[. . . not like a ghost. Not a ghost, and not like a sinuous sea creature, magic clinging to its scales. Not like a fish, even a big fish . . . smooth like something that belongs in the sea, but moving through it the way people fall through air, rather than splash through puddles.

Is he scary? Does he have big teeth? Her head tilts a bit, following the sound and the pull of the ache in her chest, a feeling like deja vu except too much is missing for this to be anything but a first time.]