Only Sora. Every time she calls him Plum, he thinks, I'm her favorite. She never uses nicknames for anyone but him. It’s how they register now.

How the fuck am I going to explain this to Sora?

One last time as a Shark.

“They are a great migration of fish that have come to spawn on the shore.” That is how Sunshyne described the approaching armies when I asked her how many there were. “Too many to be counted,” she said. They are drawing towards the battle line. Closer. Closer. Closer. “We have Finian,” Elska reminds them. Always, she reminds them who we have and who they do not. “Our Alpha stands in front of the pack, not being protected behind warriors.” She laughs, and Sunshyne sta

I have always been prepared for the deep dive. I never prepared for it to be on land.

“You brought a lot of stuff, Kimmie.” “Hazie, I see you brought yourself, per usual.” “I brought the drinks.” “Per usual.” “What’s that supposed to mean?” “I mean, if drinks are to be brought, you’d be the one to bring them.”

“Do you believe in mercy?” Bessa asks the mothers who still have their pups latched to their breasts. The Far North females nod their heads as if they know what is coming next. My throat tightens between grief and anger, but I nod with them. A group of us understands what it means to be the Far North. We understand mercy. “If we refuse?” A female from another pack with building rage asks.

“Starvation is suffering,” she said. “Spare the suffering.” His red-rimmed eyes find mine. It seems his floodwaters are still raging, deep enough that he is finding it difficult to swim. I will not let him drown.

The sudden compulsion to fall to my knees dissolves my bones into a jellyfish, without structure. To look upon her is to look through the salt of the sea as it stings my eyes. I have to blink and focus on something else, not all of her at once. Little parts, then look away. Look back, then away. It is hard to concentrate. Sickle claws. Blink my eyes. —long fangs past her bottom lip. At times, she starts to wobble out of focus, but the sound never stops. Constant. Consta

“He’s beautiful, isn’t he?” I make sure to hold eye contact with Sayda as I hold her mate’s pup in my arms. The corners of my mouth pull upwards slightly.