It turned out Eren had been right; within a couple weeks that passed by in a flurry of pre-holiday field trips made possible because the aquarium tended to discount their entry fees during the colder months that kept Levi busy, suddenly, his boy was back. One chilly December evening and he was back in Levi's life, greeting him with more warm hugs, enthusiastic and frequent pecks to the cheek, much to the mermaid's delight. More than that, he had returned with another gift, a small figurine of scene with a human man and a mermaid embracing on a shoreline.

"So you'll think of me when you see it," Eren had told him. "And when Christmas comes around, I've got other things for you too." Then the boy had brightened when he had asked, "Oh, I completely forgot, I've been meaning to ask you, when's your birthday, Levi? I probably already missed it."

Levi had grinned and shook his head. "No, actually. I couldn't give you an exact date, just that it's sometime in the winter. So Trost Sealand assigned me an official birthday date, and they happened to put it on Christmas. I suppose whatever is convenient for them, I don't mind."

Eren had all but screeched in delight, planted a huge kiss on his forehead, and promised to get Levi the best Christmas gifts he could think of.

When his boy had left that day, he had centered the figurine in the middle of the circle of his gemstones on the stone pathway. Unable to bring himself to get them wet, he kept them up here where he'd often pop up to the surface and spend time admiring them and remembering the boy who gave them to him.

However, coming home seemed to mean more this time around, at least Eren thought so. For the first time since he could remember, he felt almost completely relaxed around Levi. Physically he had always been, but this time he felt more mentally relaxed as well. Before part of him had always been worried that he'd mess up somehow. Afraid he'd do something to scare Levi off, or that he was doing something that Reiner used to do to him, that he would mess up and use the same kind of manipulative language, that he was touching Levi in a way that might make him uncomfortable, or worse, worried that Levi didn't really like him at all and was just tolerating him because he pitied him. But these months of therapy really had helped. Was he cured, hell no, not by a long shot, but by a genuine desire to get better, he was unlearning and relearning many crucial things.

First, he was unlearning that he was going to make the same mistakes again. How could he, his therapist assured him, when he was so vigilant about not repeating that mistake? The fact that he was paying so close attention to what he was saying and doing spoke to his care about this whole relationship, and he knew the signs to watch for now in an abusive partner. Second, he was unlearning the fact love always hurt. It wasn't supposed to, he was told, and it wasn't something to be feared. It was supposed to be something pleasant, something wonderful, and it wasn't fair to him that his first experience with it had to be so horrific. And lastly, he was slowly and systematically trying his best to unlearn the fear he had learned to be associated with love and relationships by using logic that no, it wasn't going to happen to him again.

Instead, he was learning to associate romantic love with positive things, most of these things of course involving Levi. Romantic love could be fun and sweet, and above all, consensual. Things that he had always thought were life or death situations in his old relationship, such as not keeping Levi updated on his whereabouts all the time or not being ready to kiss him yet, were no big deal in this relationship, as they shouldn't be. If Levi did something he didn't like, he could tell him, and the mermaid would respect his boundaries.

And wonderfully, as he began to see these things being reinforced by what his therapist was telling him, ever so slowly, the fear began to leave Eren's body.

He was a fool to think it was going to happen overnight, and he didn't think so, but he couldn't believe how far he had come in just half a semester. Though the apprehension was always lurking beneath the surface, it was much further down now than it used to be. Whenever he slipped up now, he didn't immediately start panicking; he and Levi were able to rationally talk things through. He had always had to talk himself through his irrational fears, but now he was beginning to believe the things he always said to himself. And more than just decreasing his anxiety, it was liberating in ways he couldn't have imagined. And one of those ways was manifesting itself in a very unexpected form.

That is to say, he was suddenly very horny, hornier than he had been in months.

Thus far, Eren had been far too fearful and an anxious mess about his past relationship, not to mention busy with school to even think about things like that. Now, ever since he had gotten home and didn't have to worry about school anymore, and since his ex was safely in jail, things were different. With his anxiety gone, suddenly his thinking brain seemed to want to take a back seat to his dick.

It had started soon after he got home where he began waking up with morning wood every single goddamn morning for almost a week straight, forcing him to slink around his house like an unfixed cat and pray his parents didn't notice. However, at the time, the only feelings that had incited in him was irritation at the fact that he didn't have the time to be dealing with such a thing because he had to get up and go to the aquarium to see Levi. And it had taken him an embarrassingly long amount of time to come to the conclusion that these occurrences might be happening because of Levi.

The thought had hit him like a punch in the face in the middle of the hallway at the aquarium, and he had stopped mid step like a complete idiot while people had been walking behind him. At first he had thought it was ridiculous, and then thought he was ridiculous for thinking it ridiculous. Obviously it just spoke to how long he had been consensually laid that he had forgotten what sexual desire felt like. Once the people behind him had crashed into him, given him a dirty look and moved on, he had come to the slow conclusion that this was okay, and expected, given the situation. It wasn't wrong to feel. In fact, he was quite a late bloomer, in that aspect he supposed. Who would have thought it would take him so long to feel sexual attraction towards his own lover?

It wasn't that he didn't think Levi wasn't pretty, because that most certainly wasn't the case. The problem was completely in his head. And it was time to change that, Eren knew. How was he going to progress if he kept being afraid like this?

So one day, when his mom was out with friends and his dad was at work, he decided to take matters into his own hands. Literally.

This had certainly been an awkward conversation between him and his therapist, but he knew of course it had been for his own benefit. She had advised him before he could think of having sex with another person again to see if he could become reacquainted with his own body first. Since it had been so long since he had experienced any real pleasure during it, it was time to explore what made him tick and what didn't without worrying about another person to please. So, determined, for Levi's sake, he went all out. He locked his door, turned down the lights, borrowed the scented candle that normally sat in the living room, and even put on some soft, ethereal music to lull him into a more relaxed state. Eren had to admit, he felt a little silly about the whole thing. What a cliché this all was, but he was doing as his therapist advised; he had to create a soft, warm, safe atmosphere in order for him to pull this off, and candles, music and low light were cliché for a reason. They helped.

Still, he was thinking about how ridiculous the whole business was even as he stripped. His therapist said it might seem silly to him because this was how girls sometimes masturbated, not guys. Guys usually didn't need to go through the whole ordeal of making the act an experience, as it was much easier for them. Women on the other sometimes needed the extra push, as achieving an orgasm required a lot more creative imagery. And since Eren was struggling so much, she figured the extra bit might help him. And well, what did he have to lose? So, sighing, he laid down on his bed on his back. He stared at the ceiling for a moment, and when his thoughts became too loud and intrusive, he closed his eyes and tried to focus on the music instead. Soon enough, it did wonders for drawing him out of his own head and into this fantasy he was trying to make for himself.

"We can do this," he told himself, eyes still closed, "it's no big deal. This is going to be nice and easy and relaxing. No one is going to hurt us, no one is here watching us. It's safe, we're safe. This is going to feel good."

Once he finished psyching himself up, he let himself feel for a moment. The blankets against his bare back and behind were certainly a sensation he wasn't really used to, especially not in the winter time like this. The fact that the heat was on and he knew it was snowing pretty good outside at the moment, only made him feel even cozier. The candle smelled like cinnamon, heady and sweet, and the rhythm of his music was slow and unhurried.

With that, he carefully took some lube that he had warmed beforehand, rubbed it between his palms and took himself in hand.

That initial bit of contact startled him slightly at first. After all, it had certainly been awhile since he had been touched so gently. But once that was over, he was able to start going through the motions, rubbing up and down his shaft methodically, trying to fill it with blood so he could really begin. He found he couldn't watch himself, as it was too strange, so he closed his eyes, trying desperately to do as he was instructed. Focus on sensations, feelings, not logic. He could do this.

The stimulation itself was alright. It felt good, he supposed. But he was having a hard time truly arousing himself. He situated himself further into his blankets, letting the comforter puff up around his shoulders, let himself feel how soft it was on his bare skin. But just the sensations and sounds of his room weren't enough. He tried what he usually did before he ever dated Reiner, tried imaging a faceless man with a body he found attractive: lovely pale skin, contrasting with dark hair and dark eyes, athletic build and-

Shit, he had just described Levi, hadn't he?

Well, he thought, was that so odd? But he hadn't imagined Levi as a mermaid, per say. Now he was beginning to imagine what he might look like as a human. He thought of how he looked during his heats, with his pale skin with that rosy tint to his cheeks, his pink lips, and how strong his core looked. How that strength felt when he lifted Eren clear from the water and tossed him when they played. But how about lower? What might he look like with a pair of legs instead?

Eren felt a sudden rush of heat straight down his chest towards his stomach before it stopped between his legs. Levi with a pair of legs, with strong, thick thighs and shapely calves. Legs he could run his hands over and feel the muscles shifting underneath the skin beneath his fingers. Legs that rose to a pert, shapely rear he could cup and squeeze and cause Levi to sigh or hum happily, or even moan if it were under the right circumstance. Like licking it, or sucking on the soft flesh, and then delivering the same treatment to the inside of his thighs.

The boy drew in a sharp breath. Oh, now they were getting somewhere.

Eren began to stroke a bit faster, thumbing that special spot just behind the head of his cock, pressing into the skin and stroking little circles. He used his other hand to stroke the inside of his thighs, mimicking what he was doing to the Levi in his mind. The mermaid would have his rear pressed right against Eren's thighs, his legs draped over Eren's while his bottom half was slightly in Eren's lap. He'd like nothing more than to stroke the inside of his lover's thighs, running his hands over that raised ridge of muscle, hard and firm beneath his fingertips. He'd massage it a bit, marvel at how vulnerable and willing Levi looked, how soft and trusting his gaze was. He'd reflect that trust back, showing his genuine intentions, showing that he was going to take care of Levi in the way Eren had always dreamed of being taken care of.

Eren reached down a little more, softly tracing that large tendon until he dipped his hand between Levi's legs fully, stroking his sack, which had grown redder and sat tighter against his length, the same as Eren's own as he mimed the motion, palming it and pulling it gently away from his own body. The pleasant sting made him hiss and grit his teeth, and made Levi do the same in his mind, but he didn't pull away. He pushed further into Eren's hand, pushed more of that hot, thin, soft skin into his palm. When the boy began to grope and press it gently back against Levi's body before palming the skin downward again, he watched in fascinated reverence as his neck began to arch from the treatment and his eyes fluttered shut.

The boy reached up with his free hand and set it atop his chest before he ran it down his torso, feeling with his fingertips every bump and ridge on his- no, Levi's body, giving both nipples a pinch, enough to elicit a pleasant zing, before they came across the sensation of coarse hair. Once he reached that, he ran his fingers delicately upward, lightly touching Levi's length, almost tickling him with the motion, but the barely there touch was clearly driving him mad. He hissed and shivered, eyeing Eren and demanding without words that he get on with it.

But he didn't. He kept his touches light and reverent, curiously exploring every inch of Levi's body, especially those legs and what lay between them. He felt the Levi in his mind's frustration as he stroked his own skin softly, so very softly, making goosebumps rise up and shuddering breaths leave his damp, parted lips. So when he finally took himself in hand, he, as well as Levi, felt the shock, and they both gasped, and their backs arched off the bed gently.

"Let me show you all the ways the human body can feel good," Eren told Levi, and Levi nodded breathlessly in reply, raising his hips insistently and grinding himself against Eren's hand. He took in the way Levi was looking at him, eyes heavy lidded, cheeks and ears red with, his whole frame vibrating with want. He looked like he was poised to shatter, and the claim was only backed up when he let loose a small, vulnerable whine.

That whine cut Eren to the core, heat flaring harshly in his gut and his erection gaining an almost painful surge of blood. He no longer held back, opening Levi and pressing himself inside. Outside of his mind he began to stroke vigorously, imagining that the tight, wet heat of his fist was Levi's insides sucking him in, stroking his cock like it was what they were made for. He began bucking his hips as the pleasure became more intense, practically seeing Levi bouncing on his lap as Eren lay back. His hand gripped creamy pale thighs, feeling how thick and strong they were, how they flexed under his palms as they worked to hoist Levi up and down. His lover's head had fallen back as he writhed and panted, exposing his throat, lovely moans and cries escaping him as Eren delivered in full force the pleasure the human body was capable of. Eren marveled at his cock as it disappeared in and out of his body, and at Levi's, which was flushed an angry red and bobbing enticingly in front of him.

Eren felt Levi's pleasure with a massive jolt as he outside of his mind as he picked up the pace as fast as he possibly could go, grabbing Levi's cock in his mind and making his little lover cry out at the added stimulation, drool leaking from the corner of his mouth.

It wasn't long after that that the vision vanished in a blinding white flash, and Eren didn't even realize that he had come at first. In fact, it took him a minute to come back to himself at all, and when he did he realized that his chest was heaving, his back had arched hard off of the bed, and his hand felt incredibly sticky. In fact when he looked down, he saw that his cock was still pumping out the last couple of streams it had to give, tiny, tired dribbles, but still evidence that yes, he had done it. He had masturbated and made himself come for the first time in months, and more importantly, he had done it imagining the pleasure of the person he loved the most.

With that knowledge, he let his back relax and drop down to hit the mattress with a soft puff of the blankets, and he let his arm rest over his eyes as he composed himself. He could feel himself shivering, hear his ears ringing, and knew if he sat up now he'd be lucky if he didn't faint. And yet the lightheadedness brought on by his success made him feel giddy, more so than he had in a long time. Mercifully he was alone in the house, because if anyone could have seen him then, they would have thought him a truly strange sight; a naked man surrounded by scented candles, soft music, covered in his own release and sweat, and giggling like a madman. However, to Eren, who had been through hell and had taken the next step to conquering it, his giggling and all the come, in the oddest sense, felt like cries of victory, and a boot to the face of the man who had tried to destroy him.

000

Some time after Christmas was over, business picked up slightly at the aquarium, though it wasn't nearly as crazy as it had been during its glory days during the summer. It had gone from dead to a slow crawl, which left Eren and Levi lots of free time play and goof off since Eren was now between semesters. Since he wasn't doing much on his break, he had been given permission to keep Levi company during the break as he had during the summer, and anything he could think of to liven things up around the aquarium during the long, dull winter would be appreciated. It also gave Levi time to find new places for the pretty gems and shells Eren had gotten for him for Christmas, and Eren to admire the seashell pendant Levi had made for him to attach next to his aquamarine stone. "So that you can always have a part of me with you, even when you go back to school," Levi had explained.

Eren had promptly teared up at that, hugged him tightly, and told him he was the cutest thing on the planet.

So today they had been pretty bored, Eren sitting around the enclosure in his wetsuit while Levi swam laps, also bored and trying to get the cabin fever itches out of his tail. It had actually been seeing Hanji pass by that had sparked an idea in Eren's devious brain, an idea born of the memory of how they irritated her last summer.

He called the mermaid over, waving his arm. Levi had swam right up, looking at Eren expectantly, especially when he watched the boy reach over and pull his laptop out of his bag, typing furiously on the keys. He warbled questioningly, tilting his head. Eren just chuckled to himself, then looked up over the top of his computer with a mad gleam in his eye, a look that for some odd reason sent a flush of heat right to Levi's belly.

"Want to annoy the fuck out of Hanji?" he asked.

At that, Levi nodded vigorously. "Hell yes."

"Good," Eren said excitedly, getting up and trotting over to the aux cord that sat in the corner of Levi's tank, connected to a pair of speakers that played music in case he ever performed again. He hooked his laptop to the cord, and said, "because I have an earworm that's going to be stuck in her head for days and make her want to throw us in the shark tank."

"What do you mean?" Levi wondered when Eren turned to see his reply.

"Levi, have you ever heard the Cotton Eye Joe song?"

When the mermaid answered no, he hadn't, Eren's grin only grew wider, and he pressed play on his laptop.

Down in her lab, Hanji was innocently pulling apart a recently departed nurse shark on one of the tables, and when she heard the new, strange noise coming from the hydrophones, she vaguely recognized it as music, and continued her dissection. It was only after a half hour that she realized wow, Cotton Eye Joe was a lot longer than she originally thought it was. After an hour, she finally processed that it was being played more than once, and after almost an hour and half, her face darkening rapidly, she realized what had happened. Especially when she left to go to the bathroom and was out of earshot of Levi's tank and the stupid song was still playing in her head.

"Eren Jaeger I'm going to fucking kill you," she muttered harshly, startling a few employees that she passed on her way back to the lab. They fixed her with frightened looks and stayed well out her way as she passed by.

Eren and Levi for their part remained blissfully unaware of Hanji's rage as they danced. Well, Eren danced, carefully balancing himself near the edge of the pathway, even throwing in a couple of extra moves and kicks that weren't part of the Cotton Eye Joe dance, while Levi remained in the water and tried to imitate him, his tail copying one of Eren's legs and then twirling around and clapping in time with him. The music was loud enough in fact that it attracted a couple of patrons from the front of the aquarium to the back, all of them curious as to what was going on. When they saw the mermaid and his human dancing along like a couple of idiots, huge smiles on their faces and for once looking like they didn't have a care in the world, well, they couldn't resist whipping out their phones. A few children and teenagers familiar with the song and dance even began to join in, and when Eren and Levi caught sight of them, everyone began dancing more enthusiastically. Levi even swam up to the glass and led a couple of smaller kids through the steps of the dance, giving them a thumbs up when they did it right, causing them to burst into giggles.

At one point, Eren decided to change the song to the Electric Slide, and he as well as the patrons took it upon themselves to teach Levi the dance to it. This was followed up by other songs with familiar dances to them, Eren even taking requests from the patrons. Their favorite by far had to be when they taught Levi the chicken dance, Eren laughing so hard at how silly the mermaid looked that there were tears streaming down his face. However, the laughter soon turned to being at his expense when Levi leaped up and dragged him head first into the water with him with a good natured growl. The two of them wrestled under the water, much to everyone's amusement, and then playfully dunked each other under the water.

That is, until Hanji showed up later telling them if they played one more retro piece of crap she was going to drown them both and then stuff their bodies in the filter pipe, that they realized that the fun was sadly over.

At least, they figured with twin evil grins directed toward the other, until the next day.

000

As far as he looked, everything in front of him was grey: the sky, the sea, even the castle next to the shore. The waves were crashing upon the rocks, restless, nervous, ready for the incoming storm. Even with his poor sense of smell, he could smell the thick, bruised air.

He was alone, he noticed, looking around. His pod wasn't here. They weren't swimming around the rocks he was perched on. But why was he sitting here? Could it have something to do with that castle in the distance? Oh yes, Levi remembered. He was trying to attract the prince that lived there. At least, he thought he was the prince. He was the loveliest human he had ever seen, with his pretty green eyes and the light dusting of freckles across his nose. Levi's season was approaching, he could feel it, hence his desire to stay close to this castle. Or…was it more than that? Did he want the prince to notice him?

Of course he did, he mused to himself. He knew he was male, and that his body wasn't capable of bearing children, but his latent instincts that carried over from his female ancestors told him that the prince would give him beautiful babies. And the logical side of Levi sort of wished that he could in fact give the prince children. However, his heart was all he had to give.

He gazed up at the sky, unsure of when he began to sing. The sound seemed to come from somewhere deep inside him, in the same place where his instincts lay, and it appeared that they were the ones singing for him. They were putting out a deep, melodious tune, one that echoed off the cliffs and castle walls, a beguiling sound that soothed the soul into a drunken stupor and dragged every man from their marital bed as if they were being led on a leash.

However there was only man he wanted to see.

And there he was, appearing as if by magic down the stretch of beach, a wandering dream made flesh, the prince with the green eyes. Levi lights up, but keeps singing, watching as the prince steps over the rocks and wades out into the water to meet him. He stopped in front of the mermaid, completely under his spell, before raising a hand to stroke the side of his face. When Levi feels him stroke the side of his face, the touch tingles throughout his entire body, and he feels like he's come home.

Suddenly, he felt something grab him by the tail and yank him abruptly off from his rock, away from the prince. He cried out, reaching for him and feeling his fingers brush his as the prince leaned over to grab for him, but it was too late. Levi was being yanked down, down below the water, now eerily still around him. It had become tinged green, and he used the light filtering down to look at his tail to see what had pulled him down. It was netting, and when he looked up towards the surface again he saw netting closing in on him from all sides, slowly growing tighter up at the top. He heard Eren's voice crying out for him, though it was muffled and seemed miles away. Levi screamed back, and began fighting against the net, pulling as hard as he could. But Eren's voice was growing fainter and fainter, until it had disappeared completely.

Levi began to shriek with a new desperation, the water suddenly freezing and deadly silent, and his heart began to hammer and his lungs started burning with the lack of air. He began begging, pleading for Eren to come back and rescue him, but for some reason, he couldn't shout loud enough. But he tried, kept trying and trying until he was forced to breathe in. he coughed, his body automatically trying to push the water out of his lungs, but it was no use. His vision began to grow fuzzy, and still he kept trying to reach for the surface, mouthing the name of the boy he loved as he slowly faded away.

Levi woke with a harsh, painful sounding gasp, jerking upright and shrieking like he was in desperate pain before he was even fully awake. For a moment, he failed about on his rock, unseeing, forgetting where he was, coughing and choking on the water he thought was filling his lungs. He didn't even notice at first when Eren had pulled him into his arms or the fact that he was speaking to him.

"Levi!" he called loudly to be heard over the mermaid's terrified cries, "Levi, Levi, shh, shhh. It's okay, it's okay! Hey, it's okay, you just had a bad dream."

Slowly, gradually, the warmth and pressure of Eren's embrace registered, bringing him back to himself. His shrieks faded to whimpers, and he remembered what had happened. Yes, that's right, he had just fallen asleep to Eren reading a fairytale to him without meaning to. It had all been a dream.

A horrendous dream where Eren had abandoned him to die.

Suddenly, Levi's crying picked up, and he squeezed Eren back so tightly he swore he heard the boy's back crack. Eren began to protest the strength of the hug at first, until he heard Levi whine even more pitifully and felt him bury his face hard into Eren's chest. The boy didn't say anything further, instead relaxing and placing a hand against the back of Levi's head, holding him to his chest.

"It's alright," he murmured. "Don't worry, it's over now. Just breathe. Just breathe nice and deep for me. Easy does it."

Just then, Eren felt Levi's hands moving purposefully against his back, and it took Eren a moment to realize he was signing. Why he wasn't bringing his hands between them so that he could see what he was saying he didn't know. Perhaps he was feeling too overwhelmed, or was too scared to let go of the boy. Either way, Eren didn't question him, and instead tried to interpret what was being said.

And his heart nearly dropped to his feet when he figured out what Levi was begging over and over again.

"Don't leave me…don't leave me…"