#betta reader

You know I love a scientific setting

Honestly I’ve been thinking more about the world and I’ve been considering. Research Lead!Price and Research Assistant!Gaz who are studying soap and like. Before they acquired you that man was constantly swimming laps. Rubbing his throbbing cock against the glass. And Price and Gaz are like on GOD we gonna get you some pussy bro

And of course they’re supposed to be observing behavior so they can’t really interfere, so they’re just stuck watching him fumble the fuck out of you for the first few weeks that you’re in the tank. I’m imagining in this setting that it’s really rare to catch a live mer specimen, and it’s insanely rare to catch a live female specimen, so you being different species is something they just have to roll with for science.

Anyways I’m torn between Johnny actually successfully courting you or him just snatching you at an opportune moment to fuck you raw and stupid

Either way I imagine you start using certain fish bones from your feeder fish as rudimentary shivs to threaten him (tropical mer are well known for using tools more often than others), and instead of disarming you, he just gets you more. Cleans them really well and leaves them by your hiding spot. Gets you ones that are tough enough to crack serrations into some of the smaller ones.

And then maybe Price and Gaz interfere a little. Introduce a new feeder fish that’s insanely fast and full of gristle and bone. You’re not fast enough to catch them, but Johnny is. Johnny doesn’t have the dexterity or tools to process the fish, but you do. They watch with bated breath as you feed him a sliver of the fat-streaked meat from your knife for the first time. A few days later you linger after eating together, letting him cup your jaw near the gills (an incredibly vulnerable and sensitive area) and nuzzling you.

He loves that you reject him, because that means you’re selective— you won’t take anything but the best, and he’s determined to be the best. He wants the mate and mother of his pups to have nigh impossibly high standards. Her rejection means he just hasn’t proven himself, hasn’t given her an adequate display— bettas like displays, right? He may not dance as such, but his hunting is certainly its own performance.

And again, I like giving mermaids a bit of lore. I think mers from warmer waters are often a bit more delicate because they have such fair conditions and have developed more tools because they have less physical strength/mass. Mers like bettas have also developed more jewelry and other adornments because they are already accustomed to using their colors and flowing fins to attract mates. Many tropical mers also travel less as they don’t leave seasonally due to changing water temperature, so they have some agricultural practices.

So John, as a shark, sees you two as a perfect match. He has the strength, speed, and aggression— body hardened from colder waters and times of sparse prey. You’re dexterous, evasive, and clever. He can chase competitors from the territory, while you can make it into a self sustaining home. He can fill the den with food, and you can make sure not a single bone goes to waste.

1- she has taken on shrimp that are 3x bigger than her mouth and eaten them in a ridiculously short window (which is why she is no longer allowed to have shrimp friends)

2- attention hoe. Whenever i get home she's right at the tank saying hello, very curious about new people coming into the room as well. She also loves to play peekaboo, especially by hiding in plant foliage and darting out

3- gets lonely whenever one of my snails passes away, she enjoys having the company of my especially larger mystery snails

4- likes playing in the current created by my filter

INVALUABLE RESEARCH

Soap loves that you can keep up with his appetite. Makes sense— he wants a mate that can pack in the nutrients, you’re gonna need them if you’re carrying his pups. So he’s more than happy to let you have your fill before he eats— he looks dopey as fuck while he enjoys watching you eat.

Once he does break through to you, get on your good side? You become almost insufferably cute. The way you follow him and dance for him and play chase in the plants with him.

You know I read abt mating behavior of fish for this and found out

1) apparently mating between barracudas is largely mysterious and unknown

2) male bettas will wrap around the females to help them release their eggs

So I’ve been thinking of reader being all uncomfortable because she can’t release her eggs on her own and Soap being soooooooooo slow to realize she needs his help