a break, freezing the pond water and letting him rest in a bed of algae at the bottom. Spring came again. Summer came again. Autumn came again. Winter came again. Spring came again. Summer came again. Autumn came again. Winter came again.
The years passed in a daze and soon humans got closer and closer to his land. Little girls would wander off to gather berries and half his life ago, Tubbo was allowed to wash the freckles off a girl before she vanished. Humanity learnt quickly, and soon men came to fish and swim in Tubbo’s waters, unaware of the danger waiting to pull them down if they breathed so much with their heads not above the water. His days of peace felt like they slipped through their fingers as Tubbo was forced into his new routine of spinning tales to children to frighten their parents and drowning the fathers who didn’t listen.
Human children get less pleasant. Girls begin to demand they change more than just their freckles. Boys announce they are there to slay him. Tubbo stops living in the lake. He starts to shove humans faces in the mud the second they show their faces. The anger roars in his veins and turns his vision red. Humans come to fight him and Tubbo cackles as they dive and dive until they’re lungs collapse inwards and they sink to the bottom of his pool like rocks. The women who sit on their boats are spared because Tubbo is still young and cannot break them just yet, anyways, as long as they aren’t in his waters they cannot see the future nor claim the ways of words.
Change comes in the form of the Sylph: Quackity. He came by per century to keep Tubbo updated on the states of the Gods and the world beyond the waters. He flies through the air and travels the world. It’s the closest Tubbo gets to seeing the full beauty of Mother Nature and her children.
At first Quackity stumbles over his descriptions. He floats over the waters and describes red leaves that paint the Fall. Tubbo asked what red is. Quackity responds: It’s the colour of fire. Tubbo learns it as: The colour of human blood.
As humans grow, Quackity skipped his first meeting since he and Tubbo first met back. Tubbo sits by the river bank all day but nobody came.
Quackity does come back. He comes a season later than planned, in the warmth of spring. Quackity, a spirit of air, walks across the marsh to reach Tubbo’s creek. He wears a plain white button up and his hair is smoothed down. The wind tries to pick him up and by the stiffness in his shoulders, Quackity forces himself to stay down. He kneels by Tubbo’s creek and dips his hand in the water.
At first, Tubbo thought he was a human. After all, no Sylph is capable of being grounded.
Quackity it turns out, is not grounded in the literal sense. Tubbo pokes his head across the water and sees him hand in hand with a human. The human looks at Tubbo with greedy ideas. He reaches to pull Quackity’s hand out of the water and Tubbo growls. The second set of vocal chords at the back of his throat make the growl low, kin to that of a bear. The human jumps away and harshly squeezes Quackity’s arm. “I think we should leave.” he warns, his voice low but not as low as Tubbo’s own.
Quackity’s face pinched as he smiled and gently removed the human’s hand, “It’s okay Schlatt. Tubbo here is just protective.” he used his own second vocal chords, higher pitched than Tubbo’s own and they begged Tubbo to consider this. To give something so inherently evil an honest chance to change the way the Gods wrote the universe.
So, Tubbo pushes himself up into the marsh and listens to Schlatt and Quackity describe how the past decade has gone. Quackity is silent but smiling as his human talks about working as the leader of a small group of the human population. He brags about how they seek advice from him and how men gift him money for his blessing.
“Why don’t you keep your blessing for one who deserves it?” Tubbo asked.
Schlatt replies, “I do. People are loyal to me if they believe they have my blessing.”
“That is cruel. Why lie? What is loyalty if it doesn’t go both ways? If you don’t respect others why should they respect you?” Blood is in the water. Humans want to take and take from Tubbo. So Tubbo will take and take from them. That is the way of the world. Fake pleasantries are wastes.
Quackity hums, “The human world works differently to our world. It’s why we need to learn how their world works before we interact with it. You’ll understand what I mean one day.” He leant into Schlatt and Schlatt grins like a predator as he tucks Quackity close.
Tubbo tears the dirt away from the marsh. The earth cracks under him. Schlatt watches him. Tubbo glares back. “How do you know when you understand humans?” he asked. The blue under his skin is rising to the surface. Schlatt shuffles away from him and Quackity bit his lip.
The answer is, “It is when you give up your spirit, your God for ours. That’s when you understand humanity.” Tubbo doesn’t know who says it. All he cares for is the meaning. He stands up and bids the two goodbye.
Tubbo hides in the creek and watches as Quackity explains that they need to respect his wishes. Schlatt shouts and declares he is stronger than such a weak spirit. Quackity warns him and Quackity wins.
They leave the Creek and Tubbo doesn’t know if he’ll ever see Quackity again. He knows what human love does to those like himself and Quackity.
Quackity comes back five years later. In his hands is a heart. Quackity eats it and praises Tubbo for being smarter than him.
Tubbo asked how the heart tasted.
Quackity says the heart tasted sweet.
Tubbo asked if that was what love tasted like.
Quackity’s answer is he likes to imagine that’s what love tastes like.
The winds change as the years pass. The rain turns acidic and burns Tubbo. It burns the freckles off the girls he used to bless.
People come to the creek but always from a distance. There is a sign, just out Tubbo’s borders, he can’t do anything about it. Quackity commented on it in his last visit, nine years ago. He commends him on keeping the tourists away but not caving to the mythical tales in exchange for his and his creeks' safety. No one comes to make that deal with Tubbo but he drowns everyone who steps within his arms reach. It isn’t very surprising. Maybe before Schlatt he would have let them say one word.
Now, he thinks no human will respect him, so he doesn’t respect them back. He thinks of the heart that bloodied Quackity’s teeth and the grip that tried to ground his only friend. Even if a human did respect him, that respect would never stay.
“What does the sign say?” Tubbo asked.
“It says: Bog, you will sink.”
“That isn’t true.”
“No one would believe the truth. Don’t come here an angry mermaid will kill you.”
“Then that’s their fault. I’m more dangerous than a fucking loser bog.”
Quackity laughed hard. He tipped his head back and laughed. “You don’t talk to anyone do you? I know you can walk to edge. You just stay in your pool.”
Tubbo huffs, “It’s a creek.”
“Same difference.”
It’s Autumn. Quackity had barely left when a human stood at the edge of Tubbo’s creek. He can tell by the faint ripple in the pond. The same size a tender hand might leave. It’s been so long so Tubbo pulls himself into the mud and wanders toward the human. He stands at the edge of the creek.
The human has patched skin, half black and half white. Tubbo can almost believe he’s something other but the human stares at him without the recognition every other creature possesses.
They hold eye contact for an uncertain amount of time. Time means nothing to Tubbo and the human blinks over and over as if he could be hallucinating. Tubbo doesn’t say anything. The human rubs his eyes.
“Can you not read the sign?” Tubbo asked, “It says stay away from the bog.”
The human holds his hand to his chest. It’s caked in mud and getting his black suit messy. Tubbo cannot help but snort, smiling a little. Normally humans come in plain shirts not suits that would be suitable for their funeral.
The human looks behind him where the sign is. Slowly, as if Tubbo will bite, he asks, “Can you not read the sign?”
Tubbo hums. The human shuffles back and oh, Tubbo must have used his second set of vocal cords if the human is scared of him. Normally he’s better than to scare them off before they can be drowned. “Follow.” he demands, though his tone is light, phrasing it like a question. Tubbo means it as an order.
The human shuffles back. “I’m. I’m.” he stutters, “I’m just looking for my book. I can leave if you want.”
“I get your book. You never come back.” Tubbo says.
The human nods, “Can you get my book?”
Tubbo doesn’t give him the honour of an answer. He calls his creek towards him and pulls out a book from where he stands. His hand fades from it’s natural blue to the orange humans find natural to look at. He flicks through the pages and blinks. “You are no poet.” Tubbo states. The book is filled with ramblings of his day and scribbles.
“Give me back my book I’ll come back!”
Tubbo throws the book over. “Come back and the bog will kill you.”
The human catches his book and laughs though it’s tight, “I’ll keep away. You um, you stay away from the bog as well. Though you look like you’re doing a good job of that. Um. Sorry. I’ll go.”
He pushes himself up from the creek and walks away backwards so his back is never faced towards Tubbo.
And Tubbo dives back into his waters content to never see the human again.
Tubbo sees the human again.
They stand by the edge of the creek staring at where Tubbo was at their last meeting. The human eyes don’t seem pinned, waiting for Tubbo. They’re glazed over, as if looking for something that’s not there.
Tubbo doesn’t gift the human a second try. They had a deal. Tubbo respected him, helped the human! Now he’s back and he’s going to demand more and more. Maybe he will ask for Tubbo to wipe off the white patches on his skin, maybe he wants to clean his suit in the creek (except he’ll squeeze them dry and steal Tubbo’s blessing and woo humanity with Tubbo’s words and feelings and-) His hair is long, tied in a ponytail. Maybe he’s seen Tubbo’s claws and wants him to slice his hair off so the human can prove he’s a man.
Tubbo’s heart wants to burst and everything feels hot. The water is tinted red and he can’t tell if it’s from the blood of the human’s ancestors or where his visions clouded by everything Tubbo’s spent years overcoming. He takes a deep breath in and throws himself into the water. He swims between the reeds, when the human gives into his lust, Tubbo will be ready to grab him and drown him. Not even the ice in Tubbo’s veins can cool the fire in him.
What neither Mermaid or human can predict is both see each other as they stand on the exact borders of the worlds.
The human moves to withdraw and apologize. The mermaid is quicker. The mermaid grabs the humans wrist and pulls him under the water.
Tubbo’s claws dig into the human and draw fresh blood. The human screams and Tubbo can’t muffle him quick enough. The human swallows the water.
The creek is dark and Tubbo can hardly see the human. He can feel them though. They thrash about and the creek strengthens them because the wisdom of the creek flows through the human. It will be until Tubbo steals the human's life or the human meets the air again. It flows between the two, as equals. Schlatt comes into Tubbo’s mind, the idea of gifting the blessing comes into Tubbo’s mind. He doesn’t know the human, doesn’t know the human. He can’t push the thought of sharing his blessing (to the boy who actually spoke to Tubbo without fear or loneliness dragging him back decade after decade) out in time.
For the second Tubbo falters and the human elbows him in the gut and tears himself out of Tubbo’s grip, leaving the mermaid with the dregs of flesh but no human. Tubbo swims up, bubbles spilling from his mouth and his hand outstretched.
It’s too late.
Tubbo can feel the Gods accept the human as Tubbo’s beloved. The creek spills its magic and wraps the damned human in it as if it's a blanket.
They both reach the surface at the same time and Tubbo is crying. Hot ugly tears drip down Tubbo’s face as he gently pulls the human towards him.
“Please…” Tubbo begs.
“No!” The human screams as he swims away. He’s slow, Tubbo could catch up to him, demand they talk but the shock of losing half his power is a barrier as strong as the confines of the creek itself.
The human gets away and Tubbo curls up on the small island of land, ready to loose his chance of love forever.
“Why did you try to drown me?” The human asked.
Tubbo sat on the ledge. His legs dangled on the creek. The loss of his blessing weakened the Creeks' constraints. He tilted his head, “Why wouldn’t I? I told you not to come back.”
The human claps his hands together, “I was just passing by. I had to explain to my mums why I was soaking wet! I didn’t antagonise you at all! You were acting, feral?” The human sounds in hysterics.
“You stole my blessing!” Tubbo screams, voice lowering more octaves than possible as he slips into a growl.
The human sighs, “I don’t know what you mean?! Why don’t we just start over! I’m Ranboo.” Ranboo offers his hand.
Tubbo keeps his hands to himself. “I’m Tubbo. You drank water from my creek. So you took my blessing and I supposedly gave it too you in a moment of true love. So you know, I’m allowed to be a little pissed.”
“What do you have to do with blessings?”
“You know, Mermaids, their blessing, gifts their lover with wisdom and skills in poetry. It’s pretty desirable. I know people who have died for it.”
Ranboo laughs, “Okay okay. Sure that makes sense.” he gulps, “Do you have to kill me to get your blessing back?” he gulps. He sweats a little. Tubbo strokes his cheek, washing away the white spots on his skin at the same time and smiles. Ranboo tenses up but Tubbo doesn’t back away. He’s tracing the edges of Ranboo ears when he tells the human to look Mermaids up in the library.
“Come back straight afterwards.” Tubbo whispers, “Otherwise I will kill you.”
Ranboo pushed Tubbo off and nodded, “Yeah! Yeah I’ll go to the library now!” he slung his bag over his shoulders and ran away.
Tubbo watched him go before he slipped back into the creek and curled up around the decaying bones of his first ever kills. He slides his finger across the smooth surface and watches as marrow floats to the surface.
Weeks later, Tubbo is awoken by a human floating in his creek. He swam to the surface, breaking the water with the grace of a diver. Ranboo lay there, his hair undone and sprayed across the surface, surrounding him like a halo might an angel. Every part of him was wet but he had a small smile on his face and his eyes were closed. Tubbo tapped his cheek and stared as Ranboo sat up and began to tread the water.
“What were you doing?” Tubbo asked.
Ranboo blinked, “I was floating.” he paused for a second before he asked, “You’re a water creature. Don’t tell me you’ve never floated before?”
Tubbo demanded that Ranboo teach him. Ranboo nodded slowly and took Tubbo’s hand, threading their fingers together. “Just follow my lead.” Then he tipped backwards. His back lay on the water and his legs floated up till he was lying down. Tubbo lowered himself down, trying to keep his body at a one hundred and eight degree angle. However with some gentle pulling from Ranboo, Tubbo found himself floating and staring up at the dark grey sky. The clouds moved with the wind and Ranboo pointed up with his hand not linked with Tubbo’s
“I think that looks like a hat. Kind of like the mad hatter’s.” Ranboo said about a cloud.
“I don’t see a hat.” Tubbo said, turning so he faced Ranboo (and submerged half his face) “They all look like clouds to me.”
“Maybe you aren’t looking hard enough?” Ranboo suggested. He tilted Tubbo’s head so he looked back at the sky; he lifted their hands and pointed up to the cloud to their right. “For example, what do you see there?” The cloud in question was a series of grays that faded in and out of each other, swirled around in a way that would mimic a giant wave found on the sunniest beaches.
“It’s a cloud, Ranboo.”
“You literally live in a pond. How do you not see it? Isn’t water meant to be your business.”
“Exactly Ranboo.” Tubbo deadpanned, “I live in a creek. Do you think I see much of the world?”
They continued to lie there in the creek until the sun started to dip from the skies. They didn’t speak anymore and the only sound was the howling of the winds and the pitter patter patter splash of the rain.
When the sky turned purple and pink, Ranboo and Tubbo swam to the end of the pool and climbed out. He grabbed a backpack and slung it over his shoulders. Tubbo sat at the edge of the creek and grabbed Ranboo’s wrist. “You can’t leave.” he snarled, words curling around the two of them like a barbed wire.
“I’ll be back tomorrow.” Ranboo rushed out, the words not even registering in his brain before he said them. The barbed wire instantly fell off the two and Ranboo stood statue still.
“Will we do that tomorrow?” Tubbo asked as he beckoned Ranboo close.
Ranboo stepped closer and nodded, “I was thinking maybe you can see some of the human world tomorrow. Is that something you can do?”
Tubbo hummed. He brushed his fingers through Ranboo’s hair, the claws scratched his scalp and the human nearly purred. “I guess we’ll have to find out.”
Ranboo doesn’t come by tomorrow.
Ranboo came back a week later with a book. He apologised for being gone so long and brought a book. Quietly he explains he is with his mums and cannot stay long enough to acquire an inhumane friend. They start the first chapter of the lion, the witch and the wardrobe. Tubbo spends the entire time pointing out the flaws in the storytelling and the fantasy.
“It’s based off Christianity. It’s not based on reality.”
“Bullshit!” Tubbo called, “He knew witches existed but heaven forbid he portrays them right!”
“Witches are common fantasy tropes. Just like mermaids. You’re kind of like a mermaid. I guess it’s partially based in reality…”
“Which is why it’s so fucked. You can’t portray a real thing that badly! That’s poor representation!” Tubbo wagged his finger and Ranboo didn’t want to know where he learnt that from.
“Did you hear a single thing I just said?”
Tubbo fluttered his eyes.
The first time Tubbo steps on grass he’s blown away. It’s wet and green and tickles his feet and soft all at the same time. He stares wistfully at it before dragging his other leg out of the water and promptly falling flat on his face.
It turns out grass is less pleasant on Tubbo’s face, it is sticky and dirty and there isn’t any clean water around for him to wipe it all off. Ranboo slid around to Tubbo’s side in an instant and wiped off the slick mud with his finger. He wrapped his arm around Tubbo’s waist and pulled him up.
“If anyone asks you slipped alright. You know how to walk. We’re a, uhm. We’re.” Ranboo stammered, trailing off to stare at Tubbo. “What are we?”
Tubbo smiled, “You’re my blessed. My beloved. Make of that what you will.”
“Partner’s. My god I have a romantic partner.” Ranboo flushed red. Tubbo slowly wrapped his arm around Ranboo’s waist, fingers trailing along as he did.
“Is this something partner’s do?” Tubbo asked.
Ranboo slowly nodded, “Yes. That is something partner’s do.”
“What else do partner’s do?”
“They, go out… on dates. To places like coffee shops and gardens. To enjoy each others company. Sometimes they um, they go around each others houses and-”
“Ranboo spare me the details on how babies are made. I do know. So, are we going to a coffee shop or gardens?”
Ranboo stopped, “Well, um.” He hesitated for a second before saying, “We’re not actually partners you know. We’re saying that because. People might ask and it’s more believable than saying we’re just friends you know. I don’t know what our relationship is and you know. I want time to think of that.”
Tubbo nodded. “That’s understandable. Can we go to the coffee shop as blesser and blessed then?”
“I don’t see why not.”
They continued to wander down the moor and for the first time, Tubbo saw the sign that warned others of the bog. He snickered and shuffled closer to Ranboo and copied his movements step for step. By the time they reached the end of the pedestrian path, Tubbo was walking along the twigs and leaves as if he were a gnome instead of a merman. He replaced his hold on Ranboo’s waist with his hand and everytime he nearly tripped Tubbo would squeeze tightly so Ranboo could pull him back up.
The streets widen Tubbo’s eyes. Rows of dried mud line the floor as little kids, boys and girls, hop across the edges trying to avoid the cracks in the paths. One or two mothers and fathers wave towards Ranboo and he waves back. Flowers that Tubbo hasn’t even heard of line the streets in wooden boxes. Rainbow bunting connects the shops. The sweet birdsong is drowned by humans chattering. The worst part is when one woman pushes past Tubbo and he’s mid lunge, teeth barred and second vocal chords waiting to growl. Ranboo pulls him back and calls him a ‘bad fish.’ Tubbo doesn’t talk for the rest of the journey and glares at everyone passing by.
They make it to the cafe and Ranboo pulls the chair out for Tubbo and tells him to stay put while he orders for the two of them. He gets in the long queue. Tubbo doesn’t care because the entire building smells of sugar and lemon. The display case shows browns and oranges that are lighter than they probably were because of the steam on the display case.The baked bread besides the cakes is still warm; it just came out of the oven. Tubbo drummed his fingers against the table cloth before he moved to rubbing the pads of his fingers down the cotton fabric.
Ranboo sits beside Tubbo after five minutes with two sandwiches and two slices of cake. He pushed one with something pinky brown towards Tubbo and smiled. “We can swap the cakes but I don’t like tuna. It’s the only fish they have here and I think you’d want something comforting.”
“Thank you…” Tubbo says as he picks the sandwich up, “If i ever cook for you, I will try to find something humans would consider… edible.” he bit into it and chewed for three seconds before his face scrunched up and he let the half eaten food fall back onto it’s place. Tubbo at least has the decency to look sheepish. Ranboo smiles in something that resembles no emotion Tubbo knew but if he had to make a guess based on Quackity’s description, Tubbo would choose to describe it as fond.
Ranboo pushes the plate out of the way, “Do you not like tuna?” he asked, “Oh god!” He exclaimed half way through and Tubbo’s own heart hammers from the palpable fear his blessed is radiating, “Can you even eat fish? Is that cannibalism? What if it’s like an allergy. Oh god I haven’t killed you have I?” Ranboo frets. He’s about to jump half way across the table to make sure Tubbo’s heart hasn’t stopped when the merman asks:
“Is tuna the green thing?”
“No, that's cucumber.”
“Surely you could have had the tuna without the cucumber? I liked the saltiness of it and then the cucumber made everything wet. Why would anyone think to do that?”
“You can remove the cucumber…” Ranboo trailed off
Tubbo opened the sandwich and slowly pulled out every slimy cucumber from the sandwich. His face was twisted in disgust but he kept going until he had every last atom of cucumber out his sandwich. Tubbo then sat up straight and took another bite of his sandwich. “That’s better.” Tubbo decided
The cakes end up going down a with less issue. They share cakes (Ranboo with a fork and Tubbo cutting things with his claws) and Tubbo hums from the flavours of carrot and orange and chocolate that burst on his tongue with every taste. He finishes more of his cake on the table than anywhere else. Tubbo still feels warm as he takes Ranboo’s hand and leaves the cafe.
Ranboo promptly refuses to take Tubbo anywhere else but he promises they’ll go to the cafe again and Ranboo will make sure there aren’t any cucumbers in his sandwiches and somehow that makes Tubbo warmer than anything else.
Ranboo does come to eat food with Tubbo. Tubbo does try, he tries his damned hardest to make the food edible for humans who aren’t made to be as efficient as the mer.
The issue in the end is not with Tubbo’s cooking skills. It’s that he has two stomachs and Ranboo doesn’t.
Ranboo asks the question of how Tubbo even looks remotely human.
The answer is: Tubbo doesn’t know either.
A year passes with easy smiles and more visits to the town. Tubbo discovers salmon and also discovers singing (which was Ranboo’s idea, he suggested the karaoke bar). Ranboo doesn’t grow a second stomach but does learn how to hold his breath for far longer than any normal human.
On the warmer days, they venture into the town and curl up on the grass. Tubbo holds Ranboo’s hand but sometimes he cuts them, long scratchy marks all across his palm and down his wrist. They bring first aid kits with them now when they go to the park. Ranboo teaches Tubbo how to braid his hair and Ranboo braids Tubbo in turn. Sometimes they’re silent, listening to the grasshoppers and caws of the birds. Other times Tubbo rambles about the magic that surrounds the world. He talks about fairies who are not chained by one man or woman. He talks about gnomes and the tricks they’re naturally inclined to create. He talks about the dragons and the demons, born from fire and supposedly sent from Hades himself.
“I don’t think being sent from Hades makes them bad. I mean mermaids, as their known now, are made by a titan. I don’t understand why you’d make Hades of all people bad.”
“It’s because he guards the dead I think.” Ranboo had said as he tied the hairbads in Tubbo’s bun, “Humans fear what we don’t know.”
“That’s pathetic. If that was true you would have ran as fucking far as you could when you see me. It’s not a human. It’s a case of people being cowards I think. Anyways you don’t think I’m evil, so obviously you’re wrong”
“I think when you’re scared of something you make it horrifying so it’s easier to justify.”
Tubbo huffed and shuffled around so he was facing the back of Ranboo’s head.
On the colder days, they hide in the lake. Ranboo is slightly horrified by the bones down there. His body also keeps trying to float. The blessing hadn’t gifted him a second set of vocal chords so the two can’t communicate while down there. Their time mainly consists of swimming lessons. Ranboo is a quick learner.
Quackity’s visit is unexpected. Not because Quakity is a season late like he was in Spring but because Tubbo’s just lost track of time for an entire year and is shell shocked when he walks to the island to discard Ranboo's coat to find the faerie standing there.
Quackity is at Tubbo’s throat within an instant. His claw is outstretched and the wind is rushing towards Tubbo. The fairie lifts Tubbo’s chin up so they are staring at each other. “You didn’t leave this creek last time I checked.” Quackity stated.
Tubbo nods, “I didn’t. Things have changed this year.”
Quackity nodded, “You haven’t done anything you regretted have you?”
Tubbo shook his and sat down on the grass, “I mean I didn’t mean to give him my blessing at first. I kind of failed to drown him. I know, I know, I’m better than that. But yeah he lived and took my blessing with him.” He patted the ground next to him and Quackity’s feet touched the ground for the second time since Tubbo had ever met him.
“Is it just your blessing?” Quackity asked. “Nothing else. Does he know he could do more?”
Tubbo outstretched his hand and showed that it had no ring. “I’d say yes if he offered though.” Tubbo admitted, “It’s stupid. I should know better but-”
“I don’t think it’s stupid.” Quackity admitted. “I mean the fact you’re still by your creek and he hasn’t taken your blessing and ran. He sounds better than my first love. So, has he written you any love poetry yet? Schlatt never read any for me and-” Quackity rambled on. He doesn’t have to do all the talking now because Tubbo can meet the world himself. The familiarity is nice though.
Tubbo takes Quackity’s address (Or at least where he checks for mail) and promises to write if anything new happens. Quackity flies away from the night and Tubbo watches him go fondly and waits for tomorrow.
A daffodil sprouts from the ground where he sat.