Swim to your daddy,

My little selkie,

Swim to your daddy,

My plucky lad.

When you are grown,

And set for a wife,

Cast your skin aside

And kiss the love of your life.

She shall be your dearie,

You shall be her swain,

Wave to your daddy,

You plucky man.

- as sung by the Captain Amard

Ellis, Jori thought, took it with more calm than he'd expected. The only question he seemed insistent on asking was, "Why don't you sing?"

From where they stood on the Plucky they could see the light from the feasting hall and all the torches from the houses surrounding it. There was a merry bonfire as well. Truly the Viribyr knew how to make up for lost time, Jori mused.

"You are confusing selkies and sirens," Aly said.

The feast was still ongoing, but Jori had excused himself to return to the ship, and Aly had joined him. He wasn't certain why Ellis followed them, but it wasn't as if his company was... unwelcomed. What with his answer to Olkvardr's question, Jori felt like it would be beyond rude to reject him. It would be like Amard, he thought irritably. At least he was upfront with Ellis in what his heritage was even though he had no earthly idea how he was supposed to go about finding his selkie skin.

"No, I'm not sirens are women," Ellis said. "Though I suppose they could be like Giersa. But I thought all sea creatures sing, it's like what Geoffry Ginte writes."

Aly made a choking sort of noise in the back of his throat, "Excuse me? How did you even get your hands on that book?"

"Books," Ellis said, emphasizing the plural. "I got it because the headmaster banned it and I figured why not have a read? It's not that exciting, just some old man rambling on about adventures he had."

Jori knew for a fact that it was not just a meandering tale. Geoffry Ginte was a pen name for many authors and knowing ship Captains and the things they get up to — no pun intended — the book was quite explicit. Ellis truly was sweetly naive and he'd like to keep it that way.

"What did it say about selkies?"

"They're made from Olysa, from long ago," Ellis said. He sat himself down on the railing of the Plucky and pointed up at the stars ahead. "Olysa was sailing on a boat with her father and at the hint of a storm he pushed her overboard. As she fell to Earth, pieces of her broke away, and she started naming them. You get normal animals like whales and porpoises and then she gets stranger as she sinks down to the ocean floor."

"The Church wouldn't approve of that," Aly mused.

"The Church doesn't like most things, they're like Mother," Ellis said with a shrug. "But they're missing out, I liked Geoffry's stories." Then he looked at Aly and Jori and, looking the most mischievous he'd ever seen. "I'm sorry for interrupting you two in Byhill. Maybe if I hadn't stepped on that—" he made a face, "—whatever that was, you might have found your selkie skin." At Aly's flustered blustering and Jori eyeroll he grinned and jumped down from where he sat. "I'll be with Giersa. Are we sailing off in the morning?"

"No," Jori said irritably. "Because I don't sail with drunken and hungover men."

"Safety," Ellis nodded solemnly, "I understand. I'll make sure everyone gets onboard."

The two of them waited for Ellis to leave then turned to look at each other. He could hear laughter and singing coming from the distance, maybe make out his crew's songs among the Viribyrese. But it was his own heartbeat that stood out, and he swallowed, feeling like he'd gotten his own throat stuck with thorns.

"Ellis is quite observant," Jori mused.

"He'd always been," Aly replied. "He told me I didn't look happy on my wedding day. I didn't believe him." He stared at the ocean in front of him, then at Jori. "Was he right though, that you meant to kiss me back in Byhill?"

"I don't know," Jori admitted, and watched as Aly blinked in surprise. "I was just... impressed with you. You must have listened in to Olkvardr, all these years I never thought of such a thing. I wanted to find my father and in the span of a couple of hours I found that he's not entirely the man I thought he was."

"Do you still want to live in his shadow? Do you want to—" Aly leaned in to Jori and even in the darkness he swore he could see every freckle and the light and shadows dancing on Aly's face. "—do you want to be your own man?"

"I do," Jori said, and closed the distance between them.

He wasn't a fool to think that kissing someone was like tasting sugar or sunshine. Nor would it be like eating something, it would be strange indeed if that was the case. There were some poets that compared such a thing to the sweetest thing in existence. Jori scoffed at that. He had seen many sugared sculptures, created some himself, and he had no desire to kiss a confectionery that costed more than most people would make in two years. But the warmth of Aly's hands in his though, that was new, and the beating of his heart was like when he'd found the first of Olysa's artifacts. It tasted like a promise of things to come, like a much longed for reunion.

It had to end sometime. He pulled away first, namely because he felt strangely weighed down, like someone had draped half a dozen blankets over him. It reminded him of his blanket forts as a child, how his mother would chase him around the kitchen while he giggled and hid from her, stolen blanket cape draped over his shoulders. It brought back memories of Amard telling him stories in the night, blankets over both of their heads to muffle the noise because Jori had a bedtime and he only stayed up late because Amard would be gone tomorrow.

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"Jori," Aly said, and he sounded both shocked and awe. "Jori, touch your shoulders—"

"What?"

Whatever was on his shoulder was dislodged as he fumbled for it as it fell to the wooden floor of the ship. It was furry, like the skinned bear cloaks the Viribyr wore, but when he touched it he did not feel an animal's hide. His hand touched the ocean and the coldness that came with it. His ears heard singing, and unlike the tortured songs he heard from before when he found the horn, this one sounded like a soft lullaby.

"It's beautiful," Aly whispered. He held his hands clasped in front of him, as if afraid of touching the selkie skin.

"Why are you holding back?" Jori said, and he pulled the skin entirely off of him before holding it out in front of the two of them so they could both stare at it.

Tonight was a full moon, and as the soft light touched the skin he saw the constellations above reflected onto it. But not on animal fur, a sort of watery surface like the ocean below. Though it was not any constellation either.

"A map," Aly said. "Do you think it leads to Olysa?"

"I don't care for Olysa," Jori said. Aly still kept his hands to himself, even as Jori could see a burning curiosity in those eyes. "Just touch it. What harm could you do?"

The harm, as it turned out, was that the skin disappeared. They both looked at each other, before Jori made a thoughtful noise, "Maybe just kiss me during the full moon. Maybe that's what does it."

Aly looked horrified. "I didn't make it disappear completely did I?"

"Then I'll sail to Olysa and demand her give me back my selkie skin and my father," said Jori. Then he looked towards his own galley, "Do you want to eat something that hasn't been pickled for two years?"

"I do," Aly agreed.

He did not quite remember what he and Aly cooked that night, just that it was not salty and definitely did not stink of fermentation. They fell into his bed in the cabin and did not wake until next morning when the sounds of complaints reached them. How Ellis managed to find every drunken sailor and bring them back onto the Plucky, Jori had no idea. But he was grateful for the boy— his boy's— help.

"Where are we sailing off to, Captain?" said Giersa. There was a knowing look in their eyes that Jori resigned himself to.

"Somewhere in Yichan."

Ralphye, red-faced and sweating from the alcohol gave a drunken chuckle. "Do you think Madam Zhao would respect your new marriage, or would she insist on you marrying her?"

Several heads turned at this, and Aly was the first to interrupt with a astounded, "What on earth are you saying?"

"Didn't he tell you?" Ralphye continued, loose tongued and happy. "The last time we sailed to Yichan the Madam wouldn't let Jori here leave. Because he's such a talented cook and she loves him so much."

"Well, she'll have a hard time," Giersa said. "She doesn't have his selkie skin now does she?"

"I've always wondered why you manage to slip out of so many cages. Of course, we, or you, were always stuck in them because of your haywire plans. But it does make sense now, doesn't it." Ralphye reached forward to pat Aly's back. "You keep a tight hold of that selkie skin now Aly. I don't think Jori can pull off as many of his tricks as he could before."

"You're drunk," Jori said. "Go and sleep it off."

Then he turned to his more sober first mate and said, "Come with me, I have to say good-bye to our host."

Olkvardr, to none of Jori's surprise, was still sober. But it was not with a jovial smile that he waved Jori off but with the look of utmost solemness. "You have to warn the others," said Olkvardr. "For they must all be ready when it happens."

Next to him Llynne was more composed, but to Aly and Ellis he said, "There is a harpy after the two of you."

"Where did Mother get the money?" Ellis demanded, outraged.

"I don't know," Aly admitted, sounding stunned.

"The harpy means more than just your sister and your mother," Llynne said, with a sort of patience that he did not give to Jori.

"Best be off then," Jori said, before Llynne could turn those eyes to Jori and tell him something he didn't want to know. But, it was just his luck because the seer did tell him something anyway.

"You're in good hands, Jori Amardson," said Llynne, and he waved them off with the first grin that Jori had ever seen on the man.

"Creepy," he muttered when he was safely on the ship with his newfound family and crew.

"He smiles like that to Olkvardr all night," said Ellis. "Didn't you see?"

"No," Jori said flatly and decided to interrupt further questions by telling the crew to set sail.

The sailing to Viribyr had been pleasant enough but whatever weather that favored them on the journey here did not looked kindly upon them on the way out towards the nearest captain Jori knew, which was Madam Zhao in Yichan. The wind howled and the waves rocked the Plucky about so hard it was the first time he was genuinely concerned for his life. So he made the order for them to stop by one of the islands. They were on the borders of Westone, and if the Plucky lingered there too long Jori would have to pay another set of bribes to King Hamund's inspectors. The storm frightened the crew as well, and to cheer up the sudden gloom that fell over them Jori suggested that they all stop by the tavern to stock up and perhaps get some warm drinks.

Robaus had looked at Ellis and then Aly and suggested that he would go down with some of the men and come back up again with whatever the rest of them would want.

"Why?" Jori said with a frown.

"It's the border," said Robaus, motioning to the ships around them. "Who else sits around the border of Westone except to collect bounties?"

Ellis waited until Robaus had left with the men to turn to Aly and Jori with a concerned look on his face. "Mother isn't really searching for me is she?"

"I won't lie to you Ellis, I think she would. I still don't know how she would get the money to hire such a man."

"I've threatened to runaway before," Ellis confessed. "And she always told me to go ahead and do it. I did it once, but she found me because I was stupid and used a horse from our stables."

"Let me guess, she said anyone who brought you back could have the horse?"

"No. You haven't met her in years, uncle. She doesn't need money to do things now. She's just very good at telling people and they'll listen."

Jori stared at the serious expression on Ellis's face, "Is this why you were reading up on Geoffry Ginte?"

"To find out if she was a siren? No, she's not a siren," Ellis shook his head. "She just... gets what she wants. I don't know how she does it..." He trailed off and said no more.

It was almost like how Aly used to end his sentences in half-questions. So Jori, at a loss of what to say, suggested that the two of them join him in the galley. He regretted it immediately. It was not possible for three people to be in there, and after some fumbling around Ellis smiled and said he would pass Jori the eggs for a flan through the small window.

"You will do no such thing," Jori said sternly because he saw things breaking and sticky egg residue everywhere.

But he was rather impressed at how Ellis managed to separate the egg whites from the yolk and somehow keep the egg intact. "I can paint on it," he announced cheerfully. "I think Goatsby would like it."

"She'll eat it," Aly said mildly.

They shared a laugh, and then the flan that Jori made. It fell flat, because he had the wrong heat and did not beat the eggs as he should. He didn't even have caramel, but Aly praised it all the same. This was nice... Jori thought, watching the two of them from the corner of his eye. It was like when he was a child again, with his mother and father.

Instead of Amard's frequent trips to the sea and disappearance, his newly found peace was interrupted by Robaus and the crew boarding, pulling the gangplank behind them with an unusual hast.

"Captain, you'll have to see this," said Robaus and he sounded breathless.

He had three portraits in his hand, one of a young Ellis that made the boy gag.

"I don't look like that," Ellis reached for Aly's wanted poster, "You don't look like that!"

It was not Marget that had placed the bounty on them, but it was on behalf of her that Aly and Ellis should be brought back home. For they were bewitched, it said, by a certain Captain—

"That is an entirely wrong spelling of my name! And I am not that pale!" Jori exclaimed.

Giersa who had wandered over, reached for the third poster. "What in the five seas did you do to get yourself on the same level as Aly and Ellis?" they demanded, waving Robaus's poster in the man's face.