The Selkie's Heart.

One day, a lone man went out on his small fishing boat to get fish. It was a small simple wooden boat. He was very fond of the little thing. It has served him well for twenty years. It was early morning when he went out to sea. The sun was just rising over the horizon, warming his face and bones. He turned 38 that morning, though he looked a bit older than his age. His skin was a dark tan from all his years in the sun. His brown hair gary on the sides of his head also a sign of his aging. He was happy with his age. Most men his age were worn down from all their years on the sea. Today, he wore his faded gray trousers and blue shirt.

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It was rather cold outside as the fall was turning to winter. The air around him was crisp yet inviting. He loved this time of year.He was very weary from tossing and pulling up his nets to catch fish, then re-casting them. He was out there most of the day now. he was very hungry, his stomach growling in protest of not having food all day. He chuckled to himself as he opened a little box he packed before he set out that morning. He pulled out a beautiful red apple and began to eat it. He enjoyed the serenity of the water rocking his boat, the serenity of the quiet day. It was such a comfort to him.

The Sea birds called out to him and he obliged them with some berries and bread he threw overboard for them to swoop down and snatch from the sea before the fish could get a nibble. He noticed a brown seal staring at him. He smiled and offered a fish that he caught that was too small for use other than bait. The seal swam slowly close to the human. Its large black eyes stared at him, through him, to his very soul. The seal's stare made him shiver but toast the fish to the seal and smiled. “There ya go little fella,” he said to the seal. It jumped into the air catching the small fish. The seal resurfaced a moment later and swam closer to the boat. The man laughed and dug through his catch to find another fish. The seal barked happily as he threw another fish. He loved seals. he reached out his rough hands towards the seal. Started by the sudden movement of the boat, it barked and dove back into the depths of the water. The Man sighed.

Then, very suddenly, the sky grew dark. Foreboding clouds warned of a storm coming his way. He pulled up the last of his nets and began to row frantically to shore. His arms felt heavy and burned. His back was stiff, yet he fought the heavy rain and turning waves to get back to the shore. Waves rolled and heaved over the small boat, He struggled to keep his eyes open as the stinging rain and saltwater from the waves burned his eyes. The wind blew harder, rocking his boat this way and that until finally his tiny boat was no longer facing in the right direction. He could no longer see the shore. He pulled on his ores to gain control of the boat, but it was no use.

There was a sudden crack, and the boat began to sink. He panicked, not knowing what to do. He tried to get a tighter grip on the side railing of the boat but a great wave rose and crashed into him. The biting cold of the water and stinging winds were like daggers, stabbing into his flesh and his body started to get heavier. He was so tired. “This is it. I am going to die.” He thought to himself bitterly. He closed his eyes ready to accept his fate, he was too tired to fight them anymore. A sudden wave ripped him from the railing, tearing his hands free and flinging his body into the waves. His body began to sink beneath the wave as he was too weak to fight it. He looked above him watching the surface of the waves moving farther and farther away from him. He let out a bubble, then another. Fish swam by him ignoring his plight.

He sank deeper still until the flashing of lightning could no longer be seen. He felt a sudden jerk, something was pulling him up. Whatever it was he could not see, moved with such speed and it forced him to close his eyes to the stinging of the saltwater. He was slammed into a rock, then he started to feel the sand beneath his feet. His eyes flew open, and his hand grabbed at the sand. He pulled himself up onto the rocks and took a large gulp of air. He crawled his way up the beach and collapsed onto the cold wet sand. He slowed his breathing and shut his eyes once more. There, he fell into a deep sleep.

~~~~~~~~~~

Upon awakening, he realized the sun was starting to set. He searched the area around him; wondering where he was. His mouth was full of sand and tasted like bitter salt. He spat what he could out. His throat was dry and burned from the salt water he had swallowed. His little boat with his day’s catch was gone, smashed into a thousand pieces by the fierce storm that came and went. He was a poor man, and now he had no boat to make his money. He sighed and took a deep breath. He sat up and stretched his arms over his head and shook the sand from his hair.

Something in the corner of his eye caught his attention. A small, swift movement near a thin strand of rocks. So graceful and fluid were the actions that for a moment, he thought he had imagined them. He had after all swallowed a lot of saltwater, which is well known to make you hallucinate.

“Hello?” he called out in a strained voice. There was no answer. He stood up on shaky legs and took a few steps forward. He cleared his throat as he made his way slowly to the rocks.

“Hello?” he said again in a stronger voice.

When he turned the corner of the most massive rock, he saw the most beautiful woman he had ever laid eyes on. He was stunned by her beauty. Long black hair almost the length of her body, and a small perfect face. Her eyes we so dark, they were almost black. 'Big doe eyes', he thought to himself. 'No! Seal eyes!" he corrected himself. 'No, It can't be...' He did not believe in fairy tales.

“Hello there, I won’t hurt you.” He held out a shaking hand for her to take.

She watched him walk closer to her; his movements were clumsy like a toddler learning how to walk. She giggled at him and smiled. Her smile was so beautiful. It made him stop and take a deep breath. There was nothing to compare her beauty to. He reached out more this time with both hands and shyly smiled back. She walked over to him and took his hand.

“I am Aibhlinn.” She said shyly and made a small bow. Deaglan smiled. “You are beautiful.” He said wistfully. She giggled. A tiny wave tumbled onto the shore and caressed their bare feet. That was when he realized she was completely naked. Embarrassed, his eyes snapped back up. “sorry, I have interrupted you.” He said quickly, his cheeks red and burning for embarrassment. He turned and began to walk away. “No, you haven’t.” She said reaching for his hand. “I took you out of the water. “She looked out the waves, “sadly your boat is gone.” She looked down as if ashamed, her long black hair falling over her face. It flowed like Liquid, so fluid were its movements like it had a mind of its own.

“That was you?” he said in disbelief.

“Yes, I am sorry. I saw you, and I liked you. "I tried to make a a soft wind blow you towards me after you were so kind to me, but in my excitement, I accidentally made a storm. I could not control it, so I had to save you, I am sorry about your boat.” She looked over to the shards for wood that was once a boat. She returned her eyes back to him and smiled shyly.

“How far are we from the mainland?” he asked looking out over the sea.

“About nine miles.” She replied shrugging her shoulders. Her hair again flowed and moved like water.

“Damn.” Deaglan thought. That was too far to swim for one person. “Oh, well does that mean we are stuck here?” Deaglan said worriedly, scanning the island for any kind of food or shelter. Plopping down, he began to fiddle with his wet boots, trying to get them on his soaked to-the-bone and sore feet.

No,” she said quietly. “I know a way to get you back safely. We are not supposed to do so. The elders will be very angry with me.” She looked up at him with her large dark eyes. He was a handsome man. She had been following him for weeks. She knew humans were dangerous, always hunting her kind for oil and skins but she was so fascinated with him she did not care. She knew she would live to regret it but loving him would be worth it.

“How can you help?” he asked.

“I will swim from you there.”

“What?!” He was unable to hide his shock. “you can’t swim that far Lass, even if you tried.” He chuckled. She looked at him amused he saw the laughter in her eyes. “I can swim much farther than you can row in a week stranger.” She growled playfully. She spun around on her heels and started to walk away. Seeing if he would pursue her. He began to slowly walk to her, scared he might have offended her. ”He had taken the bait.” she thought to herself.

“Wait!” he shouted. “I am sorry.” He smiled at her. “You are right; I don’t know how well you can swim. I mean, after all, you got me out of the open sea…….” Then his voice trailed off. His eyes became as large as saucers. “But how did you get out so far?” He looked at her again. Her naked form seemed to glow in the light. She strolled towards him, her hand swaying by her hips as she took small steps in the sand.

“I was hunting.” She shrugged as she walked over to the smaller rocks and dug around. She pulled up something small from behind the rocks under a log. He wanted to help her, but the moment he reached out, she grabbed his hands, “NO!” she yelled. “Do not touch it!” Confused, Deaglan cocked his head to the side and stared at her. “You are a strange one lady.” He mused. She had a small rolled-up cloth clutched to her belly; she looked at him. “please don’t hurt me.” She whispered to him. His mouth fell open. He had no idea why she would think he would hurt her. Then, he realized her precious secret.

“Why would I hurt you? You saved my life.” He tried to reassure her. “Because of what I am. Because of what your kind does to my people.” She said, looking into his eyes. “By all the Old Gods, you could fall into those deep eyes.” she thought to herself. His eyes were a deep gray like a stormy day she thought to herself. Deep like the darkest part of the abyss from which she came.

“What you are?” he asked, he had already guessed the truth. Still confused, he took a step back. He had not idea what to say say next but he just needed to hear it, so he would not feel like he was losing his mind.

“yes. I am not human.” She lowered her voice,” I am Selkie.”

“A Selkie?” He could not believe his luck. The bundle she was holding was her seal skin. If he could get it, she would be his forever. “I want to help you across the way,” she pointed out to sea. “but I am afraid you will try to trick me and take my skin.” He suddenly felt a pang of guilt, that was precisely what he wanted to do. But did he have the heart to trap her like that?

“Please Deaglan, don’t hurt me that way.” Her eyes filled with tears. “I will die if I can’t go back to the sea when I want to. He smiled and held his hand out. “I promise I will not take your skin and hide it from you.” She hesitated for a moment and raised her eyes to meet his. The truth was in those deep gray eyes.

“Alright.” She agreed. She pulled out her skin and wrapped it around her body. She walked into the water and then disappeared. A few moments later, Deaglan saw a beautiful brown seal. Its head bobbed up and down staring directly at him. He smiled at her and walked into the water. He took hold of her as she began to swim. He was amazed at how fast she cut through the water. He had a little trouble holding on for a while. When she realized this, she slowed her pace down a bit. The sun was had completely set behind the clouds when they reached the other side. He let her go and walked onto the shore. She dove back into the water. Damn. He thought as he watched her leave. He sighed and began to walk up the beach to the path that would lead home. “Wait!” he heard a voice behind him. He turned around and saw Aibhlinn running up to him. “My legs are not yet ready for the running,” she said laughing. “why? I mean…hello again.” He exhaled the long breath he realized he was holding then smiled. She took his hand, and they walked to his small cottage up on a hill overlooking the sea. Soon after that, they were married.