Poor Unfortunate Soul
The Little Merman
Yixing had swam so far away from his Father that he ended up finding himself lost and disoriented. He had never been to this part of the ocean before. He didn’t realize that there were places that were this dark and this eerie... As he swam further and further away, he felt the sadness grow deeper and deeper. He had been the cause of his Mother’s death and now the cause of his Father’s grief. With eyes closed tight, he let out a shaky breath. He wanted a new beginning. He wanted to leave the world of the sea behind and start over on land.
“Oh, my, my,” a woman’s voice came from the darkness of a cave as Yixing hurried past, “What have we here?”
Yixing stopped and looked back over his shoulder at the sound of the voice. He watched as black tentacles came out of the cave, followed by the slim body of a woman. A sea witch. The prince had heard of them before, but never thought that they truly existed. Then again, he never knew that dark places like this existed before today either.
“What’s wrong little prince?” the woman cooed.
“Nothing,” he sniffled, “Nothing at all.”
“Are you sure about that? Why don’t you come in for a while, dear? I’ll make you something to eat.”
Yixing thought about this for a moment. He had heard many stories about how evil sea witches could be, but this one seemed genuinely pleasant and concerned about him. How evil could she really be?
“Well, only for a minute, I guess.”
The witch grinned, “A minute is all I need.”
***
“Here, dearest, have some of these,” the witch smiled, pushing a plate of delicacies towards the boy.
“Thank you,” Yixing said politely, carefully picking up a piece of food and popping it in his mouth.
“It’s my pleasure,” she hummed, “So, what are you doing all the way out here little prince?”
“Yixing, my name is Yixing.”
“Prince Yixing,” the woman chuckled, “I know who you are. King Junmyeon’s youngest son. You look sad. Tell me what troubles you.”
“I,” Yixing cleared his throat and swallowed the chewy food, “I’ve left home to make things better for my Father.” his gaze slowly dropped to the cave floor, “It’s better this way.”
“How is this better?” the witch asked in mock astonishment, “Are you not upset now?”
Yixing shrugged, his gaze still set on the dark rock floor.
“My, my,” the woman sighed sadly, “You poor, unfortunate soul. How can I make you happy, Prince Yixing?”
He shrugged again, silent.
“There must be something you want,” she urged once more, her impatience growing slowly.
Yixing shifted and darted his eyes up quickly and then back down.
“Ah,” she smiled, “So there is something that you want!”
“I would like to live on the land…” Yixing’s cheeks turned a pale pink as he said the words out loud, it was an absurd thought.
“Why you just need legs then,” The witch beamed and Yixing looked up at her in surprise, “I can provide those.”
Yixing gaped at her words, “You can?”
“Of course,” she grinned wickedly, “I can do just about anything, for a price of course.”
“What kind of price?”
“Hm, well, what do you have that you can give?”
“I…” he coughed awkwardly, “I don’t know.”
The woman hummed as she thought, “How about that sweet voice of yours?”
“My voice?” Yixing asked surprised, his hand instantly reaching for his throat.
“Yes, your voice!” She chuckled, “In exchange for your voice I can give you legs for three days.”
“Only three?” Yixing frowned, “How will that help me?”
“I can only do three, dearest. Unless, of course, you were to experience a true love’s kiss. True love is stronger than magic.”
“A true love’s kiss?” Yixing thought about it and suddenly Prince Baekhyun’s face came into his mind. A blush formed across his cheeks.
“You have someone in mind!”
“Ah… Prince Baekhyun…”
“Prince Baekhyun?” The witch sounded confused, “The Prince of the Byun Kingdom nearby?”
Yixing nodded. The witch smiled, “If you can receive a kiss from him within three days, then you can become human forever.”
“Forever?!” Yixing sounded shocked, but a smile tugged on his lips.
“Forever,” the witch repeated.
“But what happens if we don’t kiss after three days?”
“Then your soul belongs to me,” the witch replied in a serious tone. Yixing’s expression changed suddenly. “But you, Prince Yixing, you can do it.”
He smiled shyly, “You think so?”
“I know so. What have you got to lose?”
“Let’s do it.”
“Shall we?” the witch grinned wickedly as she pushed a small vial of pink liquid towards Yixing, “Drink up!”
“I just need to drink this?”
“Once you do, you will have legs. And your voice will be in here,” the witch gesture to a small clam shell opened on the table, “I will keep it closed here so it’ll be safe until three days’ time.”
Yixing nodded, “Okay.” He popped the top off of the vial and brought it to his lips, drinking in the liquid slowly.
He felt a tingling in his throat and his mouth opened as a bright light came from within and the witch reached out, taking the light into her hands. She placed it in the clam and closed it shut tight. She grinned slyly at the boy as he twisted and turned about in the water uncomfortably. His expression was quick to twist into one of pain and displeasure.
“You may want to get some air,” she chuckled evilly.
Yixing was quick to swim to the surface, moving his tail as fast as he could force it to. As he swam upwards he felt a strange tingling surround his tail and suddenly, he couldn’t swim as well as he’d been able to before. He was almost at the surface when he looked down to see two legs and his fins rapidly turn into two feet. He gasped and then closed his mouth immediately, the water was stinging his lungs and his eyes as he pushed forward and up to the surface. He took in a deep breath of air and looked around with blurry eyes for land when he heard a voice yell, ‘Man overboard!’ He barely had a chance to turn when he felt his vision leave him and he out.
***
“You’re awake,” those were the first words Yixing heard as he blinked his eyes open. He was staring up at what he assumed was a white ceiling. What happened to me? Where am I? A small face slowly moved into his blurred vision. He blinked several more times slowly as Prince Baekhyun’s face came into focus. A gasp escaped his now gaping mouth. That’s right, I’m human now...
“What’s your name?” Baekhyun asked leaning over the boy.
Yixing opened his mouth, but no sound came out.
“You can’t remember?”
Yixing shook his head and dramatically pointed to his throat.
“You have a sore throat?”
Yixing shook his head once more becoming slightly embarrassed. He pointed to his mouth again and made an X shape with his hands.
“You can’t talk?”
Yixing nodded.
“Oh.” Baekhyun said dumbly then hummed and grabbed a piece of paper and a quill, handing it to Yixing, “My name is Byun Baekhyun. Prince Baekhyun,” he cleared his throat becoming timid all of a sudden, “And your name?”
Yixing took the quill and wrote in plain print, “Zhang Yixing.”
“That’s a different name,” Baekhyun thought aloud, “I like it.” he smiled a little. “We found you, you know, in the ocean.”
Yixing nodded.
“You passed out thrashing around in the water while,” Baekhyun’s face reddened and he lowered his voice to a whisper, “While you were …”
Oh my God. Yixing’s face became bright red.
“I’m sorry,” Baekhyun coughed, “We covered you up as soon as we noticed.”
Yixing nodded and bowed his head as a thank you. His face still red.
"Were you shipwrecked?"
Yixing thought for a minute and shrugged. What could he really say? No, I was a merman, but I drank a magic potion so now I'm a human. Besides, he had no voice.
“Ah, I see, you mustn't remember. Do you know when your voice will come back?” Baekhyun asked shyly.
Yixing shrugged again.
Baekhyun nodded in understanding, “I’m sorry for asking so many questions,” Yixing shook his head, “I just find you… Fascinating.” Baekhyun’s cheeks flushed red. So did Yixing’s.
A knock came on the door as another man stepped in, “Sorry to interrupt, your highness.” the man was tall with red hair, “But they’ll be serving dinner shortly…”
“Ah, right then,” Baekhyun looked to Yixing, “Are you hungry?”
Yixing nodded and Baekhyun cracked the smallest of smiles at how eagerly he had been.
“Come on then,” Baekhyun reached out and gently wrapped his slender fingers around Yixing’s wrist, “You can sit next to me.”
Yixing raised to his feet and stumbled forwards into the prince's arms. Oh! Legs are strange things...
"Are you alright!?" Baekhyun asked worried, pulling Yixing upright on his feet.
Yixing nodded and took another step forward rather clumsily. I’m so stupid… Ah! Baekhyun caught him again and chuckled.
"It's like you've never walked a day in your life," The prince giggled. Yixing went wide eyed and gaped at him, how does he know? "Let me help you." Baekhyun wrapped his arm around Yixing's waist and placed the boy's arm around his shoulders.
Thank you, Prince Baekhyun.
After an eventful dinner, in which Yixing learned what a fork was really used for (‘That’s not for brushing hair, Yixing.’ Baekhyun had laughed awkwardly), the prince decided to show his guest to the library. He opened the two large wooden doors, pushing them gently and Yixing gawked at the size of the room and the shelves upon shelves of books. Though he wasn’t really sure what a book was or why humans kept so many of them in their own special room.
“Do you read books?” Baekhyun asked walking into the room and picking, what Yixing assumed was, a book off of a desk.
Yixing shrugged.
“You don’t know if you read books?” Baekhyun stifled a small laugh, “Here, try this one.” he handed a book to Yixing.
Yixing ran his fingers gently over the spine of the book and smiled. ‘Exodus’ was written on the cover.
“It’s about twelve boys with special powers,” Baekhyun explained, “I really like it. It’s my favourite.”
I’ll like it too then. Yixing decided.
“So, I guess you should stay here for the night, right? I can have a maid set up a room for you?” Baekhyun asked shyly, fidgeting with his hands and staring anywhere, but at the boy in front of him. Yixing nodded happily. A very small smile played across Baekhyun’s lips.
“Good, I’m glad.” He whispered quietly before leaving the room.
***
“When will he be leaving then?” the tall red-haired man asked Baekhyun.
Baekhyun shrugged, “I don’t know, Chanyeol.”
Chanyeol nodded, “Alright… But he can’t exactly stay here forever though.”
Baekhyun frowned, “Why not?”
“It’s not like he’s some stray pet you can keep, your highness. I'm sure he has someone looking for him.”
A sigh escaped Baekhyun’s lips, “I guess you’re right…” his gaze slowly fell to his feet.
Chanyeol let out a deep laugh and ruffled Baekhyun’s messy hair, “I haven’t seen you smile this much in a long time though. I wonder why that is.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Baekhyun muttered embarrassed.
A blush crawled onto his cheeks. He knew exactly what Chanyeol was talking about. Yixing was so interesting to him, he had never seen someone so handsome before. When they found him, Baekhyun had admired how his body looked, with his smooth skin and muscles… His face reddened even more at the thought. The prince liked the way Yixing’s hair was perfectly combed and reddish even as they pulled him out of the water. He equally liked the way Yixing’s eyes were a deep brown that reminded him of chocolate. And the way he acted was so cute and innocent, as if he was discovering a whole new world, that the prince couldn’t help but smile.
***
As much as Yixing loved having legs and experiencing life on land, he found himself all too often staring out one of the palace windows and at the blue, sparkling waters of the ocean. He missed the feel of the waves against his skin and the way his tail swished. He missed his friend, Sehun, and his annoying yet loveable older siblings, Yifan, Minseok and Luhan. The three would so much, but at the end of the day, they were his family.
Most of all, Yixing missed his Father. He felt terrible that he had parted on such awful terms. He only wanted what was best for his Father even if it meant that he should disappear. A great sadness filled his heart. Without his family, Yixing realized he had nothing. Nothing unless he kissed Baekhyun. The feat was seemingly impossible. When is a good time to kiss a stranger?
A tear slowly rolled down his cheek and his eyes suddenly widened in terror.
I'm leaking. He panicked.
"Yixing!" Baekhyun exclaimed, "Why are you crying?"
Crying? Yixing cocked his head to the side, confused as he brushed his fingers over the wetness on his cheeks.
"You have tears running down your face," Baekhyun said sadly.
Tears?
What's crying? What's tears?
Baekhyun took the handkerchief from his pocket and gently reached for Yixing's eyes. The boy flinched, but Baekhyun's touch was soft as he wiped the tears away. They stared at each other for a moment, before the prince blushed and cleared his throat.
"Here," he handed the cloth to Yixing, "take it."
Yixing dabbed at his eyes with the handkerchief and then held it back out to the prince when he felt that the tears were gone.
Baekhyun shook his head, "Keep it, it's yours," he said flustered before quickly taking his leave.
A light pink blush crawled onto Yixing's cheeks as he held the piece of cloth close to his heart. I'll treasure it forever. He watched the prince as he walked away, a grin forming on his face.
***
Yixing wandered the halls of the castle, admiring the paintings on the walls and how different it was to be on land. This was unlike anything he had ever experienced and he was intrigued by everything around him. Legs, feet, walking, air - it was all so new to him and he loved it.
During his wanderings, he came across a large painting at the top of the stairs and stared at it long and hard. The painting was of a man and a woman and a small child. The man looked a lot like Baekhyun, but much older. The small child also looked like Baekhyun. Relatives Yixing thought.
“Those are my parents,” Baekhyun whispered coming up behind Yixing.
Yixing jumped and looked over his shoulder to see the prince standing behind him, staring at the painting with sad eyes.
“They passed away several years ago in a boating accident,” Baekhyun said quietly, tears beginning to form in his eyes. “I miss them sometimes.” his voice cracked and tears slowly fell down his cheeks.
Before Prince Baekhyun could wipe his tears, he felt himself being pulled into a warm embrace. He gasped quietly as Yixing wrapped his arms around his waist gently and held onto him. Please don't leak, Prince Baekhyun. No one had hugged the prince like this since… Before the King and Queen passed away. He blinked several times and then finally relaxed into Yixing’s arms.
There was something comforting about the way Yixing gently held him, the way he smelled like a sea breeze and the way he breathed softly into his ear. Slowly, Baekhyun closed his eyes and nuzzled close to Yixing’s neck as he wrapped his own arms around the boy. Suddenly, he felt a little less heartbroken and a little less empty.
“Yixing,” Baekhyun whispered against his neck, “There’s going to be a party tonight here in the castle, would you maybe accompany me?”
Yixing blinked several times and nodded his head. He wasn’t sure what a party was, but as long as he was going with Baekhyun, then it didn’t matter. Baekhyun smiled against his neck and let go of him.
“I’ll see you tonight then, yeah?” Baekhyun asked, diverting his eyes from Yixing’s gaze, a blush clearly forming on his cheeks.
Yixing simply nodded again rather enthusiastically. Baekhyun barely caught a glimpse of it and giggled quietly to himself before running off down the stairs and out of sight.
Party. Yixing thought, What’s a party?
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