Finally, I'm getting around to starting this collection. This will be multi-chapter consisting of many one-shots of Ben and Maddie showing Ryn new things about the surface world. I haven't decided if they will be interconnected or not.
Polymarine is already established but I suppose you can look at it kinda like a sequel to "Home" if you'd like. Or it can be its own thing, it works either way. These might not be in chronological order either, some might be in the far future while others might be in the past.
This chapter came from the realization that since mermaids live on the bottom of the ocean, they have no clue what snow is.
Enjoy.
"No get up." Ben stopped in place when he heard the voice behind him.
Risking a look behind, Ben discovered he was mistaken, and that Ryn was still out cold. The mermaid was just mumbling in her sleep.
Ben let out a silent sigh of relief as he stood up from the bed. There was a time it was impossible to rise without waking Ryn up instantly. She began as a notoriously light sleeper, the tiniest movement and she'd be up and awake.
Nowadays, Ryn slept like the dead. Ben chalked it up to her being so comfortable with sharing the bed with Ben and Maddie that she allowed herself to truly relax. Nothing was going to attack her with them present.
Speaking of Maddie, Ben tiptoed a few steps away before looking back again. Both Ryn and Maddie remained asleep, but with Ben's weight gone, Ryn had shifted positions. She'd unconsciously scooted closer to Maddie, Ryn's leg draped over hers. While Ryn curled into Maddie's chest, she held Ryn closer in her arms.
The mermaid was a cuddler. Who would have imagined?
The scene was almost enough to make Ben climb back into bed to rejoin them, almost. Somebody had to be the first to get up, though. One of them had to make the sacrifice, and Ben was already up.
As quiet as he could manage, Ben gathered up his clothes and slipped out the door to change in the next room. No point in waking the sleeping beauties quiet yet. If Ben was lucky, he might even be able to start breakfast for them.
Ben had just finished dressing when he stopped mid-step. Taking two steps backward, he looked out the window, his eyebrows shooting to the ceiling.
"Wow." Ben leaned closer to the window for a proper look. "How much did it snow last night?"
The weather did say they'd have a few inches. Nothing at all like what Ben was seeing now. There must have been almost two feet out there!
"Morning." Ben heard Maddie's yawn from behind him.
"So much for breakfast." Ben shook his head. "Morning, Maddie. Where's Ryn?"
"Getting dressed." Maddie moved over to join Ben at the window. "Damn, how much is out there?"
"Don't know." Ben shrugged. "I'm gonna go check it out, maybe shovel off the front."
"Okay." Maddie kissed Ben on the cheek. "I'm make some coffee."
By the time Ben retrieved his coat and reached the front door, he found Ryn standing there staring out the window. When he got closer, he noticed she wasn't just looking out the window, she was full on glaring. Not good, Ryn only looked like that when she saw something dangerous, or something she perceived as dangerous.
"Ryn?" Ben stepped up next to her, putting a hand on her shoulder. "Everything okay?"
Ryn said nothing, but when Ben reached for the door knob, she slammed a hand against the wood to keep it shut. "Not safe."
That got Ben's attention. "What do you see?"
"There." Ryn pointed out the door's glass, but whatever it was, Ben couldn't see it. "Everywhere."
"The snow?"
"Snow?" The words passed from Ryn's lips slowly, like every other time she learned a new word. "Snow."
"Yeah, all the white stuff out there." Ben felt the urge to slap his forehead. Of course, Ryn would think that about snow, she'd never seen the stuff before!
"Snow not danger?" Ryn tilted her head up to look at Ben.
"It can be. But only if you're unprepared." Ben admitted. An idea came to mind just then. Going over to the coat rack, Ben grabbed Ryn's heavier coat. "Here, I'll show you."
Ryn allowed Ben to help her put the coat on and this time, she didn't try to stop him from opening the door. After going through, Ben saw that he was mistaken in his estimate. The snow wasn't quite two feet, more like one and a half. Still, he hadn't been too far off.
"See?" Ben turned so that he was facing Ryn and stepped off the porch into the deep snow. Ben didn't miss the way Ryn almost rushed after him when he made that first step. It was, after all, her natural instinct to protect her mates from harm. While she allowed him to proceed, Ryn herself remained cautious, staying close to the door.
Taking off his gloves, Ben held his hands up for Ryn to clearly see his bare hands. He then reached down into the snow and pulled up a big handful of the powdery substance. Tossing it aside, he did it again.
"Completely safe." Ben walked back up to Ryn and offered her his hands. The mermaid hesitated but took them in her own.
Ben was careful to move slowly as he backed up, pulling Ryn with him. The mermaid gripped his hands tightly when her foot first vanished underneath her. Ben simply returned the squeeze and led her further and further out.
Once they were out far enough, Ben released her hands ever so slowly. This time, Ben reached down and swiped his hands across the snow covering the ground and pulled up another large handful.
"Hold out your hands, Ryn." Ben held the snow out. "It's cold, but safe."
Ryn was wary but did as requested.
As slowly as Ben could possibly manage, he dumped the snow into Ryn's own bare hands. She made a noise and flinched but didn't jerk away, after seeing that it wasn't hurting her, she brought it up to her nose and sniffed it.
"It's just frozen water." Ben slid his gloves back on. "Nothing to be afraid of. In fact, some people…"
Ben never got to finish his explanation before a snowball from seemingly nowhere pelted him right in the face.
Spitting out snow and wiping his face, Ben searched about for his attacker. Ryn stood in front of him, still holding her handful, face twisted in confusion. Over her head was Maddie standing on the porch in the process of picking of a steaming mug from at her feet.
The grin Maddie sported told Ben all he needed to know.
"Really, Maddie?" Ben rolled his eyes. "Was that necessary?"
"Absolutely." Maddie admitted with zero shame whatsoever while picking up where Ben left off. "You can do all kinds of things with snow, Ryn."
"What?" Ryn dusted her hands off, looking down at the snow at her feet.
"I'll show you." Maddie's smile, if possible, got bigger. "Oh, and Ben, there's some hot chocolate inside. Jerry called a minute ago. Roads are totally iced over, he was the only one who managed to get in today."
"So, snow day?" Ben was heading back inside when he stopped beside Maddie.
"Snow day." Maddie agreed, turning to watch Ryn. "Nice timing, too."
While the humans discussed the day's plans, Ryn was occupying herself with the snow. Her fingertips skimming the surface of the powder, fingers occasionally dipping in to pull a handful up. She didn't seem to feel the chill in her uncovered hands.
"Go easy on her." Ben gently elbowed Maddie in the ribs.
"Ryn's never gotten to enjoy snow as a kid before." Maddie slapped her palm with the bottom of her fist. "We must give her the full snow day experience."
With a roll of the eyes, Ben returned into the warmth of the house. He located his own mug of hot chocolate on the counter easily enough. Along with a second, one he assumed was for Ryn. Heading back outside, he made sure to grab a pair of gloved for the mermaid. Just because she acted like she was immune to the cold, even if she probably was, Ben would rather not take the chance of his girlfriend getting frostbite.
Coming back outside onto the porch, Ben found a peculiar sight.
Maddie and Ryn both lay on the ground moving about in the snow a few feet away from each other. It actually took Ben a minute to realize what they were doing.
"Okay, now hop up." Maddie rose to her feet, careful not to disturb her creation.
Ryn rose a little clumsier than Maddie but managing not to cause much damage to hers.
"Unbelievable." Maddie shook her head in utter disbelief, turning to Ryn. "You sure you've never done this before?"
"No." Ryn answered simply.
By now, Ben had moved back over to join them. He had to admit, he was impressed. In the foot and a half of snow were two snow angels, one pristine and the second a very close rival. If Ben didn't know better, he'd say Ryn had been doing it for years.
Ben handed the gloves off to Ryn, who wrinkled her nose in annoyance but donned the pair anyway for his sake. Now that he didn't have to worry about Ryn getting frostbite, Ben handed the warm mug to her next.
Ben never even got the chance to open his mouth for a warning before Ryn was taking a drink. She let out a sharp hiss, the scalding liquid burning her tongue.
"Might want to let that cool, just a little." Maddie winced at the sight, having been unable to voice an alarm either.
Ryn didn't say anything, but she was glaring daggers at the offending item in her hand. At least she wasn't hurl it across the road. Ben decided to call that one a partial win.
"Anyway." Maddie cleared her throat, attempting to diffuse some of the tension before Ryn really did throw the thing. "This is one of my favorite parts. Mind holding these, Ben."
"Sure." Ben took the two mugs back over to the porch. Clearing off some of the snow to have a somewhat clear spot, he set them down along with his own. Upon turning his back, he immediately knew where Maddie was going with this lesson.
"You just roll it like this, and voila!" Maddie held up the perfectly made snowball in her hand for Ryn to see. "Now you try."
Now that Maddie was finished, Ryn scooped up a fresh handful of snow and started forming one for herself. The attempt to end in abysmal failure pretty quickly. Letting out a muffled growl, she swiped up more to try again.
Three tries later, Ryn managed to make one but it wasn't exactly the best.
"Nobody gets it perfect right off the bat." Maddie reassured the mermaid with a pat on the back. "Now, for what we use snowballs for.
"Now hang on a minute here…" Ben knew what he was in for when the gaze of mermaid and human zeroed in on him.
When Maddie's smile twisted into a wicked smirk, Ben knew he was doomed. She was a terror when armed with snowballs, and now she had backup in Ryn. He would have to suck it up and take it like a man.
Just when Ben thought he would be hit with a double whammy, Ryn turned and threw hers to strike Maddie directly in the chest. It wasn't much of a snowball, but the sheer shock value of Ryn turning on her caused Maddie to drop hers.
"You hit Ben." Ryn backed a few steps from Maddie. "Fair."
Ben wanted to cheer but stopped short when he noticed Maddie's expression wasn't changing. That could mean only one thing. War was about to be declared.
"Watch out!" Ben called out to Ryn, but Maddie was already moving.
Unwilling to go down without a struggle, Ben grabbed at some snow for himself. He only managed to form his first when Maddie was throwing a speedball at him. He ducked under it, but Maddie was readying another.
War had indeed been declared.
Maddie was the best in a snowball fight, but Ben was close enough to put up a fight. It didn't help that they were completely out in the open. Without any cover, Ben was forced to dodge or take Maddie's assault. At least it meant no protection for her either.
Ryn was still having trouble making the snowballs, but the mermaid could move. Whenever one of them tried to hit her, she'd just dodge faster than anyone could react. She'd managed more than a few good hits on both humans even with subpar ammunition.
Before long, Ben and Maddie were covered head to toe in the white powder, not that either really noticed. Ryn, however, didn't have a speck on her. For all their attempts, the mermaid was unhittable.
As they battled, Ben moved closer and closer to Maddie. Once he was close enough, and she sufficiently distracted, Ben moved to tackle her. Unfortunately, she'd had just enough time to prepare, allowing Maddie to stop most of his attempt dead in its tracks. Until Ryn dove at them both, taking all three down at once.
The trio fell in a tangle of limbs, laughter, and playful hisses. Ben really wasn't sure how, but he somehow managed to wind up flat on his back with Maddie on top of him, and Ryn partially on top of both.
"Truce?" Ben huffed, out of breath.
"Deal." An exhausted Maddie flopped her head onto Ben's chest.
"Truce." Ryn rested her own head resting on Maddie's back. Though not from exhaustion, the mermaid's stamina was far from spent. She just liked being close.
As much as Ben liked being intimately close with his girlfriends, their combined weight was starting to make breathing a little difficult. Before we could even get a word out, Maddie shot up with a dramatic gasp. "We should build a snowman!"
At this point, Ben had to wonder if Maddie was having a little too much fun in giving Ryn the 'full snow day experience'. "A snowman?"
Then again, Maddie's excitement was contagious. Not to mention, Ryn was every bit as eager to learn new things. She just didn't voice it anywhere near as much, her body language did the talking instead.
"Well, we can't really go sledding without a sled, so that will have to wait another time." Maddie pouted, her voice adopting a singsong tone. "Besides, don't you wanna build a snowman with us?"
"Seriously? A Frozen reference?" For the second time that day, Ben was rolling his eyes.
"I could go with a Little Mermaid reference, if you'd prefer." Maddie stuck her thumb in Ryn's direction, whom listened to the whole conversation utterly clueless to what they were talking about.
"We need to show you that sometime, Ryn." Ben was finally able to sit up, albeit Ryn was reluctant to abandon her impromptu pillow. "At least then you'd know what we're talking about."
"Another day." Maddie gleefully rubbed her hands together. "Today, we build a snowman!"
Maddie was determined, and Ben knew better than to deter Maddie when she got determined. If you couldn't beat them, join them, as they say. "Okay fine."
"Yes!" Maddie's enthusiasm grew, if that was possible. "Come on, Ryn, it's easy. You basically just start with a snowball and make it bigger and bigger. I'll show you."
With Maddie doing the actual teaching, Ben relegated himself to manual labor. He was alright with that, it was Maddie's show after all. Ben was happy to allow her to lead it.
Sometime later, the trio had made significant progress. The entire bottom was formed and they were in the middle of adding the middle section. Once it was secured in place, Maddie stopped to look over their work.
"Looking good." Maddie nodded her approval. "Now we just gotta make the head, then we can…"
Maddie was cut off from her words when Ryn put a hand to the back of her neck and pulled her down for a passionate, but gentle kiss.
"Umm… we…" The kiss lasted only a few seconds, but when Ryn pulled away, Maddie was left fumbling for her words.
You'd think after enough time together with Ryn, that the couple would have gotten accustomed to her surprise kisses. No such luck, they still got blindsided every time. Not that Ben or Maddie minded.
Ben especially didn't mind when Ryn pulled him down to her level to gift him the same kiss a few second later. Again, only a couple seconds but was enough to send fireworks through his brain.
"Thank you." Ryn took one hand each from Ben and Maddie. Pressing their gloved hands to her cheeks, she looked them both in the eye. "For today."
"Sweetheart, we got all day." Maddie pulled Ryn into her arms. "And we have all kinds of things to show you."
"I think she'll definitely like snuggling by the fireplace." Ben added, joining in on the embrace.
"You don't have a fireplace, Ben."
"Details, details, Maddie." Ben waved a dismissive hand but his other arm remained firmly around the two women. "But Maddie's right, Ryn. We've got all day, and nowhere to go."
It may have been cold outside, but right there it was warmer than the sun.
This didn't go quite how I envisioned, but I like it anyway. Many more chapters will follow, hopefully. I have a number of ideas from my own imagination, as well as many from fellow readers.
If anyone has anything else they'd like to add/see, I'd love it hear it. If anyone here is part of my Descendants readers, my collection "Package Deal: The Lost Chapters" worked out really well with this method. I'm eager to try it on another triad.