(As I wrote on Tumblr)

As always, I'm Chelley trash and I did have this soulmate prompt thing saved for over one whole month (haha, beautiful, isn't it?) and never got around to writing for it. Well, tomorrow's the anniversary and holy shit i haven't written anything for it. SO HERE WE GO, HAVE A DUCK!

SOULMATE AU: Writing Soulmate AU!
When you write on your skin the same mark appears on the same place as your soulmates. Such as if you doodle on your skin your soulmates gets those doodles on their skin

Chell didn't know much about her soulmate, other than they really enjoyed drawing ducks on their arms. Yes, ducks. Not even anything special, just- ducks. Ducks drawn in blue marker. Rubber ducks, like the ones in the bath. Sometimes, they'd have a little "Quack" scribbled by them. They looked more of absentminded doodles than purposeful things, but there were so many of them.

It could have been annoying, but Chell liked ducks. At least, she liked watching them. She had sketches and sketches of them in her notebooks from her times observing them. So it was more endearing to see all the little quack-quacks all over her skin.

But usually she kept them covered with long sleeves, for sake of remaining unobtrusive outside. Only once did someone notice, a cashier at the craft's shop. Her sleeves had rolled up a bit, revealing one particularly goofy duck on her wrist while she was paying.

"Yours or the soulmate's?" the cashier asked, a glitter of amusement in his eyes.

Chell quickly tugged her sleeve back over the doodle. "Soulmate," she replied. "I don't draw on myself."

"Well, ever thought of returning the favor? Tried writing to them?"

"No." She knew she could- but drawing on her skin just never really appealed to her. But she never thought of it as a possible means of communication. Hurriedly, she scooped up the plastic bags of pencils and paint, offering a quick "Thank you," to the cashier before rushing out.

Once she was back in the comfort of her own apartment, Chell picked up the first marker she could find. It was one of her scented markers- the orange one. Briefly, she wondered if the marker's scent would carry over to the other, but she dismissed the thought. Chances were they didn't- the ducks never smelt like markers or anything. And even if it did, it was just oranges.

By the goofy duck on her wrist, she drew another duck, It was much more cartoony than what she usually drew, but it fit with the rest of the ducks.

"Aren't you a silly one?" she wrote beside it.

A blot of blue quickly sprang up on her arm, like someone had dropped a marker onto her arm and it bounced off. Just as swiftly, another duck blossomed under her orange one, looking comically startled.

"Oh! Didn't know you were looking!" the words beside it said. "Hope I didn't bother you with them."

She laughed. "Not at all," she wrote back. "Just was suggested to give you a reply, so here we are. 3″

For a week, they exchanged little quips and doodles. They drew other animals: cats, dogs, horses, and a lizard once (it looked more like a worm). But most of the doodles remained ducks. They never bothered with their information- whatever magic that allowed the soulmate to see the other's doodle on their flesh refused to make it easy. No names, no addresses, nothing that can be used to trace back to their soulmate.

But in some areas, the rules were a little loose, and they played with it. Chell told them whenever she was going out, and from how hastily they replied, she assumed they were trying to get ready, in hopes that they might run into each other if they were in the same town.

(It happened surprisingly often for many couples, so the chances were decent.)

Today was no different. After giving a quick message of "Going to see the ducks," she was heading to the park, sketchbook and pencils tucked in her tote bag. It was a pleasant day, and many people were out. Chell waved to the people who she recognized and those that greeted her first.

She finally veered to the quieter side of the park, where she often sat to sketch her surroundings. Most of the time, it was just her, the ducks in the stream, and the rare dog-walker.

But today, today was different. On the bench she often sat, was a tall man, drawing. His clothes were rumpled, as was his hair, and his glasses were hanging rather precariously on the bridge of his nose, but he had an air of excitement and bubbliness that let her overlook his untidy appearance. He looked up from his own sketchbook, and smiled at her.

"Oh, er, hello," the man said. "Lovely ducks, aren't they?"

Chell was about to panic (were her sleeves up?) when she remembered where she was. There were real ducks everywhere. "Yep." Without much else to say, she looked at the bench. "Would you mind if I sat here?"

"Oh, of course not!" The man scooted aside to give her some more room. Chell settled down and brought out her own art supplies. For a while, the both of them were silent, lost in their own drawings.

Then, at some point, he must've looked at her page, because he said, "Oh, so you're drawing the ducks, too. It's always nice to see someone loving the birds. Lovely… plumage."

Chell looked up from her sketchbook, and he continued eagerly, "Y'know, I try to draw them. I really do. They're lovely birds, really, but I can't ever seem to get them right." He showed her his sketchbook. Ducks were scattered across the page, caught in moments in swimming or feeding. It looked like he had tried to imitate the real birds, and having failed, settled with a cartoon duck, much like rubber ducks. Suspicion filled her mind, but she pushed the thought aside for now.

"You might want to start using pencils," she said. "The lines are easier to work with."

"Oh, I would, but I've always forgotten to bring 'em out. And… uh, I always have my marker on me. Pencils don't draw very well on skin, and I do enjoy a bit of… doodling. On my arms." He laughed. "Good thing whoever my soulmate is doesn't seem mind all the ducks. Only bothered to reply a week ago. With an orange duck calling me silly. Smelt like oranges, too. Bless their choice in marker."

Well, guess that suspicion was right.

"…hey, you alright there? You look a bit pale."

Not trusting herself to speak, Chell rolled up her sleeves and showed him all the ducks on her arms.

"That's-" He pushed his glasses back up, blinking confusedly. "Those are… my ducks… Oh. Oh." The man stood up, an impossibly wide grin on his face. It occurred to Chell how tall he was, standing well over a head taller than her. "So you're my soulmate! Didn't think I'd meet you somewhere full of… ducks. Not that I blame you, it's quite fitting, with all our… scribbles. Ah… Ought to introduce myself. Can't go about being rude, can I?" He stuck out a hand. "I'm Wheatley."

She took his hand and shook it. "Chell."

And before they knew it, they were getting married in a duck-themed wedding and had a baby who was obsessed with ducks haha that's my crack ending