Discover Top Posts Tagged with #mer!rin

Iwatobi Moon Cave (2312 words), by sharkinlovewithadolphin

Rin and Haru are merfolk from different areas, who wind up meeting in a cave on an island. Cue years of secret cave meetings and developed feelings. Romantic, right? For day 1 of RH week 2021. Theme: Water, Red prompt: Feelings, AU: Merfolk. Infinite gratitude to my beloved proofreader, @illbebuyingallofthoseflowers! Please keep her in your thoughts, she fought a brave battle and saved you all for my abuse of the word "suddenly". I hope you enjoy - this is my first ever published piece of work, so any feedback is highly appreciated! :D Chapters: 1/2 Fandom: Free! Rating: General Audiences Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Category: M/M Relationships: Matsuoka Rin/Nanase Haruka Characters: Matsuoka Rin, Nanase Haruka, Nanase Haruka's Grandmother, Tachibana Makoto, Hazuki Nagisa, Ryuugazaki Rei Additional Tags: merman au, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, rinharuweek, Fluff, merfolk, RinHaru Week 2021, Rinharu Week

Read on: AO3, Movellas or under the cut!

Iwatobi Moon Cave

Haru wasn’t more than 8 years old when he started to grow bored. Bored of the same old tasks and sights every single night. Tired of the same night repeating itself over and over. It all started the same, school was the same; even when teachers would talk about new things, his pastime activities were all the same. His nights even ended the same way. Makoto would come and wake him every night, right when the sun had just set. His parents were often away and Haru had trouble awakening with the moon. Perhaps both his body and mind were just too bored with real life to bother waking him up for another night of it. It was integrated in most merfolk DNA by now, to be nocturnal, after centuries of increased human sea activity making it necessary. Maybe his body just longed for the thrill of seeing something new. Even a monster like a human would be a fun change to his night, if he was being honest.

“Do you ever get bored?” Haru asked Makoto one night. It was dark, their eyes illuminating as their night vision kicked in. They were swimming towards school. As always, of course.

“Huh? Why?” Makoto asked, confused and curious.

Haru shrugged without saying anything.

“Rarely, but it does happen. Why? Are you bored?”

“I guess.”

“Do I bore you?” Makoto asked panickingly.

“No. I don’t think so.” Haru answered.

“If you’re bored, we can always find another path to take to school? We can swim through the reef instead? With the others?”

“No, it's too much trouble.” Haru dismissed. What he meant was that there were too many others going that way. Merfolk and other fish. At least this way was more quiet.

“Maybe we can find another path? Switch between this and that?” Makoto offered.

“Hmm… maybe. Perhaps that would do it.” Haru replied. He knew it wouldn’t, though.

“We can also go play after school? That would be fun!”

“Yeah.” Haru said, but his feigned excitement didn’t quite shine through.

A week later, he went home after school. He was getting better and better at trying to hide his boredom around Makoto. It was probably only easier because Nagisa would steal his attention by showing him funny and cute looking fishes all night.That night it had been a turtle.

He helped his grandma pluck algae, an almost nightly ritual after school by now. At least it kept him occupied.

“Haruka, my darling, can I ask you something?”

“Yes?”

“Is something bothering you?”

“No, I’m just a bit bored lately.” Haru replied honestly.

“I need a specific plant for a potion. Would you like to go find it?”

Haru looked over at her. “Where?” He asked with a sudden sense of curiosity.

“It’s by the island.”

“The island?” Haru asked, shocked. He had never seen it, only heard of it. “But that’s outside of the zone?”

“Yes, dear. You don’t have to do it! It was only something that might be fun for you.”

“I… I can do it, yes.”

“Are you sure? I don’t mind doing it myself.”

“Yes. I’m sure.”

“Okay, darling, just be careful okay? It’s going to get bright soon, so do get back here at the first sign of light!”

“What plant is it?” Haru asked.

“Just a handful of Acropora coral. The purple coral.”

“I know that one. We talked about it in school once.” Haru said, determined now.

“If you’re unsure which one it is, that’s okay, then just come back. Do you think a friend might go with you?”

“No,” Haru lied. “But that’s okay! I’ll find it, I promise!”

His grandma chuckled, and off Haru went. He quickly swam through the kelp forest that surrounded the zone, and after a while, he got to the end of it. To the edge of the zone. He stopped. He’d only ever been outside of the zone once in his life, and that was on a fieldtrip to study plants as a security thing, so that they would be prepared if they ever got lost. Some of the adults go out everyday to hunt or observe. But not Haru. He slowly swam outside of the kelp forest and away from the invisible border of the zone. It was strange. And it was open - very open. He suddenly felt very exposed, but not scared. He kept on swimming.

He wasn’t swimming fast to try to get there in time before it got bright. In fact, it seemed as if he kept slowing further and further down. He touched a fish that swam alongside him. It was yellow and black. A Moorish Idol. Under him in a coral garden, a frogfish was swimming around with the other fishes, trying to blend in and hide.

So far everything he was seeing was present at the zone as well, but something about it was just intriguing to Haru anyway. Maybe everything outside of the zone just automatically turned better. Haru stopped and looked around. No other merfolk around. Only him. He didn’t know why, but he looked up, and his body started to move on its own. He didn’t seem to realize what he was doing until his head was centimeters away from the surface, and it was as if his common sense woke up. He froze. All the adults warned about this: never, ever, go up to the surface. It’s dangerous.

At least it’s dark. Humans are diurnal. Daylighters. He thought to himself. Then he felt something nagging inside of him, a curiosity, a dare, and he breached the surface. Slowly. He was prepared to be met with pain, from all the awful dangers he’s heard about. Instead, his hair stuck to his face in an uncomfortable manner he had never felt before. It covered his eyes. His face turned cold. He almost dug back down again. Instead he removed the hair from his face and froze again.

“Wow,” he let out, taking in the sight of the moon and the stars, so much more visible now than ever before. No longer dancing in the waves or obscured by the surface.

After a while of just staring, he looked ahead. He saw something odd, far ahead of him. Something he’d only heard described in stories, never seen before. It must be how the island looks from above, judging from its location. He dug back under the surface again and swam towards it, now with speed. He was there shortly after. 100 meters away he dug up from the surface again. He looked with care, trying to notice any movements. There weren’t any, except for the weird looking algae swaying back and forth, as if the surface had waves too.

Haru carefully swam closer, only his eyes still above water. Watching. He dug down again to see where he was swimming; to keep track of where he was, even though he had never been there before. Then he saw it. It looked like a hole into the island. Curiosity got the better of him still, and he swam closer. No dangers yet, but he felt like he was on full alert, as much as he could be, with so much curiosity going through him. He stopped outside the hole, considered for a moment, then swam through it. He touched the walls as he slowly swam along them. It felt like stone, but he wasn’t sure.

The hole was deep, and he had a feeling like he should probably stop and head back, but he didn’t. He ventured further until it started to get brighter and led into a round shape. The water had become more and more shallow, and he very slowly and carefully lifted his head up again. The feeling of hair sticking to his face was gross, but he pushed it away and tried to ignore it. Once his hair was pushed back, he looked around. He saw the moon high above him, in another hole at the end of tall walls going around in a circle shape. The moon must be the source of the light, Haru figured.

There was a small area of dry land beside him, with dry sand. Another hole in the wall, this one to the side, leading somewhere Haru couldn’t explore, being tied to the water of the little ocean pool he currently found himself in. It might lead into the dry lands of the island, Haru thought.

He looked down and noticed that some big stones were laid out on top of another in a strange formation leading up to the dry land. He didn’t know what it was, it looked like a bad attempt at a chair, but it wasn’t. He sat down on the third stone from the bottom of its beginning, allowing just his small head to stay out of the water while the rest of his body stayed in. There was another type of quietness to this room that he hadn’t known existed. He could hear the movements of the water, much louder than ever before. Bubbles didn’t come out whenever he blew air hard out of his nose, trying to check if they did. His ears and face felt very bare, very exposed. Heavy and light at the same time. His hair definitely felt very heavy on his head. He smiled peacefully, leaning back against the stone above the one he sat on.

The moon was starting to move away from the hole in the tall ceiling, and he couldn’t stop staring, until he suddenly heard a noise. Instinctively, he wanted to hide, when realization hit him: he couldn’t. He couldn’t go on dryland, and he couldn’t swim back, because that’s where the noise came from.

He quickly looked around and found some small, dry stones on top of the dry sand. He kept his position, sitting on top of the stone. He felt like he might have an advantage and maybe be able to hit whatever might turn up with his tail.

A head appeared. Red hair. A humming noise. Then a face looked up from the bottom and up at his tail with wide eyes.

Haru wanted to hit him with his tail, but he couldn’t. He was frozen yet again, and he stared into those red eyes that decorated the face of what appeared to be another young merling like himself. The face emerged from the water, and that’s when Haru noticed it - a tail. Phew. A long, red tail followed the red-eyed young, and Haru no longer felt fear, but a strange type of annoyance. He’d been disturbed. Discovered. But he also felt curiosity coming up. He didn’t know there existed other merfolk outside of the zone. Definitely not red ones.

The two stared at each other.

“Woah you’re really beautiful! Who are you?” The voice was full of wonder and excitement. He had sharp teeth in his mouth, and Haru felt a mixture of curiosity and slight fear.

“I- um…”

“Um? That’s a strange name. Oh- sorry! I didn’t mean that! Hi Um! My name is Rin!” He - Rin - gave Haru a bright smile, exposing his sharp teeth further, and reached out his hand to him. “What are you doing here? I thought I was the only one who knew about this place,”

“My name is not Um.” Haru said, annoyed. “It’s Haru.”

“Oh haha! Sorry! Haru.” Rin corrected himself, looking Haru over as if he was a fish or plant to study. Haru didn’t say anything. “So… Why are you here?”

“I found the hole.” Haru put the stones he had been holding onto down beside him on the stone, under water, lifted his hand out of the water again, and pointed to the entrance that Rin just came out of.

“Ah, yeah… It’s not exactly hidden, no… You’re welcome to stay though! I will give you full permission to be in my cave!”

“Cave?”

“Yes?”

“What’s that?”

“You’re sitting in one, dummie.” Rin chuckled. “This is a cave.”

“Oh.”

“You’re not from here if you’ve never seen a cave.” Rin pointed out, then with a curious tone continued: “Where are you from?”

“The zone?” Haru said, as if it was obvious.

“The zone? What zone?”

“That’s where I’m from.”

“The zone?”

“Yes.”

“Hm. Okay. Where is it though?”

“In the ocean?”

Rin laughed.

“You’re funny! I’m from Samezuka. It’s a small village by another island close to this one.”

Haru didn’t respond.

“You don’t talk much, huh?” Rin asked.

“That’s okay! Then I will talk for us both,” Rin added when Haru didn’t reply. He smiled. “How old are you? I’m 8.”

“I’m also 8.” Haru answered.

“Woah what a coincidence!”

“Your tail looks red,” Haru pointed out.

“It’s maroon! That’s what my mom calls it. Maroon.” Rin informed, still excited.

“Are you toxic?” Haru asked, bluntly.

Rin looked at him, completely dumbfounded. “Am I what?”

“Toxic.”

“I… I don’t know?” Rin stammered, confused.

“Red stuff is often toxic… that’s what I learned in school.”

Rin laughs again. Then he looked as if he was thinking about it, though still chuckling. “No, I don’t think I’m toxic? Why? Do you plan on eating me?”

“You have sharp teeth though. Like a shark. Or piranhas.” Haru pointed out.

“You like them?” Rin asked proudly, smiling wide to show them off.

“Piranhas are mean.” Haru stated.

“But I’m not mean!” Rin objected. “I’m very nice! I even let you stay in my cave!”

“I’ve never seen anyone with a red tail before.” Haru said. “Or eyes.”

“Everyone in my family has them! Except my grandpa. He was purple! But I’ve never seen anyone as bright blue like you before, either.” Rin smiled. “You’re really pretty!”

“T- thank you?”

“You’re welcome!” Rin said. “Hey, do you want to be my friend?”

Haru looked at him for a moment, then found himself nodding.

#mer!rin

Trending Tags

Recently Viewed Tags

#mer!rin