Unfortunately, the new octopus legs added aconsiderableamount of weight to Marin’s person, and the suckers were fastened adamantly to the wall of the pool.Blake knew little about the anatomy of octopus legs, but he was afraid that tugging on Marin with too much force was going to end up injuring him.
“Baby, I’m going to need you to let go of the wall,” Blake directed, voice still calm and reassuring.“Can you do that for me?”
Marin shuffled under him, chittering incomprehensibly—but regardless of what he said, the weight of him decreased in Blake’s arms, and with a great heave, Blake was able to haul his torso up out of the pool.Marin scrambled forwards, a single wet leg sprawling away from him and pulling the rest of his body along, limbs slapping the concrete in concentric unfurling coils and tugs as he crawled away from the water.The tentacles inched along by the suckers, glistening as he moved.
Blake tried to follow him, but Marin threw a frightened look over his shoulder, shaking his head so fervently that his hair fanned out around his face.
“Okay,” Blake told him, scooting back towards the pool.“It’s okay.Take all the space you need—I’m right here if you need me.”
Marin looked back down at his new form, spreading the foreign limbs out around him like an eight-pointed star.They were growing paler by the minute, fading from a light, rosy orange to the color of sand.He lowered his torso to the ground, all but cowering as he dropped his head into his palms.While the noise he released wasn’t remotely familiar, some deep part of Blake was able to recognize it for what it was: a sob.
Sorrow slunk down Blake’s throat, pooling in his chest like icy water.His hand flickered towards Marin, aching to reach out, to comfort—but he’d asked for his space, and Blake didn’t dare to violate that boundary.
Instead, he reached out with his words, speaking to Marin in a gentle tone: “It’s gonna be okay.You’re gonna turn back once you start drying off.Remember those times when you turned your fin to legs?Focus on that.Hold that mental image in your mind.”
Between the weak, heart-wrenching, and pitiful noises that he was making, Marin managed a nod, using the sides of his hands to try and slough water off of the cephalopod limbs.
“Don’t worry about forcing it though.I don’t want you to stress yourself out,” Blake continued to coach him, staying in place by the side of the water.“You’re gonna be okay no matter what, all right?I’m right here with you, I won’t let anything happen.Remember to breathe.”
Marin continued to nod, and drew in another breath—it was much more steady than his previous attempts, and Blake praised the action, urging him to hold it for a moment at its peak.
“Good, then release it in a nice, slow hiss—like that.You’re doing great, Marin, keep breathing,” Blake coached him, pulling himself into a cross-legged seat and trying to make himself as small as possible in hopes that it would ease Marin’s anxiety.
A moment later, Marin whimpered, glancing at Blake through the gaps in his wet tresses.His pupils had returned to normal, although they were still blown wide with fright, leaving a thin ring of burnt orange around them.
“B-blake…” he whispered, extending his hand.It sounded like he was talking for the first time, voice hoarse and broken.
“I’m right here.”Blake sat straight up, inching towards Marin on his knees.“Do you want me?”
Marin nodded in desperation, fingers closing around the air.Blake closed the distance between them, allowing Marin’s full weight to disperse in his arms as he fell across Blake’s chest.Marin hooked his arms under Blake’s, rubbing his face into the hollow of his collarbone as he continued to suck in desperate breaths.
“You’re okay, you’re doing great,” Blake repeated the mantra, cupping the base of Marin’s skull and pressing a reassuring kiss to the damp crown of his head.Below them, the tentacles were shrinking and retreating, the base thickening and filling out to look more like a cuttlefish than an octopus.“See?You’re already turning back.”
Marin glanced down at his legs and released a shaky breath that terminated in a small laugh of disbelief.The tentacles were absorbed back into his tail before his fins unfurled like the petals of a translucent flower.
“Oh thankGod,” he groaned, dropping his forehead back to Blake’s chest.Blake reached around with his spare arm to stroke his back, bringing Marin in closer.The wet tail between them split back into human legs, the flesh cold and trembling against Blake’s own limbs.
“Fuck,” Marin whimpered, and something warm dropped onto Blake’s skin.“Fuck,fuck.I’m sorry Blake, I’m so sorry…”
“You’re okay,” Blake continued to reassure him, matching the strength with which Marin gripped him.“You have nothing to apologize for.Nothing happened.”
“I—I…” Marin repeated.He pulled away from Blake, the whites of his eyes stained pink with tears.The dampness trailed light down his cheeks, activating tiny incandescent freckles in its wake.“It’s not okay, Blake—it’snot.I don’t know what happened.One moment I was fine and then I was sohungryand then—”
He looked up at Blake in horror, reaching out to stroke his cheek, as if making sure he was really there.“I had all theseimpulses—I wanted…”
He shook his head, looking disturbed by his own words.“It’s so messed up.”
“It’s okay, you don’t have to—” Blake began.
“No!”Marin pulled away.“No, Blake I—I wanted tohurtyou!”
“But you didn’t,” Blake told him, placing his hand over Marin’s.
Marin sobbed, dropping his head again as his tears overtook him.
“You stopped,” Blake continued to soothe him.“You could never hurt me, Marin.”
“But Iwantedto!”Marin looked up, eyes round with sheer horror.“I wanted to—tobiteyou until youbled.”
