You sat on the stone rim of the courtyard fountain at Night Raven College, letting your fingers glide across the cool marble. The water hummed a quiet tune, reflecting the afternoon light, while the air hung heavy with the faint, sweet scent of magic.
Opposite you stood Jade Leech, hands folded neatly behind his back. He wore that signature calm, slightly amused smile that always made you wonder exactly what was flickering through his mind.
"You seem lost in thought today," he remarked gently, tilting his head. "Has something happened?"
"I was just enjoying the quiet. It’s a rare thing around here." You smiled and shook your head.
As you spoke, your gaze inadvertently drifted back to his face. You froze. There, on his cheek just beneath his eye, something shimmered. It wasn't sweat, nor was it a trick of the light. They were... scales.
"Jade," you said softly, standing up. You took a step closer, your heart quickening. "You... you have something here."
"I have something? Where?" He arched an eyebrow.
You reached out, your fingers lightly brushing the spot where tiny, pearlescent scales were beginning to emerge. He gave a microscopic shiver under your touch. For a heartbeat, he went still. Then, his eyes widened ever so slightly.
"Ah... that’s impossible," he murmured, reaching up to touch his own face. The smile vanished. "It seems I have... forgotten."
"The potion?" you asked in a low voice. You knew exactly which one he meant.
"I’m afraid so." He nodded. His voice remained composed, but you caught the sudden tension in his posture. "And I don’t have a spare on me."
"Then come on. We have to get to it. Quickly." Your pulse hammered in your chest.
"Are you certain? If the transformation completes itself-" Jade looked at you, this time with a flash of genuine surprise.
"We’ll be long gone before that happens," you interrupted firmly, grabbing his hand. His palm was colder than usual, but his grip was steady.
The trek through the hallways felt longer than ever. With every step, you noticed further changes. A faint iridescent sheen on his neck, the slight narrowing of his pupils. By the time you finally reached the Mirror Chamber, he could barely conceal the signs of the shift.
"Quickly... please," he said softly. It wasn't fear in his voice, it was trust.
The Mirror Chamber was empty, each mirror leading to its respective dorm. As you guided him closer, his body began to change more rapidly. His legs fused together, his clothes shifting and dissolving into a glow of magic.
Where a student had stood moments ago, a merfolk now lay with a long, dark tail. He was breathtaking. For a moment, you forgot to breathe.
"I apologize for burdening you with this," he said quietly.
"Don't apologize," you replied, resting a hand on his arm. It was smooth and cool to the touch. "I'm right here."
Taking his hand, you worked together to reach the mirror leading to Octavinelle. The glass flared with light, the surface turning into liquid. Without hesitation, you led him forward.
The moment you touched the glass, an air bubble encased you, and the world flipped upside down. Suddenly, you were surrounded by water.
The sea was silent, deep, and luminous. Light fractured into shimmering rays, and tiny specs of bioluminescence drifted around you. You floated within your protective bubble while Jade swam before you in his true form. His tail moved with a graceful power, every motion was natural, elegant.
He turned toward you, relief washing over his features. He swam closer, so close you could have touched his face through the transparent barrier.
"Thank you," he said softly. "I don't think I could have made it without you."
"You're fine. That’s all that matters." You smiled.
For a while, you simply stayed there. The silence of the ocean embraced you, and you felt a strange sense of peace. Jade watched you with a tenderness he usually took great pains to hide.
"You know," he began, "the world above the surface is... complicated. But when you are with me, it feels a little more bearable."
"I feel the same way." You felt your cheeks flush slightly.
"When we return, I promise to be more careful. I have no wish to frighten you again." Jade offered a small smile, his fingers lightly brushing the surface of the bubble as if he wanted to stroke your cheek.
"Then I’ll just have to keep an eye on you," you answered softly, smiling as you pressed your hand against the bubble, exactly where his was resting.
Vibe: fantasy AU, octopus merman, true form reveal, forgotten transformation potion, ballroom romance, emotional vulnerability, body insecurity, mutual trust, comfort and reassurance, soft Azul, hurt/comfort, slow burn, healing emotional scars 🐙🎭🩵🫧🤍✨
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In the halls of Night Raven College, the air shimmered like champagne in crystal flutes. Golden garlands swayed beneath the ceiling, and the candles in the chandeliers cast a soft glow over the uniforms, dresses, and masks of classmates who laughed, danced, and pretended this night was merely innocent fun, rather than another test of who could be the most charming.
You felt strangely calm amidst the hum. Not because the ball left you cold, or because you were particularly fond of galas, but because Azul had invited you. He had promised a dance, and more than that, he had promised an unforgettable evening.
As for him, he felt more tense than ever. He hadn't felt this way even during his first or most important contract negotiation. He stood at the edge of the dance floor in a perfectly tailored suit, and when he caught sight of you, his eyes lit up in a way that made your heart tighten every single time. It wasn't just the practiced poise of a social butterfly, it wasn't that "public-facing" smile. This one belonged only to you.
He approached with an elegance rehearsed down to the last gesture. Even so, you noticed his fingers falter for a split second at his cuff before he tucked them into his pocket.
"You look… stunning," he exhaled. You laughed, because with Azul, compliments sometimes sounded like clauses in a contract, but this time, there wasn't a shadow of calculation in his voice.
"And you look like someone about to sell off the entire gala," you teased. His laugh was quiet and a little surprised.
"Tonight, the only thing I’m selling is…" the word caught on his tongue as if he were afraid to say it, "…my time with you." He held out his hand. "May I have this dance?"
At that moment, the orchestra began a gentler piece. The floor cleared slightly as couples moved into a circle to make room. You smiled and were just about to rest your fingers in his palm when Azul’s expression shifted minutely.
His pupils narrowed, his lips parted slightly. He nodded, but instead of leading you to the dance, he gave your hand a fleeting squeeze and let go.
"Forgive me. I’ll be right back," he blurted out.
"Azul-?"
He was already turning away. He stepped off too quickly, his soles skidded on the polished floor, and you saw him stumble, nearly tripping. Yet he recovered with a forced elegance, acting as if nothing had happened, and vanished between the pillars toward the side corridors.
You stood there with your hand halfway in the air, feeling that peculiar void he always left behind when he donned his "everything is under control" mask. But today was different. Today, the mask had cracked.
You didn't wait long. You couldn't. The gravity in his voice had cut through you like a silver thread. You were worried.
You slipped past a group of students laughing by the punch table and escaped the hall into the cooler silence of the corridor. The music muffled behind you until only a dull thrumming of bass remained. The carpet here was dark, and portraits of former headmasters watched you from the walls with eternal disapproval.
"Azul?" you called out softly, not wanting to cause a scene.
The only answer was a distant rustle of fabric. You followed the sound. The hallway curved, the lantern light thinning out. And then, at the end of the hall, you stopped short.
You saw him. He was sitting in… something that looked like a wheelchair. Or at least a metal frame with armrests that glinted in the gloom. His back was to you, his shoulders tense and strangely hunched. His head was bowed, as if he were trying to make himself as small as possible.
"Azul…?" You took a cautious step toward him.
In that instant, there was a soft, almost wet rustling sound. Not like fabric, more like something smooth and supple shifting position.
"No!" he gasped. "Don't come any closer!" Azul lurched as if struck by a needle.
That alone was enough to make you freeze. Not because he had shouted, but because there was no reproach in that "no." There was panic. A plea. Fear.
"I just… I wanted to make sure you were alright," you said quietly. "I’m sorry if I… if I disturbed you."
Silence hung for several seconds, thick enough to raise goosebumps. Azul slowly straightened his back. And then you noticed a detail that took your breath away. On his neck, just above his shirt collar, something black was shimmering.
"You shouldn't have followed me," he said shakily. His voice was no longer that smooth, rehearsed tone.
It was the voice he sometimes showed you at night, when you laughed quietly over textbooks or when he rested his forehead against your shoulder and allowed himself to just be for a moment.
"I couldn't just let you run off," you replied. "You almost fell."
There was that rustling again, clearer this time. And then, from beneath his coat, the end of a tentacle curled out. Dark, sleek, with tiny suckers that caught the lantern light like mother-of-pearl. Your heart skipped a beat.
Azul froze as if he had just committed an unspeakable error. His hands shook as he tried to pull his coat lower to hide it. But the coat shifted further, and you caught sight of another tentacle coiled unhappily over the metal armrest.
It wasn't that he couldn't walk. It was because his body… was changing.
"Azul…" you whispered, no longer a question. Just his name, filled with tenderness, shock, and concern.
"Don't look," he whispered.
Those words stung. You realized then that this wasn't a fear of judgment. It was the fear that you would see something he himself deemed unworthy of love.
"Can I… can I stay?" you asked, as if simply asking for the seat next to him in the library, and slowly took a step closer.
Azul moved again, but he didn't flee. This was the first time he had allowed you to be near something he had kept locked in his darkest drawer for years.
"I shouldn't have… today…" he began, his voice breaking. "I… I forgot."
"The potion," you finished for him before he had to say it aloud.
You knew he took one. He never told you the details, only that it was "necessary" and that he "wouldn't fit into the school without it." Now, that word "necessary" had turned into reality right before your eyes.
Azul nodded so slightly you weren't even sure he’d moved.
"I was looking forward to it," he exhaled, and it sounded so achingly human it made your chest hurt. "I was looking forward to the ball. To… asking you to dance. To us enjoying ourselves. To being… normal for you."
"You are normal," you said automatically.
"Don't say that, please." His laugh was short and bitter. An old shadow lingered in his voice. Something that didn't belong to this night, the light of the chandeliers, or the laughter of classmates. Something cold, like the depths of the past.
"Azul," you said gently, walking around so you could see his face. "Will you look at me?"
He struggled for a moment. His eyes were pinned to the floor, his lashes trembling. Then, he lifted his head.
His face was the same, though his skin had a slightly ashen tint. But below his neck, you could see his skin turning black. The fear in his eyes was so raw you had to take a deep breath to keep from pulling him into an embrace right then and there.
"I didn't want to show you," he admitted, barely audible. "Not like this. Not… at all."
"Why?" you asked. Azul took a breath, but it hitched deep in his chest. His shoulders pulled in, trying to shrink away.
"When I was little…" he started, his voice a faint tremor, "…I wasn't like the others." You swallowed hard, not because you feared his words, but because you could feel how much it still hurt him.
"I was… fat," he breathed the word out like it carried the weight of an anchor. "Soft. Slow. I had too many tentacles and too much body. The other merfolk teased me." He gave a hollow laugh.
His fingers moved restlessly, one tentacle pulled closer to his body as if trying to hide.
"They laughed at me," he continued quietly. "They said I was bloated. Slimy. That I didn't move fast enough. That… I should stay at the bottom where no one would see me." Your heart constricted with pain.
"So I learned to be smart," he said bitterly. "If I couldn't be handsome or admired, I could be indispensable. I learned to calculate, to negotiate, to control others before they could control me."
"Azul," you said, "I’m dating you because of you. Not because of how you… look. And certainly not because of contracts."
"You’re lying." His lips trembled.
"I’m not." You carefully reached out your hand, moving slowly so he could choose. "May I?"
He stared at your palm as if it were a trap, as if he expected that touching you would burn him. And yet, after a long second, he raised his hand and rested his fingers against yours. His skin was cooler than usual. Like water at night.
"What if… you find me repulsive?" he whispered.
"Then I’ll only find the people who told you those things repulsive," you answered without hesitation.
A tear shimmered in the corner of his eye, which he wiped away immediately. This wasn't like him. Your fingers tightened slightly around his palm, steady, certain.
From beneath the coat, a tentacle moved again, slower this time, as if growing bold. The tip brushed tentatively against your sleeve. Azul went rigid, tense as a wire.
But you didn't move back. You just looked at the tentacle and then smiled so gently you weren't sure it was even possible.
"It’s… beautiful," you said.
"What?" he breathed, genuinely bewildered.
"Your tentacles. They look like… something from a fairy tale." You leaned in closer, your voice low and warm. "And I like fairy tales. Especially the ones where I’m with you."
Azul gasped as if he were finally getting air for the first time in a long while, and his cheeks flushed a faint blue. Then he closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, the fear was no longer alone. There was a glimmer of hope, cautious as the first light beneath the surface.
"I… I don't have the potion here," he admitted. "I left it in my bag. In…" he hesitated, because it sounded so ridiculous compared to everything else, "…in the office at Monstro Lounge."
"Then that’s where we’ll go," you said.
"But- I can't just walk through the halls," he hissed. "Someone will see me."
"I’ll push you in the chair. Hide your legs- your tentacles, under the coat, and no one will know," you said, gently adjusting the fabric covering his lower body to ensure everything was concealed.
"But the ball… you were looking forward to it," he protested.
"I was looking forward to an evening with you," you replied softly. Azul shifted in the chair, his cheeks darkening to a deep blue.
"You are incredible…" he murmured.
Azul remained silent as you began to push him down the corridor. The chair creaked softly beneath your hands, and the lanterns drew long shadows on the walls that swayed to the rhythm of your steps.
Every rustle of fabric reminded you that the tentacles beneath the coat moved occasionally, no longer in panic, but with a nervous energy, as if getting used to the fact that they weren't alone.
When you finally reached the office at Monstro Lounge without being stopped, the place was empty. The silence here was different from the hallway, soft and safe. You closed the door and turned the key, just to be sure.
"Here," Azul gestured weakly toward his bag. His hands were still shaking as he pulled out a vial of dark blue liquid. He stared at the glass for a moment, as if he suddenly didn't want to drink it.
He drank the potion slowly. You waited, unhurried. Gradually, his breathing evened out, the tentacles retracted, and the skin on his neck lightened. When it was over, he looked once more like the elegant Azul everyone knew. Only you knew that wasn't the whole picture.
"I’m sorry," he said after a while. "For the ball. For the chaos. For promising you something and then…"
"Azul," you interrupted, taking his hand. "This evening was unforgettable. Just not in the way you planned." He laughed softly.
"Perhaps…" he tilted his head, "I could still ask you for that dance. Here. Without the audience."
The orchestra was far away. The music reached you only as a distant echo. Nevertheless, you stood before him, resting your hands on his shoulders, and he drew you into a careful embrace. You danced slowly to your own rhythm, closer than you had ever been before.
