Agatha gasped. “I remember that year!” It had been particularly horrid—her parents had taken up with the Montclieff family, and their son Jared was deemed a suitable match for her, though she was but thirteen years old at the time. He had abused her terribly all week long under the guise of "being mannerly"--goading her, teasing her, chiding her, and even handling her quite roughly, completely unnoticed by their parents… and her one solace (in the mysterious absence of Major’s almost constant presence) was the cheery robin whose melodious twittering never failed to lift her spirits. She stared at Celian in astonishment. “That was you?”
The tall man nodded. “I could be all manner of animals, but never human until the young girl, Madeline Grove, discovered me on the beach, and allowed me to take her hand.”
Agatha slowly nodded, a smile creeping back over her face, after the horror of the revelations had faded. "Ah, so that's where she comes into this."
Celian nodded. “Yes. I had been wounded, you see, and could only manage as far as the very edge of the tide the night before, and I might have been there long enough for the tide to go out again and another human--not as friendly--might have discovered me and done away with me entirely... but instead, a brave little girl cared enough to see an injured creature and immediately want to help." It warmed him, thinking about her selflessness over again.
Agatha's mood had shifted. She seemed more relaxed now, and smiled. "Yes, she is very brave, indeed!" she agreed.
Celian studied the woman before him. This was it, this was the moment where it could all come crashing down--or lift him higher than the clouds. "And it is due to her bravery, and staunch belief in me, knowing what I am, seeing me for who I truly am," the words tumbled from his mouth, "that I want to know, Agatha--will you also accept me?"
Her elation faltered, and she straightened a little. "Accept you?"
"My hand, I mean," Celian gestured toward her, "in courtship. Agatha--I'm in love with you and I--"
"Please!" Agatha stood, whirling away from him, her hands upon her cheeks.
Celian felt his insides shudder like a pod of jellyfish. "I understand if you want to think about it first--after all, I've had a long time to get to know you, but you didn't meet me in my human form until recently... But if you think about me in the personalities of all those different animals you befriended--"
"Stop!" She turned to face him, raising her hand to silence his flow of words.
He waited, watching expectantly, only to see the astonishment on her face dwindle into disappointment. “Celian…” she whispered.
He looked hopeful, leaning toward her. “Yes?”
Agatha wagged her head. “I can’t,” she said softly. “You must understand, I do appreciate all that you’ve done for me, the fact that you’ve been a true friend to me, even when I didn’t know it—but…” she sighed in distress. “I cannot love a man—who isn’t even a man! I value your continued friendship, I do! But…” her voice trailed off when she saw the stricken expression he wore.
“Agatha.” Celian slowly rose to his feet, and Agatha found herself standing along with him. He took her hands, and she looked up to meet his gaze. "That's what I've been trying to tell you, the important thing that Madi did--I can still shapeshift, it is true... but this form you see now will always be my natural form, from here on out."
She peered up into his multicolored eyes--no longer strangely marbled as they had been, but a deep blue, with tiny iridescent flecks of color, like glittering sea foam. "You mean..." she said, "no more..." a blush crept into her cheeks, "well, m-monster? With the--" She looked down at the hand grasping hers and could not restrain a little shudder as the cool, slimy feel of the tentacle around her ankle returned.
Celian closed his hand, letting her feel the warmth radiating from his skin. "Never, if you do not wish it. As well as I can be, I am human. Now you know the truth, and there need be no more secrets between us, not from me." He brought her hands together between them, and she looked up into his eyes again. "Will you let me court you, Agatha Dalton?"
Agatha stared at him for a long while, her mind racing with a million thoughts at once—but every thought reached the same conclusion.
“Yes!” she said, wrapping her arms around his neck.
Celian leaned in closer, and their lips met. When the moment ended, she drew back, sliding her hands down over his shoulders, to curl against him, wrapped in his strong arms. After a moment, he felt her flinch.
“What is it?” He leaned away to look into her face.
Agatha shifted to stand beside him, and took a seat on the sofa, motioning for Celian to do the same. She wore a grave expression. “Celian, I want to ask you something,” she said slowly, “about what happened yesterday.”
Celian felt the old unease creep in, but he reminded himself that he was human now; he no longer needed to fear a break like the one she spoke of. “You’re wondering why I ran away,” he guessed.
Agatha nodded. “I suppose it might have had to do with me; after all, the same thing happened to you when you met me in the general store.”
Celian blinked, “Oh no, it wasn’t you!” he said quickly. “It was—“ old habits made it difficult to get the words out. “It happens, when something happens to me in an alternate form, to trigger old memories I have from yet another form;
