Love is a game (Love in the air collection)

Old Friends, New loves

"Who's your boy?" came a voice from the side of the house. A young human comes from that direction greeting Phayu with a nod.

Pai gives him a charming grin. "Sky, this is my friend Phayu. Phayu, this is my Sky. He found me and nursed me back to health."

"So are you taking Pai with you now?" Sky asks. "I'll pack his things."

Pai gives Sky his best puppy dog look, "My Sky you know I am still too weak to return to the sea." He gives an obviously fake cough making Sky roll his eyes.

Phayu laughs. Obviously Pai is safe and sound and in full pursuit of this boy's heart. Phayu is slightly miffed at having come all this way for nothing, but glad to see his friend unhurt. He reminds Pai to look after his pelt, this is a literal warning because a selkie's pelt is their life force and their only way to return to the sea. Then he takes his leave of the two. They will just need to work out things on their own, far be it from Phayu to interfere.

Phayu is stopped short by the sight that greets him back at the cave. The boy curled up asleep ON HIS PELT. At first Phayu is outraged by the sight, but then he gets a closer look at the boy. Soft cute good looks despite the bruise on his cheek. He looks so sweet and vulnerable it makes Phayu want to take him in his arms and protect him from whoever hurt him.

The boy stirs and opens his eyes, looking at Phayu with a scared look.

"I won't hurt you little one," Phayu says, "what's your name?"

"Rain. I saw you earlier you were..." Rain blushes at this but Phayu can guess the rest. Rain must have seen him leaving the cave earlier. Humans were odd when it came to things like wearing clothes so he had been embarrassed by Phayu's nakedness.

Phayu moves closer and catches a scent from Rain that makes him freeze. This is a human, Phayu had been almost certain of that fact a moment ago and yet there is a selkie scent around him as well. Not that of Phayu's pelt, every selkie has their own scent and this one is familiar to Phayu although from his distant past. The scent is also very weak as if from a selkie that had been separated from their pelt for a long time.

"Rain do you live in the village?" Phayu asks, keeping his voice calm.

Rain shakes his head, "I live with my mistress in one of the houses outside the village."

"With your mistress?" Phayu asks

"Her father bought me when I was around four and gave me to her as a servant." Rain says.

"Do you remember your life before that?" A memory comes to Phayu of 15 years ago when Phayu had been nine. The cute little selkie pup that had followed Phayu everywhere asking hundreds of questions about everything. One day he had stopped showing up and Phayu had gone to ask his parents what happened. They gave him the sad news that the pup and his family had been caught by poachers and all presumed slain for their coats. Could this boy actually be that little pup? Is that why his scent was familiar?

"I don't," Rain says sadly, "I was told I was found by fishermen at sea and sold to the family but I don't remember anything before that."

"Rain, have you ever seen a pelt like this one?" Phayu motions towards his own pelt Rain is still sitting on.

"No, it's beautiful. The family I live with has many furs but I have never seen one like this." Rain says, brushing his hand along the soft material.

Phayu frowns, if Rain is what he suspects his pelt would have to be kept close by. A selkie that was kept too far from their pelt for too long would sicken and die after a while. The family he served must have it hidden away somewhere.

"Rain I want you to take me to your mistress's house, can you do that?" Phayu asks.

Rain looks scared but nods.

"Don't worry cute boy, I will protect you. They will never hurt you again." Phayu says and Rain can't help but believe him.

Selkies have many magical abilities besides the ability to learn languages. One of their abilities is the power to call water to their disposal. Phayu, like his namesake, is very talented at turning the water in the atmosphere into a fierce storm. When faced with an angry selkie with a raging storm at his disposal what human would not be afraid.

Rain's mistress soon gave in from terror and brought out a small locked truck that Rain had never been allowed to touch. Inside was a tiny pelt from a selkie pup, but as soon as Rain touched it, it shimmered and grew to one that suited his current age. Rain looked at the pelt in wonder.

Phayu would like to rip the woman to shreds for daring to hurt such a precious boy as Rain, but Rain pleads for mercy for his mistress. Although she had often been unkind to him, they had grown up together. Rain didn't have it in his heart for the woman to be hurt. Just being away from her was enough.

Phayu took Rain back to the clan who was amazed and delighted to have their lost pup back. Phayu and Rain grew closer as the days went by, seldom separated from each other. No one was surprised when Phayu took Rain as his mate. The ceremony was attended by everyone in the clan who celebrated the happiness of the two.

Notes:

This is from my discord's May Day game prompts. Prompt if Rain or Phayu were a creature of the ocean what would they be (we were given free reign to go supernatural).