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grogusmum · 10 months

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Seven Tears (Part 7 and epilogue)

SELKIE!EZRA X F!READER

WORD COUNT: 3500ish

SERIES SUMMARY: Months after being abandoned, she does something rash and summons a selkie, who wishes to bring her comfort and maybe more.

CHAPTER SUMMARY: After Ezra is forced to make a terrible choice, his Moonbeam goes about setting it right.

WARNING: Olde Timey gender norms and sexism, though set in mid-20th century Ireland, and Ireland's predominantly white, Reader is physically undescribed, as are her blood relatives, her missing spouse, and his family are white. Violence, Drowning, Near Drowning, mention of blood (As always see something say something. Please let me know in my DMs if there is a warning I missed)

Series Masterlist

Part 6

AUTHORS NOTE AT THE BOTTOM

Gaeilge Translations (at the top and bottom of the fic to be closer to where they occur)

Rón Inis Island of the Seals

M’fhíorghrá My true love

Ezra's eyes fixed a path to Rón Inis (Roan Inish), watching for the seals as he began to undress.

“My most sincere apologies to you, Thomas - I am fully aware that this is more than you bargained for.”

Thomas laughed a bit awkwardly, looking everywhere but at Ezra’s backside. And when the first seal was spotted, Ezra pitched himself over the side of the boat. The seals circled Ezra, the pelt in their strong jaws. Once he had it in his hands, something in him changed. With a momentary look at Thomas, he galvanized his plan and his promise, then dove deep into the fathoms, wrapping himself in the seal-coat.

Down, down Ezra went, the pelt and he merging, coming together like raindrops. Bubbles whirled around him, and his seal brothers stayed close to his side. They broke the surface, breaching high in the air, seawater rained down on Thomas and the little outboard. Back in the seal skin, Ezra's lungs grew stronger, and his sleek hydrodynamic body flew through the water. He could not help but show off a few corkscrews, twisting easily, but while his body seemed to celebrate, his mind was on Cee, on reaching the boat before the unthinkable. On he pressed, when his mind gravitated to you pain gripped his chest, then anger would rise again. This cycle continued, round and round, until he could see another seal, a smaller one. He broke the surface for air, and there was Cee, who slammed into him barking and butting her head against his. His barks are stern, eyes searching her.

‘Yer free! What happened?’

Cee told Ezra the tale of her capture and the threats she heard.

‘Chewed clear through the-’ She barked triumphantly, then her brown eyes turned wide. ‘What are you doing here? Like that?’

‘I could never leave you to break free on your own, Cee. Never.’ Ezra rubbed his face on Cee’s.

‘But-’

‘That is not for now. Go to the Rock, get to them. Tell them what happened. I have to see about the Kelly Boys. I will do more than shred their nets’ His bark was a snarl, then Ezra kissed Cee’s brow and took off in the direction Cee had come. He sent the other seals with his daughter, wanting to keep them out of harm’s way.

Ezra fumed. He tried not think on the notion that he needlessly donned his pelt. But he did, and with every passing moment, he was prepared to take down the vessel plank by plank.

Finally, it came into view, he took one more deep breath before going below with no plan to come up until he was on them. Ezra smirked at the ship, it was smaller than a mackerel yowl. He sped up to grab the remains of Cee’s net in his strong jaws and then under the boat he went. The boat lurched, and when he was sure he had gotten their attention, he wrapped the net in the rudder and prepared to board.

Ezra reveled in their shock-turned-horror, from the moment Colin and Jamie grasped what was happening when the first cleat was pulled from the stern after the line got fully tangled in the rudder to the moment he shot out of the water and landed square on the mainsail, still in a harbor furl, and there came a mighty crack. Colin came at Ezra. For any other man, under any other circumstance, Ezra would have admired his puck. But not him, not the man who seems hellbent on your pain. Ezra’s powerful jaws closed on his arm, and there, too, was a satisfying crack, and the taste of blood. Jamie was knocked off the starboard side, and Ezra brought a half-conscious Colin over the side with him. When the cleat broke free, it left a length of line, now attached to the rudder, Ezra took it up in his mouth and wrapped it three times around the two men. Binding them together, to bear the fate they offered up his Cee. He knew no power would offer them reprieve. No silken pelt would save them from their fate. Then he bashed the hull of the boat like a bull until its foundering was assured. When his work was done, Ezra left when without a backward glance.

It is just you and Rory, on Widow’s Rock. You know soon it will be too chilly, that you will have to bring your wee one inside, but for now, you just cannot bring yourself to leave. You need to know Ezra is safe, that he has not come to harm while doing whatever he has done.

“He will come, you know.”

You smile sadly and pat the rock for Cee to sit upon.

“I know. If he can, he will.”

Having gone back to the house, Cee is dressed in some of your old clothes, the blanket folded over her arm. She opens it and wraps you and Rory in it, and you give her a watery smile, then you look back out over the water, hoping to catch a glimpse.

The three of you sit in silence, waiting. Cee smiles first.

Ezra swims up, and you can not help the tearful laughter of relief as he bobs in front of you. His brown eyes, full of sorrow. He comes closer and rests his head on your knee, eyes going from you to Rory and back.

“M'fhíorghrá (MEER-ggrah), my Ezra,” your hand goes to the side of your seal man’s muzzle. He leans in as you caress it. Your tears continue. “‘tis true, we never did finish discussing my joining you in the sea. But we don need to. Mo ghrá, there is nothing else to discuss. I will join you. You have to know I would. Without hesitation!”

Ezra looks at Cee.

“It will have to be. For the magic to work, you must be without reservation,” Cee explains. Ezra keeps a close eye on your reaction, then barks and whines. You look at Cee. “Da said, it is his turn to feel selfish. That he is taking you from what you love.”

Your lips purse in a tight smile, thinking of that day, when he first came to you. Turning, you hand Rory to Cee, and give her the blanket. Then you slip off your shoes and off the rock, then into the cold water. Ezra’s eyes go wide, and then slowly close as you wrap your arms around his neck. His head tucks into the crook of your neck, and his whiskers flex and relax. You stay this way, moments stretching. Only when your start to shiver that you break away from each other.

“What do I need to do, Cee? Please tell me you know.”

“I do, but it can' be done before the full moon.”

The Brennan family sits once more around their supper table, heartsick, but determined to support you. Still, supper sits mostly untouched. Rory, chewing a hard biscuit in the highchair each one of the Brennan children sat in at his age, including your Da.

“Seven Years... What about the baby?”

“He will come with me after I’ve transformed. He is like Cee and will take to it without trial. We just need to prepare him. He will go to the sea, regardless, it’s only a matter of time, he is borne of a selkie man. I will not be parted from my child, nor my love. But Mam, just like Cee, he will be able to visit you any time, even when I can not.”

“When she goes in, it will have to be without qualm, Cee reiterated.

“Which means I - I need to know you to be alright with this choice I am making. Please.”

“What happens if you go in - you go in, and you do have reservations?” Felicia asks.

“She will drown.”

The table silences. You look into each of their eyes, desperate to show your love for them, but your determination to be reunited with Ezra, to have your little family together.

“When I was a child, would you not have followed me, to the moon, if need be? Or Felicia, Hugh, or Thomas?” You look at your parents. Their eyes go bright and with small smiles they nod together, all the assent you need.

Deirdre clears her throat, picks up her fork, and then puts it down again.

“Well, we will have to see about renting one of the Conneeley cottages on the island, then. Much better for Rory’s comings and goings, hmm? What’s the difference, fishing from Rón Inis or here? Hugh, you can go with yer Da and get off to school.” Patrick chuckles, and Hugh looks stunned.

You too are stunned. Whether all of that comes to be or not, your family… your dear family-

“Thank you, Mam, Da- everyone.”

You count down the days. Back on the island, you and Rory go to the water to meet Ezra, and the three of you play with the water. Rory slaps at it and kicks his little feet. Laughing when it comes and trying to follow when it retreats. You can not understand Ezra’s bark exactly, but Rory listens like he does. One morning, changing his nappy, you notice webs between his fingers, you check, and they are between his toes, as well. You wonder if he will leave before the full moon, and you have to remind yourself that you are not being left behind.

“Look at you, more and more like your father each day.”

When you meet Ezra at the water’s edge for Rory’s “lessons”, you show him. Ezra lets out a barking laugh, rolling in the surf. This brings other seals to the beach, Rory laughs at their joyous antics, his dark eyes smiling. Ezra presses against you as he watches his little boy, and then you feel his snout nuzzle you. When you lean into it, Ezra rumbles in his throat and suddenly throws himself into the surf, gamboling excitedly.

You watch the moon swell each night, missing Ezra’s human touch. Knowing what he meant when you told you the bed was too big. You tell yourself it will not matter when you are a seal as well. You hope.

“Well dear, I think you are correct. As a seal, you will be able to,” Tilda clears her throat delicately, “commune with him in a way that will not leave you wanting. I am sure of that.”

“I am truly sorry, Tilda” you cringe, “to be so brash, but-”

“I am glad you came to talk, you must sort out these thoughts, so you are ready with your whole heart for tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow,” you echo. You examine the flip of your stomach. Realizing they are butterflies of excitement. Hoping they are, only, butterflies of excitement.

You talk and she feeds you, and when you leave you feel better. Not only incredibly full of food and still holding on to the warmth of Tilda’s hugs, but just having said it out loud, diminished your fears.

After an endless night, the morning breaks, and Cee helps you close up the cottage. Dust covers for the furniture, and all but a few clothes are boxed up to go to your sister’s, Cee makes sure there is little food to bring to your parents’ with the help of her bottomless stomach. Your mother is adamant that they are moving to the island, and Tilda is for it, but it takes time to move them. For now, Rory’s things are to be left at the cottage, but you box it all up for them.

By lunch, everything is ready, and your brother comes in the jon boat to help bring your things back.

You had thought your transformation would happen off Rón Inis. 'No Widow’s Rock is better,' Cee had told you. When you pondered if it was due to you and Ezra meeting there, if the magic was deeper, Cee shrugged and said, 'Probably, but honestly, Widow’s Rock has deeper waters surrounding it at hightide'… she is a practical girl. You had lunch with your family, Cee, Tilda, and Fergus. It seemed some rumors had started going round, especially after Jamie’s boat was found. Your cousin Courtney, for whom you stood as her Maid of Honor, ended up at your parents’ doorstep.

She met Cee, and Rory. Then she cried and told you she was pregnant and wished the babies could be friends. You gave her a hug and went to your childhood bedroom with your sister. ‘I have to be without regret, I can’t be worrying about Courtney’, you told her, and Felicia threatened to tell her off.

As the moon rises, in a simple dress, you stand on Widow’s Rock, the water lapping at your feet. Your family watches from high on what is left of the beach, the full moon’s high tide taking more of it than usual. Seals watch from the rocks further out. Ezra, Cee, and Rory are in shallow waters where the land and ocean meet. You think only of your goal, your desire. Your goodbyes have been made, besides it’s not goodbye. It is 'until we meet again', your Da had said. And you repeated, 'until we meet again'. You look at Ezra, Rory, and Cee. Ezra is itching to be with you. You can see it in his keen eyes. Cee holds Rory, who watches with interest at what his mummy is up to. Ezra nudges Cee, and with a nod, she calls -

“It is time.”

Without hesitation, you plunge into the deep waters. Opening your eyes in the cold and dark as you come out of your dive and break the surface, the water is like glass. Kicking your feet to stay afloat as you unbutton your dress, trying not to think too much about your family on the shore. You let the dress go. Then, turning to orient yourself toward Ezra and Cee, you await what is to come next. But there is no more instruction. Seals and selkies you presume, slip gracefully into the water from the rocks and encircle you. You know you need to take deep breaths and ready your lungs. As they surround you, long trails of seaweed in their mouths. As Cee had explained, you take the ends of several and hold them at your chest and the seals circle winding the kelp tightly, binding your arms across your chest. You can hear Cee talking, but it's not to you, perhaps an explanation to your family. With your arms bound, your legs work harder. Soon, there is a tickle of vegetation against your legs. You marshal your breath, deep and controlled. It will happen soon. You can still hear Cee. She’s a good girl, you think, as you begin to sink, one last breath to take in and hold. Not that you expect it to save you, just give you time. To your family, you think, don be afraid. Legs and arms bound tight by the wrappings. All you can do is sink below. Was that Ezra calling you, barking for you? Sounds muffle. You can still see the moon. You focus on it. The seals orbit. Your lungs scream, and you try not to let your body's instinct to thrash take over as bubbles start to rise from your nose. You can not hold onto that last precious breath of air any longer. You only feel the animals now, their flippers grazing you gently.

'Tabhair chugam mo chóta róin síoda' (tur xu’m mu xo t-uh roan shi d-uh), you think just as everything goes black, 'Ezra, m’fhíorghrá, táim réidh.' (MEER-ggrah, Tam REEg)

(Translation: Bring me my silken coat, Ezra, my true love, I am ready)

Ezra watches your slow descent into the sea, he waits as the surf pulls at him just as every instinct in his body and mind is screaming to go after you, but to go in early could ruin all. He looks to Cee, knowing she will be the one thinking more clearly on it. She is watching the spot where you disappeared below the surface. His worried eyes follow hers just as bubbles appear, and he can hear your family murmuring. Then the murmuring turns to keening.

Ezra crashes into the water, and like a bullet, he speeds to you. You aren't far, and seals still swim around you. Ezra sees you when they break formation. Broken ribbons of seaweed still wrapped around your form. He comes in and kisses your muzzle, nips your neck, and starts to pull away the let over bindings.

You startle awake, eyes opening wide, and you see Ezra. He kisses and wraps himself around you as you rise through the depths, to the world above. Your sleek body is now perfectly suited to the cold waters.

The cheers and cries of relief sound when you breach and make for land.

On the strand, right where you left them is Cee and Rory. You come up to them, Ezra by your side. Cee puts Rory down, and he pats your head, and Ezra barks a laugh.

"Alright Rory, your turn," Cee says.

How will you ever fully repay Cee? She is still a child and has been a teacher and guide, like no other.

Rory slips into the water like the little Waterbaby he is, between you and Ezra. You feel him beside you, rolling in the surf, instinct telling him what to do. His hand runs down your flank, you feel his little feet, then after another roll, they no longer feel like hands and feet but flippers, his soft skin now furry. You lift a flipper to look between Ezra and yourself, and there is a fluffy seal pup, barking happily.

You cover him in kisses, barking, 'What a clever boy you are'.

Ezra nudges him with his nose and kisses his head.

Your human family rushes to you, cheering and well-wishing. You look up at them all, and you hope your face can express how much you love them and how you can never fully express how much their support has meant.

In all the commotion, Cee's transformation has gone unnoticed until she is in the water with you, a seal again.

The four of you bark happily at the Brennans and slip into the sea. One backward glance sees them waving.

You know that for your family seven years with feel like a long time, but you will be back.

You and Ezra, with Rory and Cee, make for Ròn Ins, the Island of the Seals with your selkie family, whole and safe.

"And just before the stroke of midnight, they have made it back to sea

And she's donned that magic seal-coat and become a maid selkie.

Now they've gone into the ocean, hand in hand into the sea,

She has gone along -- a fair seal-bride for her selkie."

The Maiden and the Selkie (Heather Dale)

Epilogue

Seven years later…

Your Mam had done as she promised. She, your Da, and brother Hugh moved house to the island. Felicia and her husband moved into the Brennan house behind the fishmongery, and Thomas stayed on the mainland as well, working the family business.

Your time as a seal moved quickly, and you loved it. You visited both the strand of your village and the sands Ròn Ins to see your family, but you looked forward to being able to talk to them, and hold them.

On the day that marks the seventh year, you and your pod excitedly follow the jon boat that brings Felicia and Thomas to the island. With them is Felicia's husband Dermot, a child, and what looks perhaps like a friend of Thomas'.

On the sand are Dierdre, Patrick, and Hugh, a young man now, cheering your return.

The four of you galumph your way right into your cottage to take off your pelts. Ezra and Cee, of course, pull them off without hesitation. Rory, who has visited his Nana and Granda often over the years, also pulled open the invisible seam without a second thought. You, however, balk. Cee and Rory dress quickly as they make their way out to the many hugs and kisses awaiting them, leaving you with Ezra.

Your beautiful seal man kneels next to you, his warm wide hand cupping your snout.

"Pearl, it is alright, mo stóirín (mu store-EEN), take your time."

You pull at the seam, and your seal-coat pulls away. Your head and shoulders emerge, and your arms come around Ezra's neck. You laugh, and you notice it's a bit more of a bark than before. Half in and out of your silken pelt, Ezra has you, and just as that first night, so long ago he turns you in his strong arms so you are on his lap, as your pelt slips the rest of the way off.

Rocking you slowly, his face in the crook of your neck Ezra murmurs-

"Mo shíorghrá (muh HEER-ggrah), Nil aon tintean mar do thintean fein" (neel ain tintin marr duh hin-tin fane)

"Ezra, m’fhíorghrá, (MEER-ggrah) you are my home."

The End

Gaeilge Translations

Tabhair chugam mo chóta róin síoda, Ezra, m’fhíorghrá, táim réidh Bring me my silken coat, Ezra, my true love, I am ready

Mo stóirín my little treasure/darling

Mo shíorghrá My eternal love

Nil aon tintean mar do thintean fein there is no hearth like your own hearth

💚THANK YOU FOR READING💚REBLOGS AND COMMENTS ARE MUCH APPRECIATED💚

If you care to read more of my stories you can find my masterlist here and if you would like to be tagged for any of my fics you can find my handy dandy taglist form here.

A/N: Well, we've reached the end of the tale of the Seven Tears, and I can't lie, I am feeling pretty emotional about it. I am so very grateful to everyone who took the time to read it - waiting for unpredictable updates, including an unintentional break of a year. To those that shared their thoughts about it, sent requests and seal pics and gifs, found comfort in it, and cheered me on, a very special shout out.

Topping out at 21k words (not including the side fics), about the size of a novella, this little story has meant a lot to me. Selkie stories are bittersweet at best, but most often frought with sorrow and yearning for what one can't have. I've always known I would subvert this with my fluff, with the hope it would not come off too... saccharin. I've thought about tinkering with it more, but I think that's down the line. For now, I am content. And I hope you are too, dear readers. 💚

I know I will visit them again, and asks and requests are always welcome.

#ezra prospect #ezra prospect au #ezra prospect x you #ezra x you #ezra x f!reader #selkie ezra #selkie!ezra x f!reader #selkie #seven tears #pedro pascal character fic #pedrostories #selkie au

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