Chapter Text
Lost.
He was so lost.
Tears ran down his cheeks as he ran through the forest.
His parents had yelled at him again for something he couldn't control. He'd accidentally hurt one of his teachers during a sparring lesson. It wasn't his fault! Things happened! The teacher had slipped and made a mistake! But no, as usual, they blamed him. It was his fault. It was always his fault. They never seemed to listen to him whenever he defended himself. Why? Why were they so mean? The teacher had backed him up!
The trees opened up before him and he blinked as he looked around. The ocean? He'd only ever seen it at a distance from a tower... Even then, it was barely a speck in the distance. Had he really run all the way to the ocean through the forest? Thankfully, there was no threat to him aside from maybe the wolves and bears, but usually, those stayed away. They bordered a unicorn forest and the unicorns were all powerful as far as the forest went. Even the predators didn't dare come close to them. And this was a unicorn forest…
"Wow..." He walked on the sand, staring at the massive expanse of water before him. He had never seen anything like it before. He couldn't believe that it was real... he'd read about it in books before, but seeing the mighty expanse of water before him... It made it all real to him now. He couldn't believe so much water existed in the world. Sometimes it seemed like the rain would never stop, but now... The water was endless. How anybody crossed it in ships, he had no idea.
However, a soft melody caught his attention and he started to follow it. Who would be out on this beach so close to the castle? Most people left unicorn forests alone. Who would come to this lonely, isolated area? The music was pretty and he felt himself drawn in.
He found a girl sitting on the shore in the water and he blinked. Why would she be...? It was the middle of winter! It was cold! Who would be in water right now? She had to be freezing! But she seemed unconcerned as she sat in the water. He walked over to her and took his coat off. "Hey, it's cold, you should have a coat on..." Why would she be wearing basically nothing? It made no sense.
She froze and looked up at him as if she were a frightened deer. "I-I should go! I'm sorry!" She started to awkwardly move away from him but she fell in the water.
Oh.
That explained a few things.
He could now see her tail where her legs should've been.
"W-Wait! You don't have to go! Sorry for scaring you!" She seemed a bit stranded right now. He didn't want to go into the water because he'd get wet and cold and his parents would yell at him again. And if they learned about her, he knew they'd be angry. He'd heard them overtalking about how they hated the local mermaids... Something about hunting them multiple times? Why though? He didn't understand…
"No, I need to go. Where one Faunus is, more are sure to follow." She twitched, blue eyes wide.
He shook his head. "No. I'm alone. Most people won't go into the unicorn forest... They'd have go around it." He'd befriended Moonstone, the unicorn that inhabited the forest, over multiple excursions into the forest when he ran away from his parents. He was really surprised she hadn't stopped him. She usually found him when he was in the middle of one of his escapes... She usually kept him safe for a day or two following the really bad scrapes with his parents. They did not get along at all and she hated the duke and dutchess. She wouldn't allow the knight's passage or anybody else. They had to skirt around the forest or else risk the unicorn's wrath. And with as magically potent as unicorns were... Well.
"Are you sure?" She definitely looked a bit beached... "I came up too far onto shore... Could you help me?" It was gonna be freezing to get in the water. But he took his shoes and socks off, then rolled his pants up to try to avoid getting waterlogged. As expected, the water was freezing and his teeth chattered. But he helped push her further into the water until she was obviously able to swim away by herself. "Thank you. I'm surprised you're being kind to me... The duke and dutchess try to hunt us."
He frowned. "I'm really not sure why they'd do that..." His parents could be cruel, but to try to take the life of another fully sapient being? It didn't make any sense. He'd only heard whisperings in scattered conversations. He knew they existed, but he had never seen one before. She was pretty. With her white hair and blue eyes, she was really pretty. Her face was young, not looking much older than himself.
"I'm not sure either. But they're cruel people. Do you work for them?"
His frown remained etched on his face. If he were honest, then it might scare her away. Having someone to talk to was kinda nice... He'd never had any friends before. His parents really kept him isolated aside from some of the brattier nobles that were nothing but spoiled brats. "I live in the castle, yeah." He didn't want to lie, but he didn't want to scare her either.
The girl shuddered a bit. "If this gets back to them, we'll really be in trouble. As if whaling vessels don't try for us enough..."
"I won't tell on you; I promise." He knew he'd be in trouble anyway. What was keeping one secret from them? There wasn't much they could do to him that they already hadn't done. He was unfortunately pretty used to the verbal and physical violence they used on him.
She still looked wary but nodded a bit. "I probably shouldn't trust you but okay... My name is Weiss."
"I'm Sun; it's nice to meet you, Weiss!" He smiled warmly at her. It was nice to have someone to talk to that wasn't Moonstone. He only got to see her every once in a while, so it was a little hard to consider her a friend. But he doubted he'd get to see Weiss much if at all after this... She had her own life to live, of course... Moonstone was just in touch with her forest, so she always knew where he was when he entered. She always knew who passed through her forest.
Weiss offered a hesitant smile. "I guess it's nice to meet you too... Why are you out here? It's the middle of the winter. You aren't really suited to live out here when it's so cold like I am."
"My parents are mean. I didn't want to be around them anymore." He was still surprised Moonstone hadn't stopped him. Was she busy with something else? She always came when he ran through into her forest. Something really must be wrong if she hadn't come. What it would be, though, he had no idea. Maybe bandits? There was no telling. He just... He wanted to not be with his parents. He knew he couldn't stay out here forever, but for a while... The unicorn forest was warmer than the normal area, but it stopped at the beach, so it was cold again.
"I'm so sorry... I wish I could say things were better where I live, but that'd be a lie. My mother is a lovely person, but my father was mean. Well. At least until she kicked him out and had him rot in prison." He wished he could make his parents rot in prison. They were so mean and nasty to not just him but everyone around him. They weren't nice to the servants at all. He was pretty sure his father had hurt one girl in more than one way... He was such a mean man. The girls often came out of his parents' room crying and trying to run away. But so many of them were bound by agreements to the castle, so there was nothing they could do. Even commoners deserved better than what they got from his parents. They were still people too.
"Well, at least your mean father isn't around anymore." He just wished so badly that his parents would go away somehow. He could find someone else to live with. He was sure he could find a nice commoner family to take him in. But his parents wouldn't give up until he was found. He knew it. He was their only child and they wanted him to follow their wishes no matter what. They tried to force him to do things, but he refused to bend or break despite the physical punishments they gave him. He just wanted to escape them. "My parents are high ranking, so there's not alot that can be done unless the king and queen step in." And, well, he was pretty sure his story was nothing special among the nobility…
Weiss frowned. "I'm so sorry. We can't do anything about land dwellers... My mother has favor with your kingdom's queen, but the duke and dutchess are so aggressive. It makes it hard for us to keep up any sort of relationship with the queen... It causes all sorts of arguments between them. It's all a big big headache." He could imagine. One day, he'd have to learn how to play politics. He would start in a couple years when he was a little older and could understand things better. He didn't want to though. He just wanted to live in the unicorn forest forever. Despite Moonstone's power, the knights forced their way in and always found him. It just built more and more anger between the unicorn and his parents…
"It's not your fault." He shivered a bit. He'd gotten out of the water, but the wind blew fiercely today off the water. It made it really cold. He'd probably have to go back into Moonstone's forest soon... It was just way too cold out here for him.
"Cold? I wish I could give you something to help but..." She shook her head, though she fingered at her bracelet. He wasn't sure what the connection there was. "You...seem like you're not like the other people from around here. How often do you come out here?"
He shook his head. "This is my first time out by the ocean... I've never been farther than Moonstone's forest before. I'm scared why she didn't come find me." That worried him immensely. He knew his parents had a desire to hunt her down, but then that would cause issues with the unicorn court. Killing a unicorn carried a high cost. No human or Faunus king or queen could override the judgment of the Queen of the Unicorns. She was too magically powerful for anybody to stand up to.
"I can probably find someone to help take you home..."
He frowned. "I don't wanna go home." He knew he needed to, but he really didn't want to go. His parents were just going to yell at him even further. He knew it. Especially if they found out he had talked to a mermaid. He still didn't understand why his parents hated them so much. The music had drawn him in, but that couldn't be it, could it? It was so soft and gentle and sweet.
"Well, you can't stay out here for the rest of your life."
He sighed and his shoulders dropped. "I know..." He was freezing at this point especially with having gotten wet.
"I'll be back soon." With a flick of her tail, Weiss disappeared beneath the surface. A little while later, a pretty lady with white hair that looked a lot like Weiss appeared with her. She pulled herself onto the beach and he blinked when her tail turned into legs. He didn't know mermaids could do that. That was crazy! She wore next to nothing, having just a strap over her breasts and some bottoms covering what was appropriate. However, she walked over and gave him a jewel attached to what looked like a small length of rope.
"Here. If you ever want to contact Weiss, just squeeze this crystal and she'll know you want to talk." The woman smiled at him and tied it around his wrist. He nodded a little bit and she offered her hand. He took it and they started off back through the unicorn forest. Thankfully, it wasn't too long until the unicorn greeted them.
"A mermaid walking on land... That's a rarity. You know the duke and dutchess won't approve of you bringing their son back. I can take him," Moonstone insisted.
The woman sighed and nodded. "Yes, that is very true. They might think I was attempting to kidnap him or something even though nothing could be further from the truth. Though it begs the question: if you look out for him so much, why weren't you here earlier?"
"The duke's knights were being a pain in my side again." Moonstone shook her head with a snort. After that, she tucked her legs under her. "Come on, Sun; I'll get you back as quickly as possible." He looked at the pretty lady then at Moonstone. He dropped the woman's hand and got on the unicorn's back. He wondered why they had given him the jewel... It wasn't like he'd talked to her for very long. Somehow he was different from everyone around him? It didn't make any sense…
But he soon found himself cantering through the much warmer unicorn forest where they arrived back at the castle and returned to the freezing cold temperatures of winter. He shivered. He wished he could live in the unicorn forest forever. It was nice and warm all year long. He didn't need to rely on fireplaces and clothes to stay warm. But as they approached, he slid off Moonstone's back. Well... There went nothing...
-two years later-
Sun squeezed the crystal that still hung off his wrist and dodged into the hidden staircases that he'd found about a year before. His parents could never keep up with him now. Thankfully, it wasn't winter now. But they still refused to let up and allow him to do anything that he wanted to.
He scampered his way out of the castle through the myriad secret passages and headed into Moonstone's forest. It didn't take too long for the unicorn to approach and she tossed her head back. "Sneaking out again, Sun?" she asked.
He nodded and twirled the loose leather strap that sat around his wrist. "Yep. I'm not hanging around for those dull manners lessons." Now that he was getting to be about ten, he was being forced into lessons he didn't want. He was an only child, the last of his line, but it didn't mean he wanted anything to do with ruling. He knew he was gonna get quite the beating when he got back, but he knew the secret passages now. He could easily dodge out. They were basically lost to time at this point and nobody knew he got out…
"I assume you're going to meet your little girlfriend again?"
Sun's face heated up. "Weiss isn't my girlfriend!" He got to see her on a regular basis now, but it didn't mean they were dating! Absolutely it didn't mean that.
"Right, right. Anyway, want a ride?"
He nodded a bit. "That'd be nice." Moonstone got down and he climbed on her back. Holding onto her mane, they galloped through the forest at full throttle, a grin on his face. He always looked forward to seeing Weiss. She was sweet, kind, and gentle and always lent him a good ear. He really enjoyed their time together and they tended to meet up two or three times a week. If he wasn't going to go to the ocean, then he just spent time with Moonstone.
They arrived at the edge of the forest and Moonstone dropped him off, returning to her forest for the time being. He walked to the water's edge and sat down, his tail resting on the sand. A familiar face popped up out in the distance and he waved to her. She disappeared back under, then popped back up much closer a couple minutes later. She pushed herself up onto the beach a fair ways and he walked out to the water's edge. "Hey Sun, what's up now?"
"Not a whole lot. Just my parents trying to enforce manners lessons on me. It's so dumb." He shook his head. He wanted nothing to do with ruling. So much about being an only child sucked... Apparently he'd had siblings before them, but they'd either disappeared or died at a young age. His parents blamed the fae for the disappearances, but with how they were, he doubted that.
Weiss shook her head. "Manners lessons are important if you're going to rule, Sun. You have to know how to operate in noble society without angering everybody." She laid down on the sand, the waves washing up under her. She still wore very little, only enough to cover where her breasts would one day be. But she wore a lot of jewelry as he'd learned was relatively typical of mermaids over the past year or so…
"They're just so dull. Do you have to endure them?"
She nodded. "I mean... I am princess. I'll rule our kingdom one day. I have to learn how to not anger everyone through the smallest of transgressions."
"You have way more pressure on you." That was really unfortunate. Though it wasn't like duke was much below princess in a lot of ways. Sure he wouldn't decide everything that happened to the kingdom like she one day would, but he still had a lot of pressure on him. Noble life was so droll. He wished he could be an adventurer. Their lives sounded so exciting. But they were also dangerous... They could easily get killed by trolls or something.
She shrugged. "I knew it when I was younger, It's not like it's anything new. I think you're just a bit irresponsible." Her tail flicked and he knew she was joking around about it. Being a noble just didn't suit him. He hated it. It was so restrictive. He had to wear shirts all the time, for gods' sakes! It was so annoying. He just wanted to be free and do whatever he wanted. It would be so much better than sitting around and having to read and play politics with people.
"I just wish I could be an adventurer. It'd be so much nicer than this. " He flopped down in the sand, looking up at the sky. It was a beautiful summer day. Not a cloud in the sky to be seen. It almost felt like he was swimming as he lay there and listened to the waters come in and out. The soft sea breeze rustled his hair and the salt wetted his skin.
"Would you really want to not know where your next meal is coming from each day? Would you really want to have to hunt your meals all the time and risk poaching on royal land? If the king ever found out you poached on royal land, your life could very well be forfeit. And risking your life to help other people that would probably be ungrateful for it?"
"Geeze, you take the fun outta everything." He looked at her and stuck his tongue out. She was way too serious for her own good a lot of the time. He knew she took her responsibilities seriously, but this was just going overboard. He was dreaming of a better life and she was making it far less attractive than it should've been. No, that didn't sound particularly nice to him. He just didn't want to be cooped up in the castle and beaten whenever he made any strides to be any sort of independent... His parents were so unreasonably strict with him.
"No, I guess that doesn't sound the best, but I'm just sick and tired of being beaten nearly everyday and yelled at literally everyday." Yeah, he was just so tired of all of this. He couldn't help it. Anybody would get sick of it. HIs life should've been his own, not theirs. They tried to make him into what they saw as appropriate, but he was a free spirit no matter what they did. He would always do his best to be independent and basically spite his parents. They really didn't like him. They claimed they loved him, but it really didn't feel like that. At all. If they loved him, they'd treat him more like how Willow treated Weiss and Winter. With kindness, support, and unconditional love, not the beatings and the hatred and the anger they showed him. They tried to be affectionate with him, but it fell flat. Absolutely flat. It all felt so performative...
"I really wish I could help you out, Sun." She waved him closer and he approached, then she held out her hand. He took it and she squeezed it. "Your life is so horrible..."
Sun shrugged. "It is what it is unfortunately." He had no real say in anything that happened. He purposely made his parents angry which incited more violence against him--both verbal and physical. He just... He was sick of it all. He hated everything about his life except Weiss. She was the only bright spot in it along with Moonstone. The mermaid and the unicorn were kind to him in a way that nobody else was. The servants kept their heads down because they didn't want to incite violence against themselves. It was so frustrating... He just... He wanted to run away from it all. Maybe he should. But where would he go in that case? He didn't know. Despite his thoughts, his parents would hunt him down until they found him, and anybody harboring him would probably be killed. He was trapped no matter what way he looked at it.
Weiss gave him a sympathetic look but didn't say anything more. He sighed and kept her hand in his, not wanting to break that connection. But he eventually moved away when his clothes started to get soaked. His parents were gonna be so mad that he went out to the ocean. "Anyway, I should probably get back." He really didn't want to but he knew that, if he stayed out here too long, his parents would find out he was seeing a mermaid. He really couldn't risk that. Weiss' safety was way too important to him. He heard more and more how much his parents wanted to hunt the mermaid empire in their waters to extinction... Why? He didn't understand it.
"All right. See you soon." He helped her get back into the water fully and she slipped beneath the surface, leaving him alone. With a sigh, he turned to go back to Moonstone's forest and get a ride back. He was soaked through...
-four years later-
Sun blinked when he felt a little ping of energy from his wrist. The white gem that he'd worn everyday for years at this point had never alerted him; it was always him going to Weiss. But something within him immediately knew that it was her calling out to him. He was in a free period right now, so he made his way down to Moonstone's forest where she picked him up and made the twenty-five minute trek across the peninsula to the edge of her forest. He followed the beach down and found Weiss actually sat up on the beach with her legs pulled to her chest. She had shifted... He'd never seen her do that before. She was a decent way's up on the beach which definitely surprised him.
He sat next to her and rested a hand on her shoulder. "Hey, what's wrong?" Tears rolled down her cheeks and she buried her face in his shoulder. He blinked, but didn't say anything, letting her cry. His shirt was soaked by time she had gathered herself enough to speak, but he didn't care. He just kissed her head and rubbed her back, trying to comfort her.
"The advisers forced my mother to get married again... Apparently an heir and a spare wasn't enough for them... They want her to have more children. We can live up to two hundred years, so we can be fertile for much longer than land dwellers, but this is just... It's terrible. The man already has three children and they do nothing but bully me. Winter tries to stop them, but she's the one to take over the kingdom in due time. I still need to learn just in case something happens to her but..." She hiccuped and Sun kissed her head.
"I'm so sorry Weiss... And there's nothing your mother can do about it?" Her mother sounded like a lovely woman, but even so, she was only one person. There was only so much one person could do.
She sighed, resting against him. "They claim I'm the one that's doing the bullying. They always Find a way to construe me as the bad guy. I...I don't know what to do. They suck up to my mother and she believes them over me. I don't know why. You'd think she'd have my back, but no... They're master manipulators. Winter believes me, but Mother refuses to listen to either of us."
"How long has this been going on?" If things were this bad, they had to have gone on for a while... Why hadn't she told him until now? Sure, there wasn't anything he could do. It wasn't like he was a mermaid. He couldn't go down there and start whipping the underwater kingdom into shape, but he could at least listen. He always gave her space to talk about her own issues and she often took it. But why wait this long on this issue...? It was so bad.
"A couple of months... And the advisers don't give a damn either. All they care about is having more heirs. Not that my step-father's children can take over due to lacking royal blood, but my mother's already pregnant again." She curled up and looked so...small. It was really bad if she was collapsing like this. But what could he do? He didn't know. He didn't have the magic to transform his legs into fins and help her out. That and he'd be a foreigner in a foreign land even if he could do that. Why would they listen to him? He couldn't even get his own parents to listen to him and be reasonable.
"I'm so sorry. I don't know how I can help..."
Weiss shook her head, her shoulders dropped. "There's nothing you can do, Sun... I just...needed to vent for a bit. I wish I could say I didn't understand why my mother's so easily swayed, but in this case, I do understand. Her first husband was a master manipulator. But she got sick of his shit and and kicked him out. Banished him from the kingdom and sent the message to other kingdoms to watch out for him. So she's fallen for it before. I just... I hate everything about this." She buried her face in her hands, obviously trying to start weeping again, but she was wrung out. He squeezed her gently and held her close. He wished he could do more than this, but there really wasn't anything. As usual, he was trapped in a situation where he was powerless... She was his best friend aside from Moonstone.... Yet he was just incapable of doing anything to help her.
He kissed her head and held her close for quite a while. Eventually, she nuzzled against him and looked up. "I should get back... Or, well, at least you should... I don't want your parents getting suspicious."
He looked at her. "If you need me, just call me, okay? I'll be here if at all possible." Unfortunately, it was getting close to the time when he needed to have his damnable manners lessons. He still hated those above all else. But he would be here for her if she needed him. He wanted to help her as much as she'd helped him over the years.
"I will. I'll see you later." She squeezed his hand but didn't move. He kissed her head before getting up and retreated into the forest. Moonstone waited for him as usual. He felt...so guilty just leaving her sitting alone on the beach like that... But what could he do? They were literally of separate worlds...