Author's Note: All characters involved are eighteen and above.
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"What are you thinking about, little fry?"
Adeline turned her head slightly to look at the merman next to her. They were lying on the sandy floor of the grotto, their skin covered with a sheen of perspiration. They were looking up at the star-studded night sky through the opening at the top, catching their breaths. When Adeline didn't answer, he grabbed her by her shoulders and pulled her beside him. He didn't notice the slight stiffening of her body because she quickly acquiesced. She had just taken him in her mouth until he spurted out his seed, hastily swallowing the warm liquid before she choked on it.
She wanted to wash the taste away but she knew better than to blatantly show contempt. Her captor had grown increasingly paranoid as time passed. Any hint of rejection was seen as refusal to submit to him. If she showed any sign she wanted to escape, he would turn nasty. She still had bruises from a while ago, when she decided to explore the tunnel leading back to the sea, only to have him return early and discovered her gone. Adeline suppressed a shudder and pushed that memory to the back of her mind.
"Nothing," she answered gingerly.
He grunted in acknowledgement, too sated to think further. Instead, he asked, "Do you know the humans see shapes in the stars?"
Adeline perked up. "What shapes?"
When he was in a good mood, he would regale her with tales of the human world and of the places he had been to. She enjoyed stories of the world beyond and dreamt of one day visiting them. Sometimes he brought her little trinkets she had never seen before -- necklaces made of shiny stones, soft pretty ribbons, a piece of square cloth called handkerchief. She kept them carefully in a crevice beneath the water. These were the only precious items which she had in her life.
"A bear. A goat. A man holding a spear." He shrugged. "They made up stories about them and believe the stars will make their wishes come true."
Adeline had never seen either a bear or a goat so she wasn't able to make them out either. The stars only reminded her of bioluminescent creatures rumored to exist in the dark oceans, places where only the most adventurous of merpeople would dare to visit.
Her lashes lowered, hiding the disappointment in her eyes. She drew shapes in the sand with a finger. It was a habit she had picked up recently, something she did when she felt anxious. It took some effort for her to modulate her voice. "Surely they wouldn't believe in it if it isn't true."
He snorted. "The humans are a contrary lot. They would hunt down anything strange and odd, burn those who claim to have supernatural powers, yet they also believe in invisible beings and make wishes which are useless. They might as well pray to the sea witch."
"Who is the sea witch?"
Adeline could tell that he wished he hadn't mentioned the witch to her. He tried to hide it by tightening his grip around her and kept his reply as bland as he could. "No one you need to know."
But it was too late. Her interest was piqued. "Does the sea witch has magic?"
"Of a kind. They say she's capable of finding those who needs her." He said reluctantly. Narrowing his eyes at her, he raised a brow. "What? Are you thinking of looking for her?"
She shook her head vigorously. "N-No. I'm not. I'm not going anywhere."
He didn't believe her. The stormy temper growing on his face made the fading bruises on her body ached. She shook her head vigorously, her heart racing in her chest. It was all she could do not to push away from him and run, but here was nowhere she could go. He had trapped her in a small prison he controlled, ensured she would remain in there. In his mind, he had tricked her into coming up here and she would always want to escape from him. It was the reason why he guarded her jealously. The mere thought of losing her drove him insane with rage.
His fingers dug into her hair and he yanked her head back, his teeth bared. "You're not ever going to leave me."
Adeline's neck and scalp hurt. Blood drained from her face. She kept her body pliable so she would agitate him further. Her hands shook when she touched his chest. She kept her voice steady, hated that she was afraid of him. "I will not leave you, promise."
He considered her for several long moments. "You better not, or you know what'll happen." He warned. His hand reached down to her chest and pinched her nipple hard, making her yelp. "You seem to have recovered nicely from just now, little fry."
She trembled as he abused her nipple, working it between his fingers, twisting and tugging at it until it swelled and turned red as the cherry she had eaten yesterday. It wasn't long before both of them were the same. His cock throbbed, eager to spend himself in her mouth again. But he took his time. He liked the way she obeyed him, presenting her breasts for him to play with, biting down on her lips when it hurt, her eyes red-rimmed as she stared at him. Even after all this time, she still possessed the sweet innocence she had when he first saw her, even after all they had done. It only made him want to torment her further, to push all boundaries with her. He wanted to hear her cry and beg, to have her at his mercy.
"You like what I do, don't you?" He asked, pulling one of her nipples as far as he could. "Only the most degenerate respond like you do. Not many find pleasure in simply having their breasts abused like you do."
A wave of embarrassment surged within Adeline. She wanted to protest what he had said but knew it was true. Since the first time he had made her climax by touching her breasts, it had only gotten easier for her to find pleasure in his touch. Even though he got progressively rougher each time, her body remembered the pleasure and responded to it. She was even beginning to crave it and grow used to it.
Her face reddened. She didn't want to listen to him because it made her feel as though she was responsible for her current predicament. She glared angrily at him, but her beauty and arousal softened the impact of her fury.
He chuckled. "You may not like what I say but it does not mean it isn't the truth." He dragged her to the edge of the water and made her look at their reflection in the water. "Look at yourself. See what you look like? That's the face of someone who enjoys having her body teased and pleasured. If I haven't kept you here, you probably would have found other males and beg them to touch you."
The sight of her swollen nipples and dark red marks on her breasts mocked the denial on the tip of her tongue. She wanted to refute what he said but the desire-glazed look on her face in the water left her speechless. She looked like the wonton he said she was and it made her ashamed of herself.
"If you have legs, little fry, I would have fucked you. You look entirely fuckable right now."
He had spoken right at her ear, his breath ticklish but it was his words which further fanned the flames within her. Over time, he had told her what he would have done to her if she could transform. She had guessed that her inability to change prevented them from performing the last final act of sex, though she wasn't quite sure if she was relieved or disappointed. There were times when her tail felt as though it was on fire, especially when she was about to climax. The sensation passed soon after she came.
