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Azul relaxed back into the plush couch and let his shoulders slump. His legs were folded off to the side, almost under him. The night air created a nice chill that reminded him a little of the ocean.
The coldness of it. It didn't bother him; barely feeling it definitely helped. He missed the pressure that the deep sea gave him. The crushing weight that felt like a hug when you needed it. Maybe he just wanted someone to hold him.
Looking up at the stars, he breathed out a sigh. It was late, but he wasn't tired. The drawback of coming from a nocturnal animal: never having a normal sleep schedule. It was kinda hard to plan your day when all your body is telling you to do is sleep!
He was actually waiting for another supposed nocturnal individual.
His beloved’s species was most active during the night, hunting and eating after sleeping the day away. Minhaj was a Bengal tiger.
As soon as he learned that, Azul spent the next day researching all he could about tiger Beastmen. He had learned they were solitary creatures in nature, but beastmen were more likely to find a mate and stay with them, much like his kind. They were aggressive about territory and what they deemed theirs, and they were rather good in water.
That last part was very interesting; being good in water would help him with Azul being a mer and all. Minhaj liked to drag him into the ocean when they were free, forcing Azul into his merform so they could swim together.
Azul liked to float and watch as his prince jumped and dived from cliffs. He really did love water; it was very cute in the mer’s opinion.
The door to his left opened, and he glanced over. His beloved stood there in all his glory, sporting a pair of brown baggy pants that hung low on his hips and a loose-fitting tank top. Azul was in his own pajamas: a blue silk set Minhaj had gifted him.
Smiling softly, he raised a hand to the man, reaching out to in an invasion to be held. His beloved smiled back at him and gently took his hand.
Kissing the back of it before kneeling on the couch, Minhaj brushed his hair behind his ear. Coming to lie on his lap, Minhaj’s head cradled by his upper thighs, his prince looked up at him, a dopy look on his face. A soft chuff came from his beloved.
Azul giggled down at him. He cupped the sides of the tan man’s face; Minhaj gently took his ankle in his hand, soothing his thumb across the skin.
Bring his head down, the mer pressed feather-light kisses across the man's skin. From his forehead to his temple, his cheeks next, the bridge of his nose, and finally his mouth. It was slow and warm; their mouths moving against each other in a way only they could know how to.
Pulling back the slightest bit, Azul pressed his forehead against Minhaj’s. Looking into the brown eyes he could get lost in, he felt a sense of home. A place he could just exist and be himself, a warmth that invaded his very being.
“Hi, caro mio.”
A tail wrapped itself around the ankle Minhaj was holding; a hand and tail making sure he didnt move or leave. A low-sounding moan came from Minhaj’s throat. It meant he was glad to see Azul again, the mer had learned.
“Hayati.” Minhaj tilted his head up, so their foreheads were pressed together harder. A smile on his face, he kisses the mer’s lips softly. Over and over he did so; every touch sent a tingle through Azul.
Laughing against the other mouth, he straightened so he was looking down at his prince. Tracing his jawline, he caressed Minhaj’s face. Trailing his fingers down his neck and over his chest.
They talked about everything and nothing; about how their days had been and what they’d done.
Azul had decided to spend the summer with his prince on land. Learning about the Scalding Sands and getting used to the climate. He had no intention of leaving him to go back to the ocean; he had to learn to live in an environment completely opposite to his natural one.
He had learned a bit of politics and met some of Minhaj’s relatives. His mother was a very nice woman; she was very excited that Minhaj finally had someone, even if they weren't a royal. His father was nice as well, but wasn't so happy the mer wasn't royalty.
Marrying or dating someone of a lower class wasn't the most accepted or expected of the heir to a country.
Minhaj didnt seem to care, though. He just reassured Azul’s worries about him leaving and marrying a princess picked out by his parents. It wasn't his fault; he was always worrying. It was in his nature to be cautious.
Azul had spent the remaining time he had there learning about the customs and culture. It was very interesting and quite different from those in the ocean. Courtship and the like. He did like how Minhaj courted him, though. The man was persistent, and Azul liked that.
Soft kisses were exchanged between words. Loving phrases and declarations were pressed into skin; laughter muffled in shoulders.
Minhaj had migrated to press his face into the mer’s stomach, nearly curled around his body now. A soft chuffing could be heard resonating from Minhaj's throat. A soft smile had its way onto the mer’s face. He always loved it when his prince made noises.
Azul himself didnt. In his merform, he could change the color of his skin to express different emotions. It was more an instinct than a conscious decision for him, but he loved to know how Minhaj was feeling. The noises allowed this.
He was running his fingers through his prince's hair. Running over and up his ears, scratching at the base, he laughed lightly as the man leaned even further into him.
Arms were wrapped firmly around his waist. Minhaj’s tail had also moved; it now wrapped around his lower thigh. Every so often, he would also run his hand across the length of it.
It was a bit ironic. Two solitary creatures so attached to one another.
Azul clung to his beloved with a vice grip, never letting up and never backing down. This man was his, and it would stay that way for as long as he lived. Minhaj was much the same; never far from him anytime they were together. A hand on his waist or his lower back anytime they were together. His hands wrapped around Minhaj’s arm anytime he was close.
It was not expected, and so strange, yet it worked. They worked. And Azul was grateful for it; he loved Minhaj with all of his three hearts and more. He wouldn't trade this night, or them, for the world.