"Show me." Something in her voice grounds me, pulls me back from the spiral of defeat.
Rain has lightened to a drizzle when we leave the tower. We follow a different path than the one to the sacred caves, this one more hidden, known only to my family. The entrance tucks behind an outcropping that looks impassable until you know the way through.
The cove opens like a secret. Protected on three sides by high cliffs, accessible only at low tide, it's been my sanctuary since childhood. Water here runs impossibly clear, revealing every stone and shell on the sandy bottom. Tide pools dot the rocks, filled with anemones and starfish and tiny crabs that scuttle away when we approach.
"It's beautiful." Isla's whisper holds reverence.
"This is where my father taught me what it means to be guardian." I lead her to a flat rock where we can sit and watch the waves. "Every Hale guardian brings their child here eventually. Shows them the cove, explains the responsibility, makes sure they understand what they're choosing before the duty becomes official."
"What did he tell you?" She settles beside me, close enough that our shoulders touch.
"That being guardian means sacrificing everything else for these waters. That I'll never have a normal life, never be able to leave the island for long, never be free of the weight of watching and waiting." My father's face rises in my mind, the way helooked when he spoke those words—worn but certain. "That I'll probably die defending these places, just like he will, just like his father did before him. And that despite all of that, it's the most important work in the world."
"Do you believe that?" Her question comes gentle.
"Yes." I don't hesitate. "These waters matter. What sleeps beneath them matters. Protecting it all from people like Carrick who would exploit it for power—that matters more than my comfort or happiness or life."
"But?" The word hangs between us.
"But I never expected to find you." My body turns toward her. "Never thought I'd have a mate who understands what this duty costs. My father had that with my mother. He told me I'd probably have to choose between guardianship and partnership because few people can handle being tied to someone whose first loyalty is always to the sea."
"I'm not asking you to choose." Her hand finds mine. "I understand the duty. I feel it too now. These waters are part of me, same as they're part of you."
"I know." Lifting her hand, I press a kiss to her knuckles. "That's what makes you perfect. That's why my bear recognized you as mate before I even understood what was happening."
Mate. Not girlfriend, not lover, but something deeper and more permanent. The claiming ritual hovers unspoken, the promise of forever binding us together in ways that transcend normal relationships.
"Tell me about the claiming." Isla's voice stays steady despite the magnitude of what she's asking. "Not the mechanics—Moira explained that. Tell me what it means to you. What you want it to mean for us."
She deserves honesty. "It means you're mine and I'm yours, permanently and completely. It means we face everything together—the good and the terrible, the victories and the losses.It means when I die defending these waters, you'll feel it. And when you're in danger, I'll know it before anyone else because we'll be connected in ways that go beyond physical proximity."
"That sounds terrifying." But wonder threads through her words, not fear.
"It is terrifying." I won't soften it. "The claiming ritual isn't romantic in the way humans think of romance. It's primal and permanent and irrevocable. Once it's done, there's no going back. We're bound until death, and even then, the bond echoes in ways that make it hard to say where one of us ends and the other begins."
"And you want that?" She watches me carefully. "With me?"
"Yes." The word comes out more certain than anything I've ever said. "I've spent my whole life alone, convinced that guardianship meant solitude. But you've changed that. You understand the duty, embrace it, want to fight beside me rather than asking me to choose between you and the waters. My bear recognizes you as mate. My human side wants you for forever. And if you'll accept the claiming, I'll bind myself to you gladly."
Silence stretches between us. Waves roll in steadily, providing background music to the most important conversation of my life. When she finally speaks, her words carry weight, finality.
"I want it." My heart slams against my ribs. "I want the claiming ritual. I want to be bound to you permanently. I want to face everything that's coming together, connected in all the ways that matter."
Relief and joy crash through me in equal force. "When?"
"After." Her jaw sets with that steel I've come to know. "After we've dealt with Carrick. After these waters are safe. After we've won."
The qualification stops me. "Why wait?"
"Because I won't claim happiness while the threat still looms." Her eyes hold mine. "I won't bind myself to you and then watch you die because Carrick caught us off guard while we were distracted by being newly mated. We fight first. We win. Then we claim what's ours."
Logic lives in her words, even as my bear howls with frustration. He wants to bind her to me now, while I can, before anything can take her away. The claiming ritual would complete her selkie awakening, make her stronger, give her access to powers that could help in the fight ahead.
Clear heads and focused purpose—that's what we need for what's coming. Getting claimed now would be a distraction neither of us can afford.
"After we win, then." I pull her against my chest, feeling her heartbeat steady and strong.
"I am certain." She tilts her head up to look at me. "I've spent my whole life feeling like I didn't belong anywhere. Now I know why. I was meant to be here, with you, protecting these waters. The claiming ritual is just making official what's already true."
