You could see Guppy’s head in the distance as it swiveled to the side, something you couldn’t see catching her attention. Her body veered to the right, towards the flat rocks dotted around in the surf. You weren’t worried; Guppy was a smart dog, and she’d been on the beach ever since she was a puppy. She’d stay away from anything dangerous, whether it was the water or any animals like crabs or jellyfish. You shook your head in amused exasperation and followed her path, allowing the dog to lead the human in an ironic twist of fate.

You saw Guppy slowing down when she reached the flat rocks, her steps becoming more ginger as she stepped through the shallow water surrounding the rocks, watching her step. Good dog. Her tail wagged faster as she sniffed around at whatever caught her attention—something behind one of the rocks, leaving whatever it was out of view. You ran over to follow her, being careful not to cut your bare feet on some of the sharper surfaces of the rocks. You walked through the ankle-deep water to collect Guppy, catching sight of whatever it was that caught her attention. There was a man sitting on the rocks with a hermit crab wandering across his hand.

He was pretty, you noticed, before internally scolding yourself. He had deep brown skin and dark black hair, unruly around his head and shoulders like he had just gone swimming. Some of his unruly curly hair was covering one of his eyes, which were a pretty hazel color that looked almost gold against his brown skin. He was skinny, with wiry arms and legs, but not so skinny that it was concerning. He was hunched over on his seat on the rock, watching as Guppy sniffed at him.

He was also completely naked.

You made a surprised little choked sound at the man’s nakedness, and he turned half-lidded eyes in your direction with a curious tilt of his head. You instinctively looked away from his naked frame with an awkward cough under your breath, feeling a warmth burning in your ears. “Sorry,” you managed to say without choking on your words. “She’s mine, sorry for bothering you.”

You gestured towards Guppy without looking at the skinny man. It wasn’t illegal to be nude on your beach, but it was rare to see anyone naked—it was rare to see anyone at all. It surprised you, is all. You looked at the man’s face and pointedly avoided looking at any other part of him, watching as he blinked slowly at you. “It’s fine… She just sniffed me…”

The man spoke in a slow, sleepy kind of drawl. His voice was somewhat high-pitched. It was nice. Guppy barked as if in agreement, running around the man’s long legs with excitement, her butt wiggling with how hard her tail was wagging.

“Ah, good, good,” you quirked your lips into a smile and tried not to let your eyes drift to the man’s pretty collarbones. It’s rude to stare. It’s rude to stare. You whistled and Guppy came over to jump up at you, to which you clicked your tongue and ordered, “No jumping.” She knew better than to jump. Guppy’s ears drooped as you scolded her, but you held firm, placing your hands on your hips. She huffed and sat. “Good girl.”

You reached down to pat her head and looked up to find that the stranger was looking at you, blinking slowly every now and then. He looked like he might fall asleep. You watched as the hermit crab walked across the man’s slender hand and made its way up his arm, probably tickling the man’s inner elbow as it went. You cleared your throat. “Is it alright if I ask what you’re doing here? The beach doesn’t get many visitors, that’s all. Especially when the water is cold.”

Well, except for Leau, but he was an outlier. The hermit crab man grunted softly in acknowledgment, offering a small shrug of his narrow shoulders. “I like crabs,” he mumbled, turning to watch the hermit crab on his arm. You could see that. “And I like looking at seashells and stuff.”

“Ah, I see,” you smiled more genuinely now, nodding your head as you watched the man allow the hermit crab to crawl onto the palm of his hand before lowering the crab back down to the wet sands. The hermit crab dug into the sand before disappearing into the hole it had dug. The man watched it go with that same slow little blink. “Yeah, this beach is pretty good for those things since no one really comes here. Makes the animals less afraid to come out, you know?”

The man nodded in agreement, fidgeting absentmindedly with a damp strand of his curly hair. Guppy whined at your feet, and you remembered that rain was going to come soon, possibly a storm. You looked towards the horizon and caught a glimpse of dark, rolling clouds in the distance. You gave Guppy a short two-note whistle that sent her walking back towards the lighthouse, as you had trained her to do when you whistled like that.

“How long do you plan on staying?” you asked.

The man tilted his head up towards your direction, making his hair fall away from his forehead, showing both of his eyes instead of just one. His feet shuffled in the wet sand for a moment, and he toyed absentmindedly with his own knuckles. “I was going to stay for a bit long, probably… Maybe for a couple more hours. Probably.”

You frowned slightly, and the man noticed your expression, a curious lilt appearing on his mouth. You shifted your weight slightly between your feet, rubbing absentmindedly at the back of your neck as you watched the large waves building in the distance. “If you’re planning on staying, I wouldn’t stay near the flat rocks. There’s a storm coming, so the tide will rise pretty high and you might get caught in it. Honestly, I probably wouldn’t stand on the beach, just in case.”

The man huffed softly as if he found you amusing, for reasons you couldn’t understand, but he nodded his head in agreement and rose to his feet. You stared a little bit harder at the clouds as the very naked man stood up. You saw him using his hand to cover his crotch in your peripheral vision, and only then did you return your attention to the stranger. He blinked down at his own body as if only just noticing that he wasn’t wearing any clothes. Did he… not come here with clothes or a towel? You didn’t see a bag or anything. Surely he didn’t come here naked, right?

“Did you come here by car?” you asked, unable to help yourself. Your loneliness made you nosy. The man just stared blankly at you, so you took that as a solid no. Brilliant. The man came here completely naked by foot with no belongings. It’s a miracle he didn’t get arrested for walking around completely bare. You sighed softly through your nose and internally groaned at yourself and your loneliness. “Alright, well, I don’t want you to get arrested for streaking, so… Did you want to come back to the lighthouse with me for now? Just until the storm is over.”

The naked man stared at you for several long seconds. You were beginning to feel a little bit awkward. You popped your lips to fill the silence, which seemed to snap the man out of his stupor.

“Sure… Thanks. That’d be nice, I guess…”

You smiled at the man and nodded your head. “Cool,” you said, tucking your hands away into the pockets of your pants. You gestured with your head towards the direction of your lighthouse, expecting the man to follow after you—hopefully behind you so you wouldn’t have to stare at bare ass as you walked with him. You weren’t overly keen to stare at his cheeks. “You can watch me do the lighthouse stuff, if you’d like.”

The man shrugged and you started off towards the lighthouse, hearing the other man’s footsteps behind you as he walked. For someone with such a slight frame, he walked with a heavy set and a slight limp, if you were hearing it correctly. Maybe he hurt himself or something—quite frankly, it was none of your business, and you didn’t think he’d take kindly to you asking invasive questions. Although he did seem kind of like the type who didn’t care about much of anything, with his slow blinks and equally slow shrugs.

You fidgeted absentmindedly with your fingers where your hands were tucked into your pocket, walking along the beach with the naked man in tow. Guppy was pacing impatiently outside the lighthouse door in the distance, eager to get back inside even though her walk was cut short today. She probably knew it was going to storm or rain soon, too. Guppy hated the rain—it made her thick, shiny coat weighed down and heavy. She barked loudly at you when she spotted you and the stranger coming towards the lighthouse.

You glanced at the man in your peripheral, still not wanting to catch sight of anything private, before looking away again. You kicked a rock out of your way as you walked. “I’m [name], by the way. The lighthouse is mine.”

You heard the man make another grunting sound of acknowledgment when you speak. He’s quiet for a long moment, prompting you to think you were annoying him. Eventually he mumbled a quiet, “Aishiv.”

You smiled privately to yourself when the man- Aishiv- introduced himself back to you. That was a pretty name, Aishiv. Unique, too. “Nice to meet you,” you smiled warmly at him, turning your head slightly to make eye contact with hazel eyes. Aishiv blinked, and then ducked his head with a nod, his curls covering his forehead and his eyes, like he’s hiding from you. He nodded. “Your name is pretty.”

Comfortable silence fell between the two of you as you walked the rest of the length of the sands, climbing up the steps to your lighthouse door. Guppy barked impatiently and you rolled your eyes at her ridiculousness, fishing your keys out of your pocket and unlocking the door. Guppy immediately burst inside, knocking her head against the shoe rack in her eagerness to get inside. She didn't even yelp, thick-skulled as she was. You shook your head and gestured for the stranger to step inside your home, feeling less awkward about it than you thought you would feel.

Aishiv stepped inside and looked around, leaving you to follow behind him, unable to help getting an eyeful of bare ass. You cleared your throat and looked away, stepping around him and scratching at your head while you felt your face burning. Aishiv watched as you walked around him with a mild quirk of one of his dark eyebrows. You gestured towards the door that led to your bedroom and bathroom with one hand. “Did you want some pants? Or maybe a towel?”

“Oh…” Aishiv mumbled, remembering his nakedness. He blinked down at himself and you did your very, very best not to follow his gaze below the belt. You felt the corner of your mouth twitching slightly when Aishiv’s eyes traveled slowly back upwards to meet your eyes. “Yes, please… If it’s not too much trouble, I’ll have a towel.”

“Oh, no, not at all,” you waved off Aishiv’s concern quickly, smiling pleasantly at him. It was your way of saying if this man doesn’t cover up in the next minute I’m going to have a stroke. You walked further into your house towards the laundry, opening up the linen closet and pulling a fluffy towel out from within the closet. You handed the towel over to Aishiv and focused your attention elsewhere while he wrapped the towel firmly around his narrow waist, tucking it in to prevent it from falling. “There we go.”

The sound of thunder rumbling in the distance caught your attention and you clicked your tongue when you realized you had been distracted from your duties. Guppy heard the thunder, too, whining pathetically and tucking herself in between Aishiv’s legs like he’d protect her from the thunder. Aishiv blinked down at her and slowly pat her head. Pat pat. Traitorous dog, running to a stranger instead of towards you. You huffed quietly under your breath.

“Alright, I need to do some things with the lighthouse before the storm hits,” you told Aishiv, mentally running through your list of chores. You quirked an eyebrow questioningly at him, placing a hand on your hip. “Did you want to watch, or no?”

Aishiv pauses for a moment, looking between Guppy and you a couple of times before eventually deciding, “No, that’s alright.” He patted Guppy’s head once more, much to her delight. “I can stay with your dog... I don’t think she likes thunder.”

You nodded and sighed to yourself, getting Aishiv situated in your lounge room with the TV on so he wouldn’t be bored to death looking after your dopey dog. As soon as Aishiv was siting, Guppy curled up on his lap and tucked her face away, avoiding your stink eye. Normally she was more than happy to tag along while you did chores- not today. You knew very well that Guppy wasn’t afraid of thunder or storms whatsoever, the little shit. She was just using it as an excuse to get pats from a stranger. You look at Aishiv, turning away from your traitor dog. “I’ll be back.”

When you first moved into the lighthouse and started caring for it, it took you ages to do all the chores necessary to prepare for a storm. You fumbled around and forgot to do many things. Now, though, caring for the lighthouse comes as second nature, and it takes you almost no time at all to do all the chores. Check and secure equipment, activate fog signals, check everything is waterproof and airtight, check on the electricity, ensure communication equipment is operating, and gather supplies in an easy-to-access spot just in case things go badly. It took you less than an hour, leaving you plenty of time to cook lunch for yourself and for the stranger on your couch.

You made your way downstairs towards the house part of the lighthouse, greeted by Guppy who has miraculously recovered from her uncharacteristic bout of astraphobia. Her tongue lolled out of her mouth as she panted excitedly, fluffy tail wagging back and forth. Unable to help yourself, you quickly forgot about her abandoning you and patted her on the head as you made your way towards the living room. “Hey, did you want lunch?”

Aishiv didn’t answer. You peered into the living room to find him sitting slumped on your couch and fast asleep, chin buried into his clavicle. You felt your lips twitch at the sight, and you shook your head at the absurdity of a stranger falling asleep on a couch in a lighthouse. You grabbed the blanket folded over the back of the couch and carefully draped it over Aishiv, doing your best to not wake him up. You very, very gently turned him so he was laying on his side rather than sleeping sitting up. Aishiv didn’t stir one bit, even as you placed a pillow beneath his head so he wouldn’t wake up with a sore neck. He looked comfortable, lips parted in sleep as he breathed in and out of his mouth.

You realized he would probably find it incredibly creepy to find you gently fluffing up his pillow if he was to wake up right now, and took a purposeful step away from him. You sighed to yourself and ignored the way Guppy was looking at you judgmentally. Instead, you looked down at her and made your way to the kitchen, keeping your voice low. “What’s for lunch today, hm?”

------- OCEAN FACTS -------

The ocean produces more than 70% of the Earth's oxygen.

------- OTHER CHAPTERS -------

Prologue

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Glossary/Pronunciation/Info

------- READ ON ao3 ------- RIPTIDE (12134 words) by parasiticsoda Chapters: 5/? Fandom: No Fandom, Original Work, mythology and folklore - Fandom Rating: Explicit Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Original Male Character/Reader, Reader/Everyone, Original Character(s)/Reader Characters: Reader, You, Original Characters, Original Male Character(s) Additional Tags: Drama & Romance, Mermaids, Merfolk, Mermen, Reader-Insert, Original Character(s), Major Original Character(s), Light Angst, Polyamory, Polyamorous Character, Explicit Sexual Content, Human/Monster Romance Summary:

— 𝐈𝐧 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐡 𝐚 𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐤𝐞𝐞𝐩𝐞𝐫 𝐜𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐯𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬 𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐦𝐞𝐧

Four years ago, after the death of his grandmother, [Name] [L/Name] inherited a lighthouse on the banks of a little beach. Since then, [Name] has lived the lonely life of a lighthouse keeper. After helping a beached shark back into the ocean, [Name]'s life becomes much less lonely when a pod of mermen take an interest in him.

Now, [Name] bonds with these mermen while simultaneously trying to keep their existence hidden from the public. Oh why couldn't he live a normal life for one?

— 𝐦!𝐯𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬 𝐱 𝐦!𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫 — 𝐦𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐢𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬

------- READ ON WATTPAD -------

------- READ ON QUOTEV -------

This had never happened before. Plenty of creatures had become beached on the sand, sure, but normally things like jellyfish, the occasional fish, or the incredibly rare turtle washed up on the sands, not sharks. The thing is thrashing around desperately, gills flapping as it struggles for air. It was an incredibly upsetting sight. You loved sharks, and seeing one beached made you frown.

You stepped closer to the shark. Poor thing. You crouched down a safe distance away from the animal, your expression twisting with sympathy. Unlike with other animals that washed up on your beach, like turtles, you couldn’t exactly push the shark back in the water. You would probably lose a hand or some fingers.

You bit your bottom lip anxiously, looking over to where Guppy was waiting for you a while on the sand, her wagging tail slowing down as she tilted her head in confusion. She was clearly confused why you weren’t following after her anymore. You sighed softly through your nose and looked back towards the writhing shark.

You imagined the shark as a loved pet. If Guppy was beached, you would want someone to save her, regardless of the danger. Sure, it was a ridiculous comparison considering Guppy was not a shark with huge teeth, but still. You shook your head at your own ridiculousness, standing up from your crouched position.

Heart beating so hard in your chest your shirt moved with it, you stuck your shoed foot out towards the back of the shark, and nudged it. The shark squirmed furiously, jaws chomping, as you rolled it over onto its back. It couldn’t reach you with its teeth, and the moment it was laying on its back against the stand, it went completely still. Good. Fuck me, that was terrifying.

You stared at the now still shark, the animal in a dozed off state. You internally thanked your parents for the knowledge of tonic immobility, and that when sharks were turned on their backs, they were instantly subdued. You swallowed harshly, a hissing breath leaving your mouth as you stepped closer and held onto the shark’s tail.

Being incredibly careful to keep the animal on its back, you dragged it back to the shore, and into the shallow water. You dragged the shark out until the water started to reach your waist. You were shaking, fingers trembling where they held onto the shark’s tail, Moment of truth- you might die, but you had to let the shark go.

With an inward squeal of terror, you flipped the shark back onto its stomach in the water, before bolting out of the water back onto the sands. Luckily, the shark seemed disorientated from being turned onto its back, so it was too slow to try and chase you through the water and bite you. You reached the sands with ease, your heart in your throat and adrenaline in your veins.

You sighed anxiously and leaned over, your hands on your knees, swallowing down the urge to vomit anxiously. You turned your eyes back to the water, and watched as the shark swam off, away from the shallow sands. Holy hell. Holy hell. I just saved a shark from dying. I just touched a shark! Without getting my arm ripped off!

A relieved breath of air left your lungs, and you stood up straight once more, turning your face up towards the sky. You blinked at the clouds for a moment, trying to will your body into relaxation. The sound of paws bounding against wet sand met your ears, and you looked down to see Guppy running up to you, tongue lolling out of her mouth as she looked up at you.

She rubbed herself against your legs, and you grimaced slightly at the feeling of wet fur against your skin, but a smile curled at your lips. You ruffled the fur of her head, making her tail wag happily. You gave her a pat on the bum and waved her off to continue running down the length of the beach. She barked excitedly. You shook your head affectionately, warmth filling your chest, easing the anxiety from touching a shark.

You shoved your hands into your pockets and continued your walk along the beach, feeling the wet sand shift beneath the weight of your feet. As you walked, your eyes slid automatically back towards the ocean, where the shark had swam off to. You felt proud of yourself for saving the beached shark- everyone knew sharks needed all the help they could get after the Jaws incident.

You stared out at the sea. Your mind drifted to the various other sea creatures beneath the waves, some of them safe, others hunted by humans. You knew some of it was necessary, like fishing for people to eat, but there was so much unnecessary violence towards the creatures as well. The shark fin epidemic sprang to your mind, and you shook your head.

You wished you could do something. At least your parents were working towards the rehabilitation of endangered sea creatures. 

With a soft sigh, you turned away from the view of the ocean to continue your walk along the beach, and promptly smacked your face into a solid chest. You blinked for a moment, your face smooshed into a rather nice pair of pecs, before you realized what happened and you took a step back with an apologetic look on your face. “I’m so sorry.”

You looked up at the man you bumped into and- holy shit. The man was perhaps one of the hottest men you had ever seen in person. He was tall, almost ridiculously so, and very muscly. His hair was long, falling down to his waist, his hair a black blue colour that could not be natural. His eyes were the bluest blue eyes you have ever seen, slightly narrow and curtained with long dark eyelashes.

He smiled somewhat stiffly in response to your apology, scratching awkwardly at strong nose. The movement made the silver bangles on his wrist jangle and clank against one another. “Don’t worry about it,” he said, an accent you couldn’t recognize clinging to his words. “I was in your way.”

You felt a customer service pulling up at your lips, and you couldn’t help the way your eyes flickered down to the man’s bare torso. His shoulders were broad and strong, and his waist was narrow. He had a swimmer’s build, and you couldn’t help but wonder if he was a pool swimmer or if he was a surfer. Maybe a deep sea diver? If he was a surfer it would explain why he was on your beach. His left bicep had a cool tattoo that looked like blue scales.

You cleared your throat as you realized you were staring, and your gaze flickered back up towards the man’s blue blue eyes. You tilted your head slightly as you smiled and waved a dismissive hand in response to the man’s words. “No, no. You weren’t in the way at all, I should have been looking.”

The man’s stiff smile relaxed slightly into a more genuine one at your words, lips quirked upwards, making a dimple in his cheek stand out. Jesus, this man could not be real. He looked like he had stepped out of an underwear ad. You offered the man a more genuine smile, too, although you knew it still had a tinge of customer service to it.

You blinked slightly as you realized you had never seen this man around before. A new person. A new person on your beach! You stood up slightly straighter at the realization that there was a new visitor on your beach. “Can I ask where you’re from?” you asked curiously. “I’ve never seen you around before. And this beach doesn’t get many visitors.”

“Ah,” the man said in response, dipping his head forward in a respectful nod. The movement was strangely elegant, making his long hair sway slightly. He shifted his weight between his feet as he smiled down at you. “I moved into the area recently. I figured I could check out the beach.” The man stuck his hand out. “My name is Leau."

“Low?” you repeated, testing out the pronunciation of his name. At his nod, you smiled warmly and reached out, grasping his hand in a firm handshake. You withdrew your hand and Leau did the same, lowering them back down to his sides. “It’s really nice to meet you, and to see a new face on the beach. I’m [Name].”

The man’s smile widened, lips pulling up and making his teeth flash. His canines were unusually sharp, you noticed. Hm.  “It’s nice to meet you, too, [Name.]”

You smiled at the man for a moment longer, before a loud bark reached your ears, and you turned your head to where Guppy was waiting impatiently for you. You chuckled softly and shook your head, meeting Leau’s eyes. “I’m going to continue my walk. It was really nice to meet you.”

“You too,” Leau replied, his voice warm and low in his throat. It was a very pleasant sound. “See you around, [Name.]”

You nodded your head in agreement, turning away to follow after Guppy, speeding up into a light jog to catch up to the dog. She ran back over to you and ran circles around your feet before sprinting off again. For a moment, you turned your head back around to look back at Leau, only to find he was gone. How on Earth did he manage to get away so fast?

You shrugged slightly, and continued your pleasant walk along the beach, thinking nothing of it.

🌊

Deep beneath the ocean, a man with long dark hair, the bluest blue eyes, and an equally blue fish tail swam through the water as he returned to the Pacific kingdom. Leau’s mind was on the peculiar human he had met on the beach, with the kind smile. He bit his lip as he swam into the castle, tail beating behind him and webbed fingers propelling him faster.

Leau had been on the beach after he noticed the beached shark, intending to save the creature and put it back where it belonged. But the human- [Name], he recalled- had been faster. Despite [Name]’s clear terror at touching a shark and dragging it back into the ocean, he had saved the shark. Curious.

Leau swam through the castle hallway until he reached a particular room, peeking his head into the open cavern and wrapping his knuckles against the rock. The merman within the room snapped his head up to meet Leau’s eyes at the sound of the knock, blue eyes meeting purple. Leau dipped his head respectfully, lifting his hands to sign, "Kjav."

Kjav (kya-ahv) cocked his head curiously at Leau the, his white hair flowing around him within the water. He swam closer towards Leau, his face twisting with curiosity. The string of pearls around Kjav’s forehead marked Kjav’s status as the Prince of the Pacific. The prince lifted his hands to sign, too. “Leau. How are you?”

“I’m well, thank you,” Leau responded with soft smile. Leau swam into the prince’s room, air bubbles bubbling up as he moved. Kjav barely blinked at the increased proximity- he and Leau had been friends for many years, after all, despite the difference in status. “I wanted to speak to you about something I saw on the surface.”

Kjav’s white eyebrows rose on his forehead and he blinked his periwinkle purple eyes at Leau curiously. He made a follow me gesture and swam over towards his kelp bed, sitting down and folding his pale purple tail beneath him. Leau followed suit, sitting on the kelp bed beside the prince. Kjav nodded his head. “Yes? What did you see?”

Leau bent and stretched out his fingers, feeling his joints crack slightly, before he began to sign. “I went onto one of the beaches, intending to save a beached shark.” Leau paused slightly as Kjav’s eyebrows twitched at the mention of a beach, before continuing. “But I saw something peculiar. A human.”

Kjav’s eyebrows furrowed slightly, his lips twisting slightly. His chest expanding as he breathed in, his gills opening and closing. He nodded his hand and waved. “Proceed.”

“Yes,” Leau nodded his head, his own gills opening and closing as he sighed slightly. “Well. The human was peculiar. Unlike the others, the human pulled the shark back into the water, despite the danger. I thought it was very brave. And very unusual.”

Kjav’s eyebrows raised once more in surprise. He made a gesture with his hands that meant curiosity, and then a gesture that expressed confusion. “I see. That is quite peculiar. A human saving a shark?”

Leau nodded slightly, straightening up on the kelp bed as Kjav listened and responded to his feelings and words. Leau scratched at the back of his neck with his claws, a small smile curling at his lips. “I was hoping I could get permission to observe this human more?”

Kjav’s jaw shifted slightly as he processed the request, and Leau tried not to get too hopeful. It was, after all, very dangerous for merfolk to appear before humans, even in human form. Merfolk had been hunted for a long time before their existence was forgotten about, not that Kjav or Leau had been alive in those years.

Finally, Kjav nodded his assent. “Yes, you may,” Kjav permitted. “But be careful. And do not tell my parents. You know they would never approve.”

Leau felt a wide smile spread across his lips, and his tail fins flicked with excitement. He made a happy gesture with his hand, which caused Kjav’s expression to soften slightly, his jaw no longer shifting anxiously. Kjav smiled slightly and continued. “It will be good, I think, to study humans more. Beneficial to us.”

Leau nodded his head in agreement, getting up from the kelp bed and swimming over towards the open cavern. He turned back to face Kjav, using his webbed hands to keep himself afloat by the door. “Thank you, Kjav,” he said. “I’ll go tell our friends.”

Leau turned to swim out, but paused as Kjav called out to him. “Leau?”

Leau met Kjav’s eyes, blinking curiously. Kjav’s expression was slightly worried, his lips pursed slightly. “Be careful."

------- OCEAN FACTS -------

The largest ocean on Earth is the Pacific Ocean! The Pacific Ocean covers about 30% of the Earth's surface.

------- OTHER CHAPTERS -------

Prologue

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Glossary/Pronunciation/Info

------- READ ON ao3 ------- RIPTIDE (12134 words) by parasiticsoda Chapters: 5/? Fandom: No Fandom, Original Work, mythology and folklore - Fandom Rating: Explicit Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Original Male Character/Reader, Reader/Everyone, Original Character(s)/Reader Characters: Reader, You, Original Characters, Original Male Character(s) Additional Tags: Drama & Romance, Mermaids, Merfolk, Mermen, Reader-Insert, Original Character(s), Major Original Character(s), Light Angst, Polyamory, Polyamorous Character, Explicit Sexual Content, Human/Monster Romance Summary:

— 𝐈𝐧 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐡 𝐚 𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐤𝐞𝐞𝐩𝐞𝐫 𝐜𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐯𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬 𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐦𝐞𝐧

Four years ago, after the death of his grandmother, [Name] [L/Name] inherited a lighthouse on the banks of a little beach. Since then, [Name] has lived the lonely life of a lighthouse keeper. After helping a beached shark back into the ocean, [Name]'s life becomes much less lonely when a pod of mermen take an interest in him.

Now, [Name] bonds with these mermen while simultaneously trying to keep their existence hidden from the public. Oh why couldn't he live a normal life for one?

— 𝐦!𝐯𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬 𝐱 𝐦!𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫 — 𝐦𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐢𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬

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