Chapter Text
Shouta dropped his bag onto his apartment floor and slumped against the wall. He rubbed his face with one hand, frustration slithering through his veins. The days following his initial interaction with Izuku passed much in the same way as the first.
A total failure every single time.
An offering of fish from Shouta, a glare from Izuku, and a wave of water from its tail. Shouta had changed his clothes at work more than once a day at this point.
It seemed like Izuku absolutely hated him. Shouta understood, in a way. He was an unfamiliar entity in Izukus territory. The little territory he currently had.
But regardless, Shouta needed that mer to like him. He learned a little bit about mers in school, but he didn't keep any of the mental information. It didn't seem important to hold onto too much information about mers. But now, he desperately needed to have that information.
Steeling his nerve, Shouta stood up straight and stomped to his room where all his study materials were. He would not be beaten by a mythical creature, especially not one so rare and beautiful.
He owned exactly one book on mermaids, passed onto him from his grandfather, and he would need every advantage in his arsenal to get this mer to like him. Shouta grabbed the book from the shelf, tucking it under his arm as he made his way back to the living room.
Setting the book on the table, Shouta did a quick settle in for the night. He kicked off his shoes, changed into sweatpants, and ordered some food to be delivered.
Once he double checked nothing else needed to be done, Shouta grabbed a notebook and curled up on his couch with the book, ready to find anything to help. He turned page after page, searching for an edge. Something to make this mer like him just a little, just enough to work together.
And then he saw it.
Not unlike a crow, mers loved shiny trinkets, little bits and bobs. They collected and hoarded in the way dragons would, but not to the same extent. They were very picky about their treasures and generally followed a specific hyperfixation.
Tapping the end of his pen against his lip, Shouta narrowed his eyes. Izuku likely had no treasures to his name right now, his stockpile lost to the ocean once he was brought to the sanctuary. Which meant anything might look good, no matter who it came from.
Putting down the book, Shouta realized he hit the literal and figurative treasure trove.
+ + + + + + + + +
Shouta showed up to work laden with his weapons of choice. Two large duffel bags held small trinkets he raided from several local thrift shops over the course of his week. In addition, some gummy and hard candies were in his bags,
If this mer was anything like what his book described (and it was so very little), something in his treasure trove would crack the ice.
"Whoa, what's all this?" Keigo asked, bewildered at the way Shouta rocked up with bags full of random stuff his second week at work. He had a bag of fried chicken as Dabi's treat for the day and for a brief moment, Shouta was so jealous. He just had to throw food at his mythological creature.
But Shouta didn't even bother slowing down as the thought crossed his mind. "I'm gonna get him to like me if its the last thing I do," he muttered darkly. Keigo shouted something after him, but Shouta ignored it. His bags jangled as he strode through the gates of his workplace with determination. He clocked in with record time, ready to take on the day.
Just like each day before, when Shouta arrived at the enclosure, Izuku was floating at the fartest edge. Watching and waiting.
Shouta felt more like prey than a keeper when Izuku did that. They made eye contact, staring at each other for what felt like an eternity.
"Did some reading up over the weekend," he began conversationally, dropping the bags on the ground. He made sure they were far enough away that Izuku couldn't just grab at them.
Shouta wanted to give him the trinkets, bit by bit, a way to build some trust between them.
Izuku didn't move, didn't give an inch. Shouta expected as much. All in good time.
Shouta began to prepare Izuku's snack, getting some extra fish before settling down in the sand just far enough from the water that Izuku would need to put effort in to reach him.
"I don't know if you can understand me," he said honestly. "But I have a lot to offer you if you'd just chill out for a fuckin' moment."
Setting the fish down, Shouta carefully opened one bag and pulled out a handful of trinkets, setting them down. "These can be yours as long as you don't try to drown me."
It was only partially a joke.
Izuku watched him carefully, eyes slitted as Shouta got comfortable.
Shouta fished out a shiny little bell, holding it up and giving it a jingle. Izuku perked up, eyes going wide and he hesitated for only a moment before floating closer to the shoreline. Something twisted in Shouta's chest, a spark of relief or nerves, he couldn't tell.
But Izuku placed his hands on the shoreline and lifted his body partially out of the water. Shouta officially got his first look at the mer in his glory.
Scales of emerald crawled up his torso, the light from the sunroof catching on each scale and sending a wave of shimmers up and down Izuku.
"Well, aren't you pretty?" Shouta said softly, smiling at Izuku.
Cocking his head to the side, Izuku flashed his own teeth at Shouta, all sharp edges and dangerous points.
"Okay, food first," Shouta muttered, turning ever so slightly to grab at the fish he'd set aside. When he turned back, Izuku had pulled himself farther up onto the sand, over half his tail exposed. Despite the torso of the mer being on the smaller side, the overall size was impressive.
His webbed fingers were reaching out for the bag and when Izuku caught side of Shouta, the fans behind his ears went backwards. It almost looked…like Izuku was being sheepish.
Shouta handed over his meal and said, "Eat first. Then we can get to the fun stuff."
Wiggling the food, he gave Izuku an expectant look and somehow it translated correctly since Izuku grumbled and snatched the two fishes out of his hand. Shouta tried to hold back his grimance as Izuku tore into the fish, teeth ripping into flesh and scales.
The mer picked his meal down to the bone, tiny bits of flesh and the fins all that remained. He dropped the skeletons onto the ground and looked at Shouta with wide eyes.
"Okay, okay, you got it," Shouta scooted forward slowly, dragging the bags with him and set a handful of trinkets down on the ground. He didn't want to give Izuku everything at once. This would be a great chance to create a bond of sorts, to get Izuku to trust him more.
Trust was everything when one worked with mythological creatures.
"Whatever you want, it's yours."
Shouta doubted Izuku understood what he was really saying, but chatting would help see where the language barriers really were.
But Izuku dragged himself further up the sand, leaving a third of his tail in the water as he began picking up and inspecting the items. First, the bell Shouta held up earlier to get his attention. He shook it and grinned when it made the same loud ring from before.
With impressive skill and strength, Izuku threw himself back ito the water, disappearing into his tank.
Shouta could just vaguely hear him ringing the bell in the water, almost as if to test how well it would do. It didn't sound identical, but it must have been enough for Izuku. He burst through the surface once more, a loud chirp leaving his mouth as he held the bell triumphantly above his head.
All the previous hesitation and suspicion appeared to have disintegrated. Izuku swam back to the shoreline, dragging himself back onto the sand and ready to continue inspecting the treasures Shouta brought with him.
A small knock drew Shouta's attention to the door, where Hizashi was frantically waving his arms. Moving slow, Shouta said, "I'll be right back, okay?"
He stood, Izuku freezing with the movement until Shouta began moving away.
And then he shrieked. The mer scrambled up the shore, eyes wide and panicked.
Shouta stopped when Izuku grabbed his ankle, tensing for the inevitable moment when Izuku dragged him beneath the water. But Izuku just stared up at him, looking sad and a little pathetic. Shouta was still studying the book, so he wasn't sure what was happening right now. But the mer wasn't drowning him.
If anything, it just seemed like he didn't want Shouta to leave.
Unsure of what to do, Shouta looked between Izuku and Hizashi and just shrugged. He plopped back down on the ground and dug around in his pocket for his phone. "This is not for you, kid," Shouta sternly told him.
He waved his phone over his head, hoping Hizashi would just call him. They'd become what Hizashi called fast friends, exchanging numbers and while Hizashi hadn't made it into Shouta's house yet, they had lunch together everyday.
Shouta never had so much socialization before. It was draining, but nice in a weird sort of way.
The phone rang and Shouta picked up. "What? I'm trying to work here."
"Uh, yeah, I can see that? You aren't dead?"
Shouta rolled his eyes, looking over his shoulder and gesturing to Izuku who was grabbing at the bags while Shouta was turned. "Hey," he barked. "Not yet. Give me a minute, you little menace."
Something about his tone must have resonated with izuku because he frowned, pouting as he slumped into the sand. He was still so closed to Shouta, something he hadn't expected.
"Clearly," he replied to Hizashi dryly. "We bonded. I think. At least that ungodly shriek he let out makes me think he wants me to stay."
"This is so weird," Hizashi said and Shouta could see him shaking his head. "Izuku doesn't do this. What the fuck happened?"
Waving a careless hand to his bags, Shouta said, "They hoard. Looks like Ariel wasn't the only one."
Hizashi burst out laughing. "Well, cool, man. I can't wait to hear all about it later."
They hung up and Shouta scooched down the beach. Izuku's tail was looking a little dry and he wanted them clsoer to the water. Izuku wiggled his way back happily, rolling his body back and forth down the sand until his tail was back in the water. It still wasn't full doused though, and Shouta really wanted him to dunk.
He didn't think Izuku would though.
So instead, he scooted a little farther, taking off his shoes and socks before dipping his feet in the water. "You need to be wet," he said, cringing at his own words like a teenager. "Get back in the water before we get the next round of gifts."
Izuku cocked his head to the side, tail splashing in the shallow bit of water. Shouta shook his head and cupped some water, throwing it higher up on Izuku's tail, hoping the message got across.
It did not.
-
* * * * * * * * *
Hizashi was laughing himself sick, loud and hyena like. Shouta sat across from him in the break room, wearing Hizashi's clothes. Turns out, when you throw a bit of water on a mer, the mer will take it as a sign of playing.
And then make a much bigger splash with his tail, thus soaking their handler.
Who knew.
"I can't believe how strong his damn tail is," Shouta muttered, slumping into his seat with a sigh. "Everything is soaked. All those trinkets I hunted down for him, the bags. I'm just glad he didn't take them back down into the tank."
"Yeah, about that," Hizashi said with a raised eyebrow. "Dude, you studied these creatures, right? Please tell me you understand why he doesn't want to kill you?"
Rolling his eyes, Shouta said, "I didn't spend a lot of time on deep sea mythicals, okay? It's so hard to find them that I didn't think I'd ever have the chance. But," he took a long swig of his coffee, "I'm catching up. I've got a book my grandfather gave me for a birthday that I'm about halfway through."
Hizashi blinked at him, as if Shouta were an idiot.
"What?"
Shaking his head, the blond man finished off his tea. "You know what? I think this is going to be fucking hysterical. Carry on, my emo son, carry on," he said, standing up and heading out the door with a wave of his hand.
"I'm older than you, dumbass," Shouta called out after him.
Peeking over at the dryer, Shouta stood and checked on his clothes. They were dry enough to wear again, so he plucked them out and went to the changing room to swap clothes again.
Although…
Hizashi's parting words were stuck in his head. Did he do something wrong by offering up trinkets? He thought it would help and it did. So what could possibly have been the problem?
Determined to find the answer, Shouta clocked out. He spent the rest of his shift with Izuku earlier, soaked to the bone but with a pleased mer.
So now, with dry clothes on and curiosity in his veins, Shouta headed home to find read his book.
He'd find those answers before work the next day if it was the last thing he did.