Archive of Our Own

There were many things that Heizou believed in in this world. Wherever he went, there were always whispers of creatures that existed beyond the natural order, of winged lions and horned horses. Yet, running into one had never quite been on his bucket list.

Heizou recalled the day he met the mermaid on the coastline — the memory itself was so distinct, there was no way he would forget it. There was a terrible storm that wrecked their coast the day before Heizou encountered the strange creature — he remembered the sea being restless for a week prior, and then, the nonstop thunder over the moonless night.

After years of living in his tiny fishing village, Heizou knew when the seas would rage. Last night, the sea had fought the skies above, threatening their small population with its wrath. Today, on the very next morning, Heizou set off to collect whatever had washed up to shore during the midnight tempest.

Amongst the rare shells and the occasional stray sea creature that he tossed back into the waves, he found the net that he kept along the tide pools ripped apart and torn. He would have to replace those.

Before he could peel away the net and return, however, further inspection would reveal something that only existed in his wildest dreams — a man’s torso with a strong, iridescent sea creature’s tail attached to him. All over him, there were soft, translucent fins and webbed skin like a thin film that protected him. Where his chest met the rest of his torso, patches of red and white scales began, peppering his body in scattered variations to the start of his hips. Where his legs should have started, the trail of skin turned into scales and a single appendage.

Heizou couldn’t help the soft gasp that left his lips - unable to stop the sheer awe that bubbled out of him.

What a beautiful person.

Then, as he admired the creature on the shore, green eyes once again scanning the majestic being, his eye caught on exactly what led to this event— the net had tangled itself into the merman’s tail, leaving cuts and discolored spots all over the otherwise beautiful tail.

Without thinking too hard, Heizou got to work, hand moving to his belt to unsheath the small dagger he kept on him for safety. When he did, bright red eyes flew open, pupils narrowing into slits as the merman stared Heizou down, eyes flitting back and forth from Heizou’s face to the silver blade in his hands. Fear settled deep in his crimson pools, and yet, the creature didn’t even attempt to thrash about.

For a heartbeat, it was nothing but the sound of waves crashing against the shore.

Then, the merman closed his eyes, turning away as if expecting his end to come.

“I’m not going to hurt you,” Heizou said softly.

When there was no response, Heizou figured he had no other choice than to prove his words. He moved into the waves where the calm waters washed over his feet coolly, taking a breath as he settled beside the merman. With a steady hand, he separated the net from the smooth scales, carefully sliding the cool blade under the fibers and cutting them away from the merman’s tail.

Methodically, Heizou worked away the tight and stubborn fibers from the other’s tail, one by one, and sometimes, he had to do it thread by thread with how much disrepair the net was in. One by one, he worked, feeling red eyes stare him down as the blade sliced its way through the braided cords.

When he finally finished, Heizou ran his eyes over the tail whilst his hand brushed any remaining fibers and sea debris from the merman. Once, twice, and thrice for good measure until he was certain that there was not even a single thread remaining on the shimmering tail.

And then, when he backed away, their eyes met.

What now?

Heizou didn’t see any other injuries. Did Heizou have to haul him back into the water too? Then again, Heizou wasn’t entirely sure if he could manage to lift someone nearly twice his height.

Their eyes broke apart, the striking red gaze shifting down to admire his newly freed limb. His tail swayed gently in the water, and Heizou, none the wiser, would find himself fixated on the iridescent shine that the scales gave off under the morning sun.

In another heartbeat, the merman shifted, easing his way back into shallow waves and beneath the depths faster than Heizou could’ve predicted— the only proof Heizou ever had of the creature he had saved were the pieces of cut up net left behind.

For the most part, Heizou tried to act like it never happened. It was just one of those things, one of those days. Nobody would really believe him if he said anything, anyway.

Thus, Heizou tucked it away as a passing happenstance — a fragment of a memory, or maybe a faraway dream, something to remember in idle moments rather than something to be lingered on. Heizou didn’t mind the other’s abrupt departure so much, he supposed that there was a reason as to why such creatures would stay as myths. The beauty of the merman, however, remained crisp in his mind, as if it had only been mere minutes since Heizou had last seen him.

It wasn’t until he was making his trek along the beach, collecting seashells once more, that he saw a flash of bright red in the rocks by the coast.

That wasn’t right — it was too red to be on the coast.

Turning to catch sight of whatever had caught the corner of his gaze, Heizou’s eyes roamed over the scene before they caught sight of the merman once more, resting atop a flat rock further down the beach.

He was there. This was real.

This time, the merman didn’t seem to be in any hurry to disappear. Their eyes met again and Heizou stopped walking, as if he were frozen in place. One would expect that Heizou would eventually find function in his faculties once more to make a move towards the merman who seemed to be waiting for him rather expectantly.

When Heizou didn't move, however, it was the merman that came, moving from the rocks to shallower waters, never once breaking their eye contact.

They stayed there, a mere few feet apart before the merman reached his hand out slowly. His tail swished expectantly. Another moment passed before Heizou’s eyes shifted downwards, looking at the merman’s outstretched arm.

There, in the cup of his palm laid an iridescent seashell, the mid-afternoon sunshine forming rainbows along the smooth inner surface.

“Is that for me?” Heizou asked, not making a move yet.

The blond’s head tilted. His red eyes swirled with uncertainty over Heizou’s words. Rather than trying to respond, he simply reached his hand out further.

The merman spoke in a garbled tongue, something soft and quiet but oddly melodious. All the while, Heizou listened as if he was under a spell, understanding nothing but nodding regardless as he reached out to gently take the shell into his hand.

This delighted the other — the smile that crossed the merman’s features was beautiful, eyes crinkling in delight. There were more words that came from the other’s lips, his lips forming the shapes of a language Heizou didn’t understand. In the next moment, the merman dipped down into the waters once more, disappearing from sight.

Heizou stayed in that spot for a long time, as if wondering when the blond will return. The horizon burned orange, and perhaps there was a time where he would’ve called the sky red, but now, Heizou knew that it couldn’t come close to the color of the merman’s tail.

With the waves licking at his feet, Heizou stood there for another bout of time, watching the sun slowly sink downwards — and for a brief moment, Heizou contemplated following the other into the depths.

When he finally acknowledged the ache in his feet, Heizou trekked back to his village with a beautiful oyster shell in hand and the thoughts of a soft voice in his mind.

The merman existed in a place where reality and dreams would meet, never on land, but always in the shallow edges of the sea where Heizou would be able to stand, knee deep in the waters.

Heizou indulged him, or perhaps, he indulged himself with routine visits to that same spot, hoping that once more he would be accompanied by the merman.

Even if it seemed unlikely, more often than not, Heizou's hopes were never disappointed — no matter rain or shine, sun or moon, so long as Heizou came to the shore, a blond head of hair would emerge from the waves. Without a word, a smile would break on both their faces and then, they would meet in the middle.

From their encounters, he learned that his name was Kazuha.

Kazuha didn’t speak a single word in human tongues, but he certainly tried. Heizou would sit on the sun-warmed rock, legs splashing in the water as he spoke idly about anything that came to mind. As he talked, Kazuha would listen as if he understood every word. His red eyes would be wide and innocent, clinging onto the very syllables that slipped from his mouth.

It took him a while but eventually, Heizou told Kazuha his own name.

Once Kazuha had learned it, he never forgot it. Whenever Heizou ventured to the shores, he would be greeted by name. The merman would call to him in a soft voice that could be blown away by the breeze, enunciating the syllables in his name as though it were a little rhythm of a song.

“Heizou.” Kazuha murmured softly as he swayed in the water - the top of his head would be dry as if he had been waiting a while. Heizou would turn to him instinctively, held captive by the other man’s presence alone.

As their time together grew, Heizou found it endearing — Kazuha didn’t understand him, and he didn’t understand Heizou, and still, they found themselves in each other’s company and spending precious moments together.

Between them, there was no need for actual language comprehension. Kazuha sang sometimes, or played melodies on seashells in ways Heizou had no idea was possible — it was surprisingly simple enough to discern the tone of the song through the melody he was trying to play.

As days turned to weeks, and those weeks eventually turned into months, they had somehow formed a system between themselves. Heizou would teach Kazuha how to braid nets from scratch while Kazuha taught him how to find the best items under the water. Kazuha would play a tune, and sometimes, Heizou would sing along — a sort of carefreeness that he only found with Kazuha.

There was a simplicity to their friendship, and perhaps, Heizou who was nothing more than a human with plenty of feelings that he could never come to terms with. There was a yearning that came that Heizou knew he would never be able to speak on.

How much longer before he did something stupid?

Heizou could only bite his tongue and swallow down the pounding heart resting against his throat.

Heizou woke up with a start. There was a storm happening outside, winds howling as they rattled through their small village, shaking the trees with a fury that could rival that of a god. Despite the chill in the air and the sound of water hammering against his thin window, Heizou was compelled to leave the house.

Something was amiss.

His intuition was dragging his feet off the bed. Every nerve in his body was sounding an alarm as he decided against an umbrella. It would do nothing in the face of such a storm, he was better off just getting to the beach.

The beach.

Surely, Kazuha would be settled deep under the surface of the raging waves now, comfortable in whatever coral reef or underwater cave merpeople slept in. Surely, Kazuha would be fine if Heizou stayed at home and waited out this storm.

But, his gut feelings were never wrong. Heizou knew for a fact that he had survived this long if only because of listening to his instincts. He needed to find Kazuha.

Thus, he left the house, practically soaking himself in the storm the moment he stepped out from under the shelter of his roof. Heizou made his way down the streets, walking as fast as he could down the sloped paths that led to the beach. From his limited vision, he could see the lighthouse’s light waning, flickering about unsteadily.

When Heizou finally made it to the beach, his eyes swept across the shore, finding increased difficulty in making anything out in the heavy rainfall. Still, instead of turning around and heading back like what any normal person would’ve done, Heizou trekked forward.

The far edges of the beach — that’s where he usually found Kazuha.

He trudged his way across the beach. Heizou wasn’t sure what was worse, the fact that he could barely see, let alone breathe, or the fact that every step felt like the wet, sludge-like sand beneath his feet was threatening to swallow him whole.

Keep going, his mind urged.

And, Heizou did.

When he reached the end of the beach, however, Heizou was reaffirmed in his feelings — he knew then and there that he would never doubt the pull of his instincts. Especially not when it was as strong as this.

Heizou surged forward, feet moving past the heavy, wet sand to collapse on the slippery rock by the shore. Here Heizou was, in the middle of a massive storm that threatened to drown them both, setting out in hellish conditions only to find Kazuha here, in a condition Heizou would’ve never expected. His hands found their way to red scales, fingertips turning red themselves once they collided with the merman’s tail.

The redness of his scales were deeper than ever, not from its natural coloration but because of the dark, red blood that oozed out of him, diluted only by the pouring rain. The bloodied gashes colored his entirety in a dark red, a grim reminder and a color that didn’t suit Kazuha’s warmth in the slightest. Kazuha himself was dazed, barely coherent as he blinked up at Heizou, the sharpness in his eyes losing focus rapidly.

Why was he here?

Why hadn’t he returned to the depths? Surely, he could’ve sought more help from his own kin.

“What happened, Kazuha?” He shouted over the loud drumming of rainfall.

Kazuha only pointed to the sea, somewhere beyond the horizon.

Sailors? A sea monster? A swimming accident?

Heizou didn’t have the time to try and wring the answer from Kazuha. He gathered the merman into his arms, hauling him up and almost stumbling into the raging depths as he lifted him. Heizou was not built to carry a merman twice his size, really, but he was desperate.
Maybe it was the adrenaline.

Maybe it was just desperation.

In hindsight, he didn’t really know what he was thinking when he carried Kazuha home. On top of that, he wasn’t even sure how nobody else caught him carrying a massive sea creature back into his home, but then again, Heizou chalked it up to being the middle of the night, and that the storm really hindered visibility.

Heizou barely stumbled past his door and just managed to place Kazuha into his tub before his arms gave out from exertion. Breath left him in hurried pants while his eyes stung from a lethal combination of rain and sweat.

“I don’t know how to treat your scales,” he admitted quietly between breaths as he reached for his first aid kit. He only vaguely remembered how he dealt with some smaller injuries he’d seen on his goldfish in the aquarium he had as a child. Heizou didn’t want to assume that it would be anything near similar but what else could he do?

Kazuha’s eyes were heavy, but still, they kept what little concentration they could hold on Heizou as he worked his way around Kazuha’s wounds. Every so often he’d listen to Kazuha make a little hiss of pain, and he’d stop dead in his tracks, worried that he had monumentally screwed up. Before he could pull away, however, Kazuha’s breathing would return to normal and a small, shared glance would nudge him onto the next wound.

It continued on like that until the rain gradually subsided, leaving the light of daybreak to seep in through his windows as the stormy night passed to a brilliant morning.

By then, Heizou had cleaned Kazuha up to the best of his abilities and the merman had dozed off in the half-filled tub, his tail soaking in the water while his body leaned against the wall of the tub. Reaching out, Heizou gently brushed fine blond strands away from the other’s face.

Heizou knew he had already gone too far past the deep end. Hosting the merman through the entirety of his recovery wasn’t going to be good for Heizou’s heart.

But, what else was he meant to do?

Heizou never quite figured out what caused Kazuha to turn up so battered and bruised during that storm.

Whatever it was, Heizou reassured Kazuha that the worst of it was over now — after all, he was safe in Heizou's home. Somehow, Kazuha, too, seemed to accept this as fact as he made himself at home, despite being confined to the tub for most of the day.

Thus, began their simple shared routine, even if it was for just a brief period through Kazuha’s recovery.

While Heizou worked in the morning, Kazuha stayed in the tub obediently. He entertained himself with the books Heizou left for him on the counter, leaving Heizou wondering if he really did understand human language. If that were true, then for whatever reason, Kazuha just couldn’t speak in a human language.

Though, that was perhaps an issue that was clearly out of his depth.

Just because he could put together context clues didn’t necessarily mean that everything else had been laid bare for him. That said, thinking about it made his head hurt more than he’d liked.

Kazuha, on the other hand, was as lively as ever.

Some days, he’d return to Kazuha having braided some rope for Heizou, leaving a wet trail along the floors to indicate Kazuha’s path. That said, Heizou couldn’t find it in himself to chide the merman for making a mess on the floors. Not when his red eyes sparkled excitedly in an effort to show Heizou his craft.

Other days, he’d find Kazuha dozing quietly in the tub, not even startled by the sound of Heizou coming through the door. Heizou’s heart never failed to flutter about in his chest, enamored by the sight of the blond’s soft features.

Without a doubt, Heizou's nights became the most exciting part of his days — returning to Kazuha, preparing dinner, checking on the other’s slow-healing injuries.

Heizou wouldn’t have imagined that he would’ve ended up in these rather strange circumstances. Having a merman in his tub that he was nursing back to health, having dinner every night in his bathroom, and strangest of all, Heizou was bewildered by the fact someone was at home waiting for him to return.

He wasn’t used to it — company, that is.

But, Heizou couldn’t deny that he enjoyed it either.

It was a welcome change. And perhaps, a little selfishly, Heizou enjoyed that he didn’t have to venture out to the far edges of the beach to indulge in his time with Kazuha. He wished, even more selfishly, that the other wouldn’t recover so quickly, if only for Heizou to spend a few more nights with him.

However, under Heizou’s diligent care, such things would only be childlike wishes tossed to the depths of the ocean.

“Heizou?”

“Yes?” Heizou blinked, brought out of his mind’s idle wandering at the sound of Kazuha’s voice, soft and gentle as a breeze.

Kazuha’s hand reached out, his fingers outstretched before they made contact with Heizou’s cheek, warmer than expected. Instinctively, Heizou leaned in to his touch, eyes fluttering shut just for a passing moment, letting a gentle sigh escape his lips. Would he be allowed to indulge in this even after Kazuha left his house?

When he opened his eyes once more, Kazuha was indescribably close. Heizou's heart almost fell out of his mouth with how fast it was beating, his pulse thundering in his ears worse than any storm. From here, he could see details he'd never noticed before, like the barely there cut along Kazuha’s upper lip, and the way his eyelashes tilted downwards, lovingly embracing the outline of his round eyes.

Heizou knew he had never seen a more beautiful sight than the sunset in Kazuha's red irises.

Archons.

“I love you,” Heizou blurted out, the words tumbling out of him before he could catch them.

But, how could he not be honest?

How could he remain silent when Kazuha brought him closer to insanity with every passing second and every fleeting touch?

Kazuha’s eyes widened at the confession, but without missing a beat, he leaned in and kissed Heizou. At the beginning, the action was clumsy. Their teeth knocked together with the force that Kazuha leaned in with, and Heizou swore he felt the sting of an open wound on his upper lip. But then, like many things he associated with Kazuha, it settled gently, like a drifting leaf in the wind, carried carefully by the breeze.

He wondered idly if he could join Kazuha at the bottom of the ocean, so long as he could keep himself in Kazuha's company forever.

After a lingering moment, Kazuha pulled away first, but Heizou wasn’t ready to separate quite yet. Heizou gasped in desperation for much needed oxygen to fill his lungs once more, before he brought himself back into Kazuha's space, kissing him once more, twice more, filling every empty crevice in his brain with only Kazuha.

It took another moment after they parted, Heizou struggling to catch his breath, for his brain to catch up — somewhere in the midst of their kiss, something big had happened. Heizou’s eyes dragged along what should’ve been a long red tail, only to find human legs in their place.

“Kazuha—” Heizou’s eyes widened, “You’re…”

Kazuha’s own eyes shifted to look over himself. Slowly, he shifted his legs, lips parted in awe at the sight of it. Even then, Kazuha only returned his gaze to Heizou. A brilliant smile came to rest upon his features, utterly adoring and warm in every regard.

“Heizou, it’s okay. It’s okay — I’ll explain everything, ” Kazuha beamed, his voice filling the tiled bathroom for the first time since he arrived, a completeness filling his vocals as opposed to the whispering quiet Heizou had grown used to. His hands lifted, both coming to cup at Heizou’s cheeks now, thumbs sweeping in loving arcs along the plump flesh there, “But first, I love you, too.”

“How did you get cursed?”

“After I left my home, I ventured far and I met a lot of people. Some were kind and others were more nefarious. I ran into a sea-witch while I had joined a pirate crew temporarily. We couldn’t come to an agreement — and at this point, I didn’t really get what was happening at first. But, in short, she cursed me.”

“And then?”

“Well…”

Heizou walked down the familiar shore with Kazuha by his side. The blond man was still shaky on his legs, but he insisted they took a walk regardless. Heizou, on the other hand, was just trying to take things one step at a time. The merman he met was not actually a merman, and in fact, just blatantly admitted that curses and magic existed. Moreover, he had apparently been transfigured into a merman who couldn’t communicate with anyone after being cursed. He could only swim the endless depths, searching for someone who could help break his curse.

“I don’t really get it,” Heizou admitted.

Kazuha laughed as he squeezed Heizou’s hand, “What’s there to get? It was a sea witch, Heizou!”

Heizou slowed to a stop, feeling waves lick at his feet. “This whole curse thing… I mean, you being human makes sense with everything that we’ve done together thus far. I even suspected you could understand everything I was saying — which turned out to be true. I just… I guess I don’t have enough understanding of magic to really understand it.”

“That’s a given. And I’d rather we both not dabble in those things anymore.”

“I never did to begin with!” Heizou protested with a small laugh.

“Heizou, I’m more than aware of your thirst for answers. I’m just suggesting to leave this one mystery unsolved,” Kazuha countered, giving him another small squeeze of their intertwined fingers as he leaned in to press a kiss on the cheek. Softly, he murmured, lips brushing against Heizou’s skin, “What matters most is that I’m here before you — and I hope you’d have me too, even if I’m not what you expected.”

Heizou’s eyes searched for answers in Kazuha's irises. There were no lies or doubts in them — only the whole truth. Sure enough, they were still the same eyes Heizou had yearned for desperately. Leaning in, Heizou found himself kissing Kazuha once more, indulging in a small affection that he knew would slowly grow to be his favorite pastime. In a way, this was Heizou’s own silent agreement to Kazuha’s request.

For what it was worth: Kazuha wasn’t quite the same, but Heizou realized that this was still very much the person he grew to adore.

And sometimes, wasn’t that all that mattered?