The Underwater Pagemaster [Jake x Reader] Part One

{Part Four in the
      Halloween Series}

Two lives switched,
Roles reversed.
What used to be a gift,
Is now a curse.

The King of the Merfolk,
Casts a quick look.
At the son he always wanted,
With his nose buried in a book.

The King of the people on land,
Has finally set them free.
But their Princess is never there,
Preferring to sit by the sea.

The boy loves the air,
The girl loves the waves.
Neither of them know,
All the lives they're going to save.

An underwater princess turned human,
A human prince turned merman.
Neither can see the witches threads,
That guide their every hand.

The girl yearns for the water,
The boy longs for the sun.
Neither truly know what they lost,
Since they never really won.

-

"Sisters?" Aradia asked, coming up to Damara and Terezi who were peering into a mirror. "What is it?"

"We're trying to decide on our last thing here," Damara murmured, her finger grazing the cool surface. "See here how the Merking longs for a son, yet gets a daughter first. It is only after trying for so long that another child is born, a boy, and his daughter is exiled forever. And here, how the people of the land King do not seem to love his son. So much in fact, that Jake is pushed off a cliff at eighteen and doesn't live to tell the tale. But his little sister seemed loved by all the people of the realm."

"So switch them," Aradia suggested.

"That's high magic, sister," Terezi said. "If we do something like that, we'll need the Handmaid."

"Mother? We shant need her. We are powerful on our own are we not? The Megido Trio will never be bested."

"Then it must be our final effort. Terezi, you have shaken up the Kitsune."

"Of course!"

"Aradia, the Faerie King  has been cursed?"

"Naturally."

"And the Farshee has been created. Very well."

The three sisters all placed their hands on the mirror and willed their magic to soar through their fingers and into it. When they all pulled away, the surface glowed green for one instant before fading. "I think it is done," Terezi said, sucking in a deep breath. "I also think I damn near gave my soul for that."

Aradia and Damara just chuckled breathlessly. "You always had a way with words, T," Aradia said with a smile.

"Hopefully we've been able to do some good."

"We'll be here to guide them, just in case."

[>Find the last member of the Trio now]

"You mean I'll be here to guide them, Damara," Ara murmured to herself as she stood on the railing of [Last Name] Castle. "Either way, I think we've done some good. Both Jake and [Name] are healthy, thriving, and twenty-one now. Time for the humans to learn just what lies under the sea."

Taking a breath, Ara looked down at the ocean and made a face. Jumping off the railing, the witch plummeted into the water and started floating along. Looking around, she grumbled to herself. "Definitely not my affinity. Ugh, seaweed." Coasting through the sea, Ara floated in one place for a bit to try and remember where the city was at.

"Atlantis is a big place and I can't even remember where the hell it is," she said, sighing. "Jeez." Two mermaid's flew past Aradia then, causing the witch to spin for just a moment before following after them. "Here's my ticket."

"Come on, Meenah! I wanna visit Jake while he's working!"

"Girl, do you not understand the term 'work'?"

"He's only a Pagemaster! It's not like he's actually doing hard work. He just puts the books back and takes them off the shelf and stuff."

"I suppose they'll be lenient to you because you are his betrothed, Fef, but me? Hell, they don't even wanna see me within three feet of that damn library. They're probably afraid I'll wreck their shit."

Aradia stopped short. Betrothed? "Son of a-how did we not think of this?" She muttered angrily to herself before continuing to follow the two mermaids. She was greeted to the doors of the biggest library that she had ever seen. "Damn." Feferi flew through the doors like she owned the place while Meenah skulked behind her more slowly.

Entering the library, Aradia took a moment to really appreciate the works of art before floating after Feferi who was currently hugging a Merman with sharp green eyes, glasses, and a brilliant smile. "Jake!"

"Oh, gosh I didn't expect to see you guys here where I'm working!"

"Of course I'd come and visit you silly!" Feferi said, giggling to herself as she whirled around. "Meenah didn't want to come, but I insisted!"

"Girl, please. You know me and books don't mingle."

"Take the time to peruse anyway," Jake said with a smile. "You might find something you'd like!"

Meenah grumbled to herself, but grabbed Feferi by the hair and dragged her through the aisles. "But Nah-"

"Bitch, if I have to spend time in here, you're coming with me."

"Such a mean sister you are..."

"Girl please. You've known I was the epitome of mean since I was born. Look at my name."

"But it's spelled different...."

Aradia placed a hand against her head to make the headache go away. Would she really have to deal with this everyday? And how could they not foresee betrothals? "God dammit, guys," Aradia said, grumbling to herself yet again. They should have predicted it! Now, she had to play matchmaker! Her! Aradia Megido, witch extraordinaire. The witch sat herself on one of the high bookshelves and just waited. There wasn't much else she could do.

[>Find the heir to the [Last Name] Kingdom]

Currently, [Name] was brushing the hair of her little brother, Gamzee. He had such an unruly mop of it that the maids left it to [Name] so she could tame it. She had no problems spending the first twenty minutes of the day making him look good. After all, he was only five, so she doted on him as much as she could.

"Hey sis?"

"Yes, my heart?"

Gamzee made a face. "That isn't my name! Are you really gonna marry that Equius dude?"

"Of course. He's the Prince to the neighboring kingdom. I think his younger brother is a little older than you are."

"Horuss is eight, and he doesn't wanna play with me."

"Well, shame on him then. I would play with you if I was eight."

"That's cuz you're my sister."

She buried her face in her brother's unruly hair and laughed. "Yes, that's right. Now hold still."

"Will you also paint my face too?"

"Teehee. You know Father doesn't like it when you look like a clown."

"He also doesn't like it when you go down and sit on the beach for hours, but you do it anyway."

"Alright, Z. Let me get your hair tamed, and I'll do your face paint."

"Yay!"

-

Sitting down on the beach later that night, [Name] sighed to herself. She knew it was her duty to marry for her kingdom, but she knew that Gamzee didn't like Equius. If she had to be honest with herself, neither did she, but there wasn't anything that she could do about it. The only thing that cheered her up when she thought about the Zahhak Kingdom was the fact that it was right next to the water, like hers.

Her first love always was the water. Ever since she could walk, she would come down with her mother and play in the sand and the sea. When her mother died in childbirth, [Name] chose to bring Gamzee down to the water every chance she got, but the boy didn't have the same affinity for it that she did. Smiling to herself, she remembered the times she tried swimming like a mermaid. She wasn't very good at it, but for some reason, it felt right.

"Maybe I was supposed to be a mermaid in a past life," she mused to herself quietly before giggling at the thought. "I don't think I'd make a good one, but I love the sea enough I suppose." Her father didn't approve of her 'frolicking' as he called it, but he allowed it because she was his pride and joy. He also allowed it because her mother had also loved the sea, and it was one of her endearing qualities.

Most times, [Name] had to sneak out of her room just to sit by the ocean like she wanted to. Her personal guard, Sollux, always waited by the door outside her room and denied passage to everyone except Gamzee. Z, as she liked to call him, always knew where she was and sometimes joined her. The ocean never held the same fascination for him as it did for her, but she appreciated the company.

Opening the book she brought with her, she started reading it out loud to herself. It wasn't really to herself, but it was more for the ocean's benefit. Somehow, she always got the feeling that it was listening.

[>Find Jake and Aradia]

"Oh, bollocks I'm going to be late!" Jake muttered to himself as he swam away from Feferi and Meenah. "She's probably already started, blast it all!"

Aradia raised an eyebrow and followed the Mer-Prince. "Meeting someone on the side, Jake? Tsk, tsk." When she and Jake were close to the surface, the boy was careful to rise out of the water slowly and hide behind a rock. Aradia floated up into the air, shaking herself slightly to get rid of the water. "Stupid ocean."

"Good," Jake whispered. "She hasn't started yet." Aradia grinned and shook her head. It was inevitable that these two would meet, but this was certainly an odd way to do it. Laying down in the air above Jake, Aradia listened to [Name] read part of the story. It appeared that she was at least halfway though it, which would explain why Jake was in such a hurry to not miss a moment of it.

She wondered how long this had been going on. When [Name] closed the book and bid goodnight to the ocean, Aradia floated down near Jake and made her presence known. "Why don't you go say hi?"

"Uwah!" He exclaimed, flipping back into the water at having been scared by the witch.

[Name] turned quickly, clutching the book to her chest. "Who's out there?"

Jake popped out of the water, eyes widening as he realized that he wasn't behind his rock anymore. "Eh..."

[Name] squinted her eyes, smiling when the boy came into view. "What are you doing all the way out there? I like the ocean too, but you don't see my swimming around in it. Come on closer."

Jake visibly swallowed and moved a bit closer, but half-hid behind a rock. "I like listening to you read."

[Name] smiled, sitting back down on the sand. "Yeah? I usually just read for the ocean, but I didn't realize anyone was swimming around out there when I did. It's it cold?" The girl put a couple toes in the water and pulled them back quickly. "It is cold!"

Jake laughed. "No, it's quite pleasant actually."

"I read for a long time tonight. Aren't you pruney or something?"

"Ah, no not exactly."

"You're kinda strange. Why don't you come closer?"

"Well you see, this is my favorite rock so I was just keeping it company."

[Name] looked at him dubiously as he pushed his glasses up. "Quite right, well I'll be off then-"

"Well," the woman before him murmured. "I can read one more chapter, but only if you move closer. Otherwise, I'll just be reading to an open ocean."

"Ah, and I was enjoying this one too. I believe you have won this battle dear lady, only for the sanctity of keeping a story in line."

[Name] watched the boy swim a little closer to where she could truly make out his features in the moonlight. "You swim with your glasses on?"

"Force of habit more than anything," he said, appearing suddenly nervous. "Blind as a bat without them really."

[Name] shrugged to herself and opened the book once more. She began reading, and Jake immediately fell back into the story, immersed in the details and the drama. She really was a great reader, he thought, and he wondered if she had any siblings that she read to every night after reading to the ocean. He leaned against the rock and closed his eyes to further bring himself into the story.

Finally, when her voice faded away and she closed the book, Jake opened his eyes and smiled at her. "I'm very excited for the next time you read. It's a good story."

"Yeah, it's one of my little brother's favorites."

"Princeth [Name]!" Someone called, and the girl jumped up.  

"Ack, I gotta go. If Sollux is calling me then that means Father has come to visit me once before. I'll see you later uhm...?"

"Ah, oh Jake. It's Jake."

She smiled at him then and took off racing through the sand. Jake watched her for a moment before he realized she forgot her book. "Hey you-oh blast it." He stayed above water, wondering if he could chance getting on the sand to grab it and make sure nothing happened to it. Suddenly, the book floated up and flew in front of his face.

"I-what?" He looked around as he grasped the book and pulled himself up onto a rock so he wouldn't drop it. "Dammit, who is there? You already scared me out of my hiding place and forced me to interact with a human. All I wanted to do was hear her read."

Light laughter echoed near the boys ears as a face appeared before his. Or rather a half-hidden face. It was definitely a girl, laying down in the air like it was a blanket. She had a cowl on that hid her from view, but he could definitely see a smile.

"I'm simply looking out for your own good. I know what your heart desires, Jake."

"You know nothing, witch," he whispered, pushing his glasses higher up on his nose. "I'm a simple Merman Prince just trying to do right by his people. I will take over the throne when I marry Feferi, and that will be that."

"Your heart isn't into an arranged marriage. I see this better than you. You wish to be with the humans."

"I-"

"You love reading stories about them more than anything, and you can't tell anyone about your fascination because your father and mother have made it explicitly clear that humans are not to be contacted because of the recent wars not only above the sea but also below it. Wars that yours, Eridan's, and Cronus' ancestor, Dualscar, started."

"Now that hasn't been proven!"

"You've seen the tapestries hanging haven't you? He was a bloodthirsty Merman who tried to take a human bride, a princess no less, ended up using magic stolen from my own sisters, and became the fiercest pirate known to man or sea. Years and years later his descendants are still paying for it."

"S-so it's true then. He did become human."

"He called himself Bluebeard, if you want to look it up. A little joke to get back at his mortal enemy, a pirate lass who never knew when to quit."

"So his followers are still...?"

"Plundering the sea, capturing humans and merfolk alike. That's right. There's also yet another kingdom by the sea that isn't so kind to her. They call themselves Bluebloods in secret, and intend to unite the kingdoms to get to the very heart of Atlantis."

"What do you mean?"

"Let me show you." Moving to float beside Jake, Aradia pointed to [Last Name] Castle. "Directly underneath this kingdom lies Atlantis." After waving her hands, Jake could see a bright sparkle down below that represented his kingdom.

"Egads! I didn't realize that I was so close to home all this time."

"Back before your ancestor caused the biggest land and sea wars known to man, the [Last Name] Kingdom of Land and the English Kingdom of the Sea had an accord. In fact, both cities met out on an island once a year for a festival to celebrate their union. For one day only, the Merking granted the ability for all his people to walk as humans do to enjoy the festivities."

"Why aren't we still doing that now?"

"Your ancestor is to be blamed. He was not King, but his brother was. He knew of the festival, as did every single person within both of the kingdoms. When the festivities were drawing to a close, Dualscar attacked with two ships of men. Many people were slaughtered and both sides grew panicked and confused. In a last attempt at keeping some amount of peace, the two Kingdoms swore to never have anything to do with either one again to keep their people safe."

"Surely he wasn't alone in this-?"

"Oh no. The Princess that he tried to take as his bride that I mentioned? She was the youngest of the [Last Name] Kingdom's heirs, so your ancestor tried to kidnap [Name]'s ancestor. He didn't succeed of course, but her best friend had loved Dualscar. She's the Blueblood's ancestors sister, and I believe you know her as Mindfang."

"She's the one who killed-!"

"Correct. You seem to know your history very well, Jake."

"Well I do like to read...But you said that she loved him?"

"Indeed she did, but it wasn't the kind that you know of. She loved to hate him because they were rivals of the sea, so whenever the opportunity presented itself, she tried to off him. It wasn't until she had the help of her brother, who is the Blueblood's ancestor. His descendants are now trying to get to your city."

"So let me get this straight. My ancestor Dualscar was pretty much the scourge of the land and sea, tried to kidnap [Name]'s ancestor, and was killed by the Blueblood's ancestor, Darkleer, and his sister, Mindfang? Who is [Name]'s ancestor?"

"Dolorosa was. Do you remember the boy that called out to [Name] before?"

"Yeah. I didn’t see him, but..."

"His name is Sollux, and he is [Name]'s personal guard. His family has been guarding the [Last Name] family for generations, going all the way back to Dolorosa and Psionic."

"Psionic...he's the one that stopped Dualscar from kidnapping Dolorosa?"

"Yes. [Name] grew up with Sollux, so even though he is her personal guard, he is also her best friend."

"This is all really crazy," Jake admitted, rubbing his eyes in agitation. "So what do you expect me to do? Am I supposed to be the one to unite the kingdoms again?"

"You're only half the equation," Aradia admitted, floating before Jake with a grim smile. "The other half is the girl who enjoys reading to the sea."

"Well she seems quite hospitable so I don't see any reason-"

"You don't seem to understand, Mr. English. Darkleer's descendant is the one she is to marry, and once she is in his grasp, his father will put forth his plan to finally take care of Atlantis once and for all. With the Kingdom's united, Atlantis will fall. And once there is no need for [Name] anymore, she will be taken care of, and nothing about it will be quick or gentle."

[>Find the Doomed Princess]

Climbing up the rope that Sollux left hanging down, said boy helped [Name] up as she made her way back onto her balcony. "Thanks Sol."

"No problem. Where ith your book?"

"Uh. Well cripes. I guess I'll just go back and-"

"No need. I'll do it."

"But Sol-"

"Jutht thay here, [Name]. After all, if your father cometh by again, I can't just thay that you're thill in the bathroom."

Vaulting off the balcony railing, Sollux crept out of the garden and back down to the sea. Heading down the beach, he narrowed his eyes as he witnessed someone sitting out on a rock. "Hey, have you theen-" Sollux's eyes widened as they finally adjusted to the lack of light and he was greeted with the vision of a merman tail. "What...?"

"Ah, the Psionic prodigy."

"Who thaid that?" Sollux asked looking around him. "How do you know the name of my ancethtor?"

"Perhaps you can shed some light on this particular situation," a girl said, appearing before his vision, floating in the air.

"Witchcraft!"*

The girl laughed. "Well I am a witch. My name is Aradia."

Looking past the witch, Sollux locked eyes with Jake. "To be honetht, I didn't think you exithted. Grandfather thill thpeakth about the merfolk, but I juth thought he wath going crazy. You going to take [Name]'th book?"

Jake looked down at the book in his hands. "Well, I wasn't exactly sure how to return it to her. I can't just get up and walk you know."

"Which brings me into my next thing," Aradia said, stepping on the water and walking on it like it was land. "How would you like to be human for a day?"

"Excuse me?"

"Sure! I can certainly do it, and Sollux shouldn't mind-"

"I do."

"See. It's all good."

"Miss Aradia, I am the Crown Prince to Atlantis. Don't you think that my father and subjects would worry?"

"Oh that's true. Hmm...I suppose I could do something to remedy that. Create a clone of you through magic possibly."

"Excuthe me. I certainly never thaid that [Name] would accept him into her home. Her...fiance..." Sollux spat out the word like it was made of something nasty. "would certainly not appreciate hith lady leading around a man who he hath never theen before."

"It's just for one day, Sollux. Don't tell me the Blueblood comes and visits everyday?"

"No," the blue and brown eyed boy said uneasily. "but I know that Equiuth hath hith wayth of getting information. He'th jutht like hith father, ath my grandfather thayth. Cunning, ruthleth, and quick to thtab. I worry about what [Name] ith getting into."

"As you should," Aradia said, floating about lazily in the air. "He'll most certainly have her killed once the Zahhak family take down Atlantis once and for all."

"Excuthe me? We have to do thomething then!"

"Where is your proof?" Aradia asked. smiling over at him. "The only words that have been spoken were by a witch, though Mr. Zahhak might believe you. Darkleer tried to steal my sister's magic like Dualscar did, but he was nigh successful."

"My question is why now? Why us?" Jake asked, staring over at the witch.

Straightening herself up, Aradia stood on the rock Jake was sitting on. "Because my sisters and I love our home very much. Or rather, my sisters did, but I still do. I like to consider myself a Maid of Time if you will, simply because I move through it to certain spots that need our help. Without the constant meddling from my sisters and I over the years, Faerieland would have fallen a long time ago. Haven't you ever wondered why you've loved the air and humans so much? And you, Psionic prodigy." She turned to look at Sollux. "Haven't you ever questioned why [Name] acts like the sea would be her true home? Two lives switched, roles reversed. What used to be a gift, is now a curse."

"Wait a minute. So you're telling me-"

"Yes. You were supposed to be human, and [Name] was supposed to be a mermaid. However, the people of land preferred your little sister and you were murdered at eighteen. [Name] was cast out of Atlantis forever when her parents had a boy they wanted. So, we switched you before you were even a thought in anyone's mind. And here we are."

"Alright, tho I gueth I get to be in thith bandwagon too. Fuck. What exactly do we have to do to prevent the Bluebloodth from getting to Atlantith? The wedding ith next week!"

"Perfect! You've just solved at least one of the problems, Sollux. Jake, you get to pose as a decorator recommended by Sollux's grandfather. I assume [Name] is close to him?"

Sollux nodded. "He'th like a grandfather to her ath well. [Name] really adoreth him. But motht of the decorating hath been completed. Everything except for the flowerth though."

"Even better. I suspect it's something that she likes to do on her own?"

"Pretty much. [Name] hath alwayth been thtubborn, wanting to do thingth her way. It taketh her forever to decide on flower decorationth."

"Perfect! So you'll escort her around for the week instead of a day and-"

"A week?! I agree that one day with a clone of me would be fine, but a whole week? People were certainly get suspicious. I'd love to help out Aradia, really, but Sollux is the one who is her personal guard here. She will be fine with him. Here." He tossed the book over to Sollux and slipped off the rock he was residing on. "I'm sorry. Truly I am."

Tossing them both one last look, he delved back into the depths of the sea to head on home. Aradia and Sollux looked at each other silently. The boy finally sighed and picked up the book that had landed at his feet. "Without him-"

"She'll be killed yes."

"He'll be back though. Once he finds the secrets and lies his betrothed and cousin have been weaving."

"Thould I wait here...?"

"No. [Name] will be wondering where you are. Go back to her and protect her. I'll be heading down to Atlantis soon."

"You know, when I got up thith morning, I didn't expect to meet a witch and a merman in the thame day."

"Magic happens everyday. You just have to know where to look. Take care, Sollux."

He watched the witch dive down under the sea to follow Jake, and he sighed. "Time to head back now I gueth. I jutht hope Jake knowth what he'th doing. I'll have to relay thith to grandfather tomorrow."

[>Find the conflicted Prince]

Making his way to his home, Jake's thoughts whirled around inside his head like a tornado. On one hand, he really wanted to help out [Name]. Not only was she caught in the crossfire of an age old fight between their ancestors, but he felt that they would be able to be great friends in different circumstances.

Father always said that humans weren't to be messed with. Their affairs weren't any of our business as merpeople. But if I hear of [Name]'s death, I will honor her no matter what.

Trying to ignore the ache in his chest even though he knew he wasn't doing the exact right thing, Jake floated down near the gates to the palace and sighed. Pushing them open, he nodded tiredly to the guards who were used to their Prince coming home so late after a hard day's work.

Rubbing at his neck and yawning, he stopped swimming and looked around. He thought he heard...was that his cousin Eridan? Who was he talking to? Moving over to one of the hallways, he peeked around the corner curiously before jerking himself back. He leaned his back against the stone wall as he listened in.

"It's not fair, Eridan. I don't want to keep sneaking around like this."

"I know Fef. But, he is my cousin and your crown Prince."

"I know Eri, but...it's you. It's always been you!"

Fef was over there? Oh, his cousin must have been looking out for her. Jake smiled as he moved to look around the corner again. A hand touched his shoulder, and he jumped, looking over at Aradia. "What?" He mouthed to her, gesturing to where the voices were coming from.

"I'm sorry," she murmured, drawing back from him as she waited.

Rolling his eyes at the silly witch, he peeked around the corner again and his whole world shattered. His cousin and Feferi were locked in a passionate embrace, something that Fef denied Jake time and time again. His heart broke as they drew apart and Fef was smiling up at Eridan in a way that conveyed her true feelings. Fef smiled at everyone, but Jake had never seen her glowing like that.

Somewhat aware that he had swam into plain sight, his eyes met Fef's and hers widened instantly. "Oh Jake-"

"Jake wait!"

Both Fef and Eridan called out to him but he had already swam off as fast as he could. Aradia followed behind him silently, and he now understood why she had said sorry to him earlier. They finally broke the surface, and all was quiet for a few minutes more.

"Did you and your sisters cause that to happen too?" Jake finally spat bitterly, leaning against a rock.

Aradia shook her head. "To be honest, we forgot about the whole prince and princess betrothing thing," she admitted.

"Well, a week away from them will do me good. Do what you have to do."

Aradia placed her hand on Jake's shoulder as her eyes began glowing. Finally, a flash of bright light illuminated the beach where Jake had been swimming. The boy struggled to tread water with his two legs as he had been with his tail, but he finally made it over to the beach. Walking shakily on the sand, Jake made an odd noise to himself.

"This ain't so ba-oof!" Not used to his legs, the boy immediately face planted into the sand. Aradia began to laugh almost instantly, unable to stop as Jake just laid there with sand in his mouth.

"I will never again see a naked boy face plant into the sand. Let me have my moment." She finally said, wiping away her tears of mirth.

"Naked?" Jake stood up, wobbling on his feet before looking at himself. "What in the devil fucking dickens?" Covering himself up with his arms as he bent over slightly, he glared up at Aradia. "Well can I have some clothes? I know you must have a fetish for looking at my newly formed human body, but I would like to at least have some pants!"

Aradia snapped her fingers and grasped the pants that appeared in front of her. "Here. These should fit you." Tossing them over to Jake, the boy growled at her and tried to put them on.

Getting one foot caught in the pants, Jake stepped back and tripped over himself. "Oh shit-"

The witch burst out into laughter yet again, as a red faced Jake finally got his pants on right. "Okay, I finally got 'em on. Now if you're done fucking clucking it over there like a ninny, I do believe that we have things to do?"

Aradia nodded, clearing her throat as she tried to stop giggling. Or even smiling for that matter.

"Blast it all, witch, it wasn't even that funny!"

"It really kinda was Jake, but that's beside the point. Come along then. I've gotten you a reservation at a hotel near [Last Name] Castle for the night. We'll head out into the market in the morning to meet Sollux and [Name] there. Poor girl is really stressing over all the flowers because she loves all of them too much to decide just which ones go in her bouquet."

"So she's actually going through with the wedding then?" Jake asked quietly as he and Aradia walked along the beach to head into town.

"Of course she is. She's like Feferi in some ways. She knows her duty, and she won't shirk away from that."

Jake's fists instantly clenched as he thought about his cousin and his fiancée. Betrayal shot through his very core, and he sighed.

"Oh, Jake. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bring her up so soon."

"It's fine. I suppose I should have seen the signs. When Cronus, Eridan, and I were growing up, Feferi always wanted to play with Eridan. Meenah hated all of us really, once she came along. But she gets along fine with Cro and Eri. I was always the ostracized one because I am the Prince of the Merfolk, so everyone was trying to get in my good graces, everyone wanted to make sure I was okay, everyone wanted to make sure that I never went off alone. I couldn't adventure much as a child. When Fef's parents announced that they wanted to bind together myself and her in marriage, I thought she was crying because she was happy. I guess I never saw that she loved Eridan more than myself."

"Did you love her?"

"I thought I did, but now I'm not so sure. I'm not angry, or hurt even. I'm just disappointed in myself. It seems that no matter what I do, I'm never good enough for anything. Or anyone."

Aradia smiled at him and put a hand on his shoulder. "There's someone out there for everyone, Jake. Don't worry about it too much. You'll find her. Ah, here we are. Just walk in there and say your name. They'll take you straight to your room. I'll be over to wake you up in the morning. I need to pop over and talk to Sollux."

"Thanks Aradia, but wait I don't have a shirt or shoes!"

"They won't notice. See you tomorrow!"

"Wha-Aradia! I feel weirdddddd!" A soft sigh. And then, "Well might as well get this over with."

[>Find the bride to be]

[Name] sat on her bed pouting to herself. Sollux had brought her book back last night, but why he was gone so long he didn't say. He mentioned that he had met Jake, and [Name] wanted to know more about him. Sollux, however, wasn't being a very good storyteller. The multicolor eyed boy looked over at his best friend and grinned.

"Are you ready to go yet?"

"No. I don't want to go flower shopping for a wedding I don't want to have to marry a man I do not love."

"[Name]…"

She sighed and stood up, smoothing out her dress. "I know, Sol. There's nothing I can do about it."

"Well, you could alwayth run away with me," the boy said, wiggling his eyebrows at her and offering her his arm. "Z could definitely run the kingdom jutht fine."

She laughed then, something that Sollux was aiming for. He liked it better when his best friend smiled because it lit up her whole face. Leaving her bedroom, they both ran into Gamzee who was being chased by his nurses. "Hey big sis! Hey Sol! Bye big sis! Bye Sol!"

The boy dodged past them both, and when [Name] turned around to look, he had a hairbrush sticking out of the back of his head. Both of them laughed then, as they pointed to where Gamzee ran when both of the nurses had come up to them asking. "I do adore him."

"He'th a crazy one that'th for sure. Now, let'th do thome flower thopping!"

Walking out of the castle gates and waving to the guards, [Name] and Sollux ventured into the market. Sollux's eyes immediately started scanning around for Jake and Aradia, and finally, he spotted the boy. He was fiddling with the buttons on his shirt, obviously not used to wearing one. Also, were his shoes on the wrong feet?

Rolling his eyes, Sollux directed [Name] in the direction Jake was in. "I thought we were going this way, Sol?"

"Yeah, we will. But there'th thomeone you need to meet firtht."

"Wh-oh! Jake!"

Said boy looked up and noticed the pair coming toward him. Shuffling his feet a little, he waved back at the girl, surprised when she gave him a hug. "Uh, hey there guys."

Giving him a once over, [Name] stepped back. "So I guess you didn’t turn into a prune."

Jake started laughing, pushing his glasses up higher on his nose. "Egads. It would have been quite a constitutional trying to get home as a prune I would guess."

Sollux stared over at him. "You talk weird."

"Sol!"

"And you look weird," Jake countered back with a smile.

There was silence for a moment before both of them fistbumped and started laughing. [Name] just rolled her eyes. "Come on guys."

"Thith ith ath far ath I go, [Name]. If anyone thayth anything, jutht tell them that Jake ith my friend from out of town, and that he'th great when it cometh to picking out flowerth."

"Oh I get it. This is to keep-?"

"Precithely. Well, you two have fun. I'll be back later."

"Sorry for frightening you last night," Jake finally said as they began walking. "Something scared me out of my skin so-"

[Name] laughed. "No, it's alright. For a while I've felt that someone other than the ocean was listening to me, but it made me happy."

"So we're here to pick out flowers then?"

"That's right. My ancestor had a thing for the color green, so that's what I'm looking for. Something that kinda matches your eyes in a way."

Jake felt himself blush a little. He didn't even think that [Name] had even noticed his eye color. Speaking of eye color... "Are Sollux's eyes rare or something?"

"Hm? Oh. You mean his brown and blue eyes? Yeah, it's something that's only within the Captor family. Passed down all the way from his ancestor, Psionic. His father has one green eye and one blue eye, while his grandfather has one brown and one green."

"Very odd. You've known him your whole life?"

"Yeah. He was born a year before I was, so when I was born he was told that he would protect me no matter what. But we grew up together, and we've been best friends forever."

"What happens if you can't find green flowers?" Jake immediately thought to some of the florescent green blooms that you could find growing near and in Atlantis. If they couldn't find any up here, he'd fetch some for [Name] from down below.

"I guess I'll have to make do with what I happen to stumble upon," [Name] said, grasping Jake's hand. "Now, come on. I can tell that you're new in town so we're gonna have some fun while we search for the flowers."

-

For the next couple of days, [Name] proceeded to show Jake as much of her kingdom as she could. He found himself smiling more often than he used to, even when he was with Feferi back home. Surprisingly, he didn't feel too homesick at the moment, but he figured that his people would worry about where he could have gone.

He never had time to dwell on how his own family was doing because [Name] took up all of his time during the day, and at night, he passed out right away in his room only to rise again the next day to do it again. On the fourth day that he had been human, trumpets blared in town. [Name]'s hackles rose as she grabbed Jake's hand and dragged him to hide in an alleyway.

"[Name]?"

"He really is a dick. Trumpets are used to announce royalty, but if he's just coming by himself like he always does, he'd be accepted as one of our kingdom. But he's much too high and regal for that."

"Are you talking about Equius?"

"Yeah. He's so full of himself. He must be headed up to the castle to visit me since there's only three days left until hell on earth."

Jake found himself laughing at [Name]'s snarkiness. "I thought you were all for doing the right thing for your kingdom?"

She smiled back at him and pulled on his hand to drag him through the alleyways. "I am, but the royal ass deserves every curse word I throw at him. Come on then, I guess we should cut our flower hunting journey short."

"Did you want me to come up to the castle with you?"

"If I didn't bring you, Equius would send someone to fetch you, so don't even worry about it."

"He's that bad?"

"His father is worse. I can only hope that his younger brother is different, but well, he does have both of them as his role models. Z tries to be good friends with him, but Horuss is about three years older so he's wary about it."

"Z?"

"Oh, my little brother. Gamzee. I just call him Z. It's so much easier. He's a rowdy five year old, but I love him to death. My mother died shortly after having him, so I take care of him the best way I can."

"That's good of you. I don't have any siblings of my own, but I have two crazy cousins. Eridan and Cronus. We're all around the same age, with Eri and Cro being twins. They're both a bit younger than me, but older than our other friend Feferi and her little sister Meenah."

"They seem to have strange names," [Name] finally said, giggling a bit while she smiled back at Jake.

"Well, I'm sure they do seem weird since they are sea-er. Foreign. Exotic names and all that you know."

[Name] nodded and Jake mentally bashed his head against a wall. He had almost let his secret slip! Being pulled along by the Princess, the only thing Jake could think at the moment was how warm her hand was compared to Feferi's - and he didn't think about his betrothed again after that moment.

-

Sollux stood arms crossed next to the back garden door of the castle, waiting for [Name] and Jake to return. He had heard the trumpets from the castle courtyard and had run to get the king before grabbing Gamzee and pulling the boy along with him. Aradia floated beside him, unseen to everyone except the bespectacled boy.

Gamzee was over playing with the family puppy, Coal, who was a fluffy black chow with energy to spare. "How thoon will they be here?"

"Within the next few moments I suspect. Once [Name] hears the trumpets, I assume she knows what that means?"

"Yeah. [Name] probably complained to Jake about it too, if I know her well enough. Which I do."

Sollux shut his mouth when [Name] and Jake snuck in the door. He raised an eyebrow at their conjoined hands, but didn't have time to say anything about it as [Name] dropped his hand and rushed over to her brother.

"Z!"

Gamzee looked up and stood, running over to his sister and wrapping his arms around her legs. "Big sis! Did you find the green flowers you wanted?"

"Not yet, dear heart. Say now, you know Prince Equius is in there right?"

"Yeah, but Sollux wouldn't let me be around for his arrival."

[Name] looked over at her best friend, relief and gratitude shining in her features before turning back to her brother with a smile. "You sure look tired, little one. I would hate to have missed out on time with the Prince if I had to take you up to bed..."

Gamzee grinned, looking up at his sister and raising his arms. "I wanna nap!"

"Haha, I adore you Z. Now let's get you off to your chambers."

Sollux, Jake, and Aradia watched [Name] head back up into castle before looking at each other. "How's it been being a human?"

"Pretty good," Jake said, answering Aradia with a smile. "It's definitely better than I thought it would be."

"There ain't nothing good about being a human when you have people like our Blueblood in there," Sollux pointed out, putting one of his hands in his pocket.

"Well, there ain't anything good about being a merman either when your ancestor is Dualscar."

"No thit?" Sollux asked, jaw dropping in surprise. "How about that for irony? Anyway, I have to get in there to protect [Name] from anything that might come her way."

"Sit by the flowerbeds, Jake. We must speak quickly."

Jake followed Aradia's instructions and sat by the flowers as if he was tending to them. "He's watching?"

"Or someone that he has hired is. I must make this quick okay? I need to head back to Faerieland."

"Why?"  

"I suspect that there is a war on the horizon, and if I'm right, we'll need magical help. The merfolk will be slaughtered if Equius and his father find the hidden room in the bottom of [Last Name] castle. I'm going to bring John, the King of Faeries, Dave, a Farshee, and Dirk, a Nine-tailed Kitsune. They're the best warriors I know, and I'm sure they'll fight for you."

"Thank you. I care for my people very much. I just wish I could do more to protect them."

"You could always warn them."

"But I'm human aren't I?"

"Well, yes, but if you get back in the ocean then you'll turn into a merman again. I gave you the ability to turn into a human until I take it away. And that won't be happening for the moment, so enjoy your specialness to be either a merman or a human when you will it."

"You're being much too kind to me, Miss Aradia. Why are you doing this?"

"I already told you, Princeling. My sister's and I changed things around because we didn't like how they were going to go down."

"Quite right I suppose. Time to go in and face the music."

"I won't be going with you, so I offer you this advice Jake: stay safe and be happy. Do you think you can do that for me?"

Jake smiled to himself, rising from the flowerbeds as he looked up toward the sky. He already knew that Aradia had gone, but he answered anyway, "Yes, Miss Aradia. You can count on me."

Going up the garden path and up onto the back patio of the castle, he nodded to the guards and stepped inside. Immediately Sollux waved him over from where he was talking to a tall regal man with long flowing black hair.

"Where has Her Highness gone?" Jake asked.

"Prince Gamzee wath feeling tired, so [Name] took him upthairth."

"I do not believe that I've had the pleasure to make your...acquaintance. My name is Prince Equius Zahhak, Heir to the Throne to the Zahhak Kingdom." He stuck out a hand which Jake shook.

Wincing when it felt like the Prince was trying to break his hand, Jake squeezed back just as hard, surprising the man enough for him to finally let go. "Quite the handshake, old chap. You can call me Jake English. I'm not much of an heir to anything, but I know flowers and plants like the back of my hand."

"He'th my friend from out West," Sollux commented, reaching over and ruffling Jake's hair. "He'th a weirdo, but because I have to help get the cathtle ready for the wedding, I thought he'd be the betht candidate to parade [Name] around while helping her find flowerth."

"I see," Equius said, crossing his arms slowly. "Has she picked out the right kind yet?"

"No," Jake admitted with a grimace. "She is very particular about it."

Jake witnessed Equius' smile for the first time. "Yes. She is."  

Turning slightly, Jake watched [Name] come down the stairs as she flashed a smile at all of them. His heart broke a little at the beautiful sight. She joined them, and he witnessed [Name]'s true aura as the Princess of a Kingdom and a bride to be. It could have been a painting, what he was witnessing.

Her face was a little stiff, but her smile was still genuine as she spoke with Equius. Her façade cracked when Sollux said something, and she ended up responding to him with more adoration in her voice. It would be clear to anyone that she preferred Sollux over Equius, if not for the fact that they were best friends. Equius was the other side of the coin. He was obviously more happy when [Name] was addressing him, but his face took on a sour look when she looked over and spoke to Sollux.

Jake knew it was a sour look because it was the same look Eridan always made when Feferi was talking to anyone else. Before everything fell to hell, Jake just figured that Eridan made faces because it was evident that Feferi was popular among the other mermen, even though they knew she had been betrothed to him. He thought that his cousin was looking out for him, but in reality, his cousin was simply thinking about himself.

Crossing his arms, [Name] looked over at him with a smile. "We're not making much progress are we Jake?"

The boy laughed. "No, not really Miss. We've found plenty of lovely flowers, but none that seem to stand out in the crowd. We'll find them though! Mark my words."

[Name] laughed. "I appreciate everyone who has been helping."

"As do I. My bride to be deserves the best. Make sure it stays that way, Mr. English."

"Of course, Prince Equius."

-

Three days later saw Jake and [Name] heading back out to find flowers for the last time. "Why don't we head out to the countryside?" She asked, grinning at him as they headed through town. "There's a greenhouse out there that's owned by one of my mother's old friends."

"Sounds like a blast!"

They left town and chattered back and forth like they were old friends, but Jake had admitted to himself time and time again that he wished they could be more. If his ancestor hadn't  been a complete dick, then perhaps he and [Name] could have met on better terms, when they were both human during the once a year festival that they used to have.

When he was with [Name] he felt at peace, like being with her was the right thing to do. He had never felt this way about Feferi before, and it was clearly evident that she hadn't loved him either. Coming up on the greenhouse, the man and [Name] exchanged pleasantries as Jake was introduced as well. The man let them into his greenhouse with a smile, claiming that [Name] and her friends were always welcome.

"Mr. Droog is really cool don't you think?"

Taking a look around at all the plants and flowers, Jake grinned. "Yeah, but what sort of name is Diamonds?"

"I think it was a nickname from his rowdier days. Mother used to be known as Snowman, and Mr. Droog tells me all sorts of stories. It's fun hearing about her from those who knew her best."

Jake placed a hand on [Name]'s head as she started sounding melancholy. "Don't start sounding so glum now. Save that for the wedding."

[Name] laughed, looking up at Jake. "You know, I always thought that my wedding would be the best day of my life. I can't help feeling that it'll be the beginning to the end of mine."

Jake swallowed back the truth that was fit to burst out of his mouth. [Name] didn’t know how close to the truth she was. Shaking  his head and refusing to dwell on it, Jake and [Name] looked at each and every plant and flower, trying to see if they could identify them.

"Hey look, some of them are hanging down from the table. Looks like they're hiding!" [Name] said, getting down on her knees to look at them. Jake joined her, but stared at her instead of at the flowers.

He was probably going to kick himself in the teeth for this later, but-

"They look so cool-Jake? Do I have something on my face?"

Jake framed her face with his hands then and leaned in, pressing his forehead against hers. "Forgive me," he whispered, before molding their lips together.

[Name] would be lying if she said she wasn't surprised, but Jake kissing her was definitely something that she had been thinking about. Much too often in fact, since they had met a week ago by the ocean. Throwing her arms around his neck, she knocked them both back onto the dirt floor. Separating his lips from hers, Jake just had to laugh.

Blushing slightly with how animated she had been, [Name] proceeded to shut Jake up the best way she knew how. About an hour later found Jake and [Name] bidding their goodbyes to Mr. Droog as they walked back to town with their arms linked. To a bystander, it appeared that Jake was leading her like a gentleman, but both of them had to be touching the other in some way and holding hands was too inconspicuous.

"Hey Jake?"

"Yeah?"

"Is it bad if I just want us to run away together?"

Jake smiled softly. "I wouldn't turn away from the idea, but you have a duty to your people. The cousins I mentioned earlier, well, they're both royalty. Eridan is betrothed to someone too."

"So you see their struggle like you see mine."

"Yes. Cro and Eri love their people though. They put them first."

"I understand. Then, perhaps it was a mistake for my heart to fall in love with you."

Jake jerked slightly, staring over at [Name]. Finally, he looked away from her, begging himself internally to not cry. "I don't regret falling in love with you. You've been such a big part of my life."

"Oh Jake."

"Come now, [Name]. There's a party tonight is there not?"

"I'll never forget you, Jake. I hope you know that."

"The feeling is mutual, love. Now perk up and put on your happy face. The Princess always looks her best when she's smiling you know."