#//I FORGOT TO POST YESTERDAY DHJASJDSADASDSDSA [barks at light in corner of room]

[thunderstroked]

A Selkie and a Gumiho Walk Into a... || Mona & Marcus

TIMING: current-ish. LOCATION: harborside, near marcus's lighthouse. PARTIES: @thenavysealkie & @thunderstroked SUMMARY: marcus sees something suspicious. mona is just trying to eat her fries. CONTENT: none!

Maybe Harborside wasn’t the best place for an electrically charged fox, but that didn’t stop her from visiting the coast. Growing up in Busan, and then later on moving to Dublin, Mona had become used to the water. The ocean had a calming aspect to it– one that, at most times, felt more welcoming than the dense copse of trees falling on the side of a highway, or up a mountain pass. She wasn’t naive enough to believe it could be her permanent reality given what she was capable of, but it didn’t stop her from admiring the way that the waves rolled over the shoreline. Today, however, she found regret in her adventure. 

The chips she held onto tightly were being terrorized by the seagulls flying above her head. When one would dive, another would swoop, and she would hover over the styrofoam box, swatting above her head, hopeful that the birds would leave her alone. To no avail, they continued their attacks. They were normal seagulls as far as she could tell– nothing too odd about them. But they wanted her fries, and that was enough to piss her off. “Can you just fuck off?!” She swatted her hand again, catching the leg of one of the gulls, sending it in an awkward spin towards the ground, but it caught itself at the last moment, circling back around to try and grab at the paper lining. “Enough!” Mona shouted, a blue orb materializing out of thin air from her opened hand. It shot across the short distance to the bird, making it fall into the ground in a heap of charred feathers. She stared down at it, wrinkling her nose. It took her a moment to realize she was not alone. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw movement, and not the foamy kind. 

It was mid afternoon and Marcus was doing his usual rounds. As the weather grew colder, there was less foot traffic on the beaches and therefore less litter. However, he still remained vigilant, not wanting even a single marine creature to be harmed by any garbage he could have picked up. After all, he knew first hand how terrifying it was to swim head first into a massive garbage pit. 

He saw a group of gulls circling overhead, and wondered what they must all be convening by. Then he heard it, a woman’s voice. And she didn’t seem particularly pleased with the birds circling overhead, either. He heard her shout as multiple seagulls started dive bombing her. As he got closer, he saw that she was holding what he presumed to be a bag of chips or fries. He knew firsthand how relentless they could be once they spotted some food, and he hoped she could make it inside somewhere without too much more harassment from the birds. 

Then…the unexpected happened. 

A crack of lightning, and the smell of burning soon filled the air. One of the birds lay in a pile of burned plumage in the sand, as if some sort of vengeful god had smited the creature right out of the sky. But Marcus didn’t believe in that sort of thing, the reality he knew to be true was already far too strange. He moved closer and shifted his eyes over to the woman. 

“Well uh…that’s one way to get the gulls to back off” he said awkwardly, knowing he had been spotted.

Mona nearly jumped out of her skin as the voice came near. She turned around, sizing up her company. They were significantly taller than herself, but that didn’t matter much. She wasn’t a fight first kind of girl, and she hoped she could maintain some kind of composure regarding the situation, or at least fake it. 

“I’m not a killer, but he was asking for it.” She looked down at the charred bird and frowned. “Circle of life, right?” Not so much, Monathought, but she felt confident in her decision to strike the bird down. Maybe it’d teach its friends to not fuck around and find out. 

Inhaling sharply, she popped another fry into her mouth and began to chew thoughtfully as she looked the person across from her up and down. “Where did you come from?” Water droplets formed on his arms and face, and behind him she could see something odd– like a heap of clothing, but it wasn’t clothing at all. It wasn’t anything she’d ever seen before. 

“The water?” She sniffed at the air, the smell of salt water and brine filling her nose. 

Marcus didn’t especially appreciate this woman’s blatant disregard for life. After all, how would she feel if someone came up and zapped her just for trying to eat? But he had to sympathize at least a little bit, those damn birds could get real annoying real fast. 

“Not like you killed a person, I’m more concerned about the murder weapon though” he said, pointing to the woman’s hand. “Circle of life…” Marcus pondered, “I’m guessing that means you intend to eat the bird? Seems a bit burnt to me, but to each their own”. Much of this town was beyond what any person would deem normal. A person shooting lightning out of their hands didn’t even crack the top 10 of weirdest shit he’s witnessed. But that did mean the woman had some degree of magic, which he was hoping to possibly subtly sap away if he got the chance. 

“I was just out for my morning swim,” Marcus said, taking an immediately more defensive tone. She seemed a bit suspicious of him, but figured she couldn’t come to any supernatural conclusion yet. After all, it’s not like she watched him change forms. It certainly wasn’t as if she saw actual lightning fly out of his hand, like what he witnessed with her. 

She was eyeing his pelt. Did she know what it was? Maybe she’d think it was just some weird looking swimsuit? He didn’t know whether to hide it or act nonchalant, he definitely didn’t want to make her think it was anything out of the ordinary. But it looked exactly like what it was, a seal pelt. How many people casually carried those around at the beach?

“Let’s get off of what I’m doing here, though. Do you want to explain the little lightshow you just put on?”

Mona quirked a brow at his words. She wasn’t sure why it mattered. Weren’t seagulls an invasive species? Wasn’t she helping the community? The earth? Probably not. She really didn’t know, and she really didn’t care. It was a bird, and there’d be dozens more where it came from. She looked down at the charred gull, considering what it’d taste like. She’d figure that out later, if her company really insisted upon it. 

“Not so much a murder weapon as it is a form of protection.” There was something off about the person standing across from her, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it. “But to each their own.” Mona mirrored his words, a small smile pulling at the corners of her mouth. 

She looked past him to the water. The temperature had dropped considerably over the weeks, and she could only imagine the freezing quality of the water. “In October? You’re not doing… what do they call it– the polar plunge?” She had a friend in Dublin who had participated in something like that in the middle of November. It was odd to watch. 

He looked behind him towards something– the something on the ground. So it was important. She didn’t really care, not really. Mostly, she was annoyed that she’d been stopped. The question popped up again – 

Do you want to explain the little lightshow you just put on?

Mona shrugged. The foxfire was a part of her, it was easy to explain, but to somebody who seemed a little too interested– that could mean danger. 

“Static electricity?” Mona offered with a coy smile, popping another fry into her mouth. She wiped her hand off on the side of her pants. “Why does it matter? What would you want with it?” Because that was the angle here, wasn’t it? 

As the woman in front of him explained her powers were only for protection, Marcus gave a slow nod. “Those beaks can be pretty sharp, I can see why you found it necessary to protect yourself.” he remarked, a bit condescendingly. 

“Just don’t see that kind of thing every day, that’s all. I actually think it’s pretty cool, being able to bend lightning completely at will like that”, he offered, daring her to say outright that she had lightning powers. 

“You’ve never heard of cold water swims?” He offered weakly, knowing no human would have the layer of protection his blubber offered him to keep them warm or even alive for long in freezing waters. He’d have to be a bit more careful about timing his swims in the future so nobody would catch him coming back from the water. And randomly approaching lightning benders probably didn’t help keep things low key, either. He took a step to the side, using his body to block the woman’s view a little more.

While Marcus didn’t particularly relish in his need to sap magic, William was no longer recharging the pelt for him. He had to find his own victims, as much as he disliked causing any harm to people. He thought back to what the woman had said just a few moments ago. Circle of life. He supposed he was no different after all. 

“If you could come a little closer, maybe you could display your gifts a little more in detail for me. After all, it’s not every day you get a performance that’s so electrifying”. 

He had to admit, he sucked at this whole “lying” thing. He’d have to get better, for his own sake. In the meantime, he hoped his natural charm and good looks would compensate for the actual words that left his mouth.  

Mona rolled her eyes at his comment. “I was protecting my food.” She thought about bringing up the invasive species bit again, but what if this guy was some kind of science geek? Then she’d have to explain she was stupid, and she refused to do that. For right now, at least. Maybe she’d play the dumb girl card if she needed to. 

As he spoke, Mona felt discomfort shoot through the scarring that elongated from her neck down her arm and shoulder. “It’s a little different than that.” Wasn’t so much lightning as it was something within her– a power she held and that was deeply rooted to her core. She didn’t expect this person to understand, especially if they were human. So far, there wasn’t anything indicating that they weren’t. 

“So it is like the polar plunge, then.” She nodded as if it made the most sense in the world. Of course people would do something as stupid as that. She didn’t understand why somebody would want to be uncomfortable. She wasn’t lavish by any means, but she sure as hell didn’t go out of her way to crawl into tight spaces for the sake of some record. Mona barely noticed the side-step he made in an effort to block her view. She was too concerned with what he had seen and what he thought of it. 

She wasn’t sure what he was trying to benefit from in seeing her abilities. She’d meant to send out an orb, but her abilities had their own way and sent a zap instead. It’d been her fault and she knew that, using them where others could have seen, but she hadn’t seen him. That was the problem. Mona ate another fry. “Is that some kind of…” Her brows furrowed as she tried to remember the term, “are you hitting on me? I am trying to enjoy my fries, and I’m sorry, but you’re not my type. I’m incredibly gay. Do you have a sister? Maybe we could hit it off and she could tell you what she saw and relay it back to you.” She popped another fry into her mouth. 

This woman was hiding something, Marcus was sure of that. And it was something more than just her strange lightning power. He found it awfully bold of her to be playing coy after he literally saw lightning shoot from her hand like she was fucking Raiden from Mortal Kombat. Then again, it wasn’t as if he was trying to play the whole “out of sight out of mind” game with his pelt, so he had a bit of secretiveness of his own. 

“A little different? I’d love for you to explain it then.” He was genuinely curious how the abilities worked, as he felt he never stopped seeing new things in this town. He had met all sorts of creatures, but a real life lightning bender was something different entirely. If it wasn’t the type of magic he could steal, he could at least walk away from the encounter with a very interesting story to tell. Not that he was low on stories from this town. 

“You could call it…something like that. It helps open up your pores, it’s supposed to keep your skin from wrinkling. Gotta keep up these looks somehow”, he finished with an awkward shrug. He decided not to try and make up any further explanation, figuring the less he said the better off he would be. 

The woman’s rejection was actually a bit welcome for Marcus, even though he was still a bit offended by it. Normally he was used to women throwing themselves at him and he would always have to be the one to drop the “I’m gay” bomb. This was a refreshing change of pace for him. 

He chuckled a bit and said “No, not a come on at all. In fact, I’m also incredibly gay. And while I’d love to tell you I have a sister to set you up with, sadly I’m an only child. But maybe you have a brother?” he added, with a raised eyebrow. At this point, he was getting a tad sidetracked from the woman’s magic, but was starting to genuinely enjoy the company. He was also starting to relax a bit to the point where he stepped to the side a bit, enough to where his pelt came back into the woman’s line of sight. 

The smell of the sea was too strong to discern any other scents. Mona did her best to appear unbothered by his request, but there were some faults in her expression as she ate another fry. Soon enough, they’d be gone and she’d actually need to speak. “What kind of explanation do you want? You believe in what you saw then, right?” She tilted her head to the side, gaze fixed on the space just behind him. Maybe he was hiding something from her. What could he possibly be hiding? Her mind ran through the possibilities. 

As he explained the benefits of icy baths, Mona hummed under her breath. She knew some of those things to be true, but whether or not he was being truthful in telling her about them was a whole other thing. “That’s funny. It comes easy to me.” The being beautiful part, she didn’t bother to add. He’d figure it out, or he wouldn’t. It wasn’t her problem. 

Mona picked up a fry, jutting it through the air at him. An expression of understanding peeled across her features as she nodded. “This somehow makes more sense.” It was a wonder he hadn’t tried to use his looks in order to get more information out of her on what he’d seen. Instead, he was asking bluntly. She scrunched up her nose. “I do, but I’m afraid they’re miles away from here, and we’re not really speaking at the moment.” Another fry into her mouth and she was closing the lid on the styrofoam box. He took a step to the side and on the ground was the unmistakable heap of something. It wasn’t like anything she’d ever seen before, but at the same time, it was familiar. She couldn’t put a finger on it. 

It was clear he was trying to hide it from her. She pointed at it. “I’ll tell you my lightning stuff if you tell me what you’re hiding.” 

Marcus had to admit, this woman was very confident. Even more so than he was, and that was saying something. Although he did have to admit, her habit of popping a seemingly endless supply of fries into her mouth while she spoke to him was starting to grate on his nerves a bit. Hadn’t anyone taught this young lady any manners? 

“I believe in what I saw, yes. What I saw defies standard ‘logic’.”

“A pity, then. Maybe a decent looking cousin? Honestly I’m not too picky”, he added. While he longed for a companion that actually cared for him, long distance just wasn’t something that could work out. His many attempts during his service years were a testament to this. 

With a sigh, he looked down at his pelt, now revealed to the woman’s line of sight. He had let his guard down again, something he was wont to do when he was engaged in a good conversation. Had it been intentional? Or was it merely a byproduct of a genuine conversation between two curious minds. Marcus decided to reveal who he was, hoping honesty would be met with honesty. After all, there weren’t many rangers in the world with lightning powers, so he figured his life would be safe. Besides, any hunter worth their salt would have immediately recognized his pelt and flash fried him by now. 

“I think it’s clear both of us are more than what we seem. I’ll tell you what this is, but you have to promise not to tell another soul about it. There are some baaaad people in this town that can hurt me if they find out what I really am.”

Without speaking any further, Marcus took a deep breath, walked to the ocean’s edge and donned his pelt. Instantly, he could feel his body contour and bloat out. His now sausage shaped body flopped along the sand before reaching the water. He chanced a curious look back at the woman to try and gauge her reaction

Mona scrunched her nose. She had to admit, his humor was decidedly less on the side of annoying, and more something she could fill her day with– the back and forth banter, for one, was something she always enjoyed, especially with people whose names she didn’t know. “No cousins, but I’ve made a few friends who might seem your type.” She crossed her arms over her chest, gaze wandering to the heap behind him again. It was an odd thing, and it was out of place, she realized. She couldn’t quite place it, but it seemed like he cared about it, or at least cared about keeping it out of view. 

He continued speaking, and the word promise hung in the air. She narrowed her eyes. He didn’t give off fae, but that didn’t mean anything to her, especially considering she couldn’t sense them in the slightest. He could be a nereid for all she knew. “And you don’t think they could hurt me, too? We’re on the same team here.” For now, at least, she didn’t bother to amend. 

Before she could say much else, he was retreating to the heap of – what was it, a jacket? Mona watched in astonishment as the man pulled the fabric over his body, and before her very eyes, the human in front of her was replaced by a… seal? She stared at him, mouth slightly ajar, before she was lifting the heels of her hands into her eyes, rubbing at them. “I’m sorry, what?” She couldn’t believe what she was seeing. He had disappeared and been replaced by what, a seal? Could nereids do that? She wasn’t so sure. From her understanding, they only took some likeness from their cause, not full fledged identities. 

“So you’re….” She didn’t know the name, “what are you?” 

As the question was posed, Marcus could only bark in response, lifting his body upwards in the process. He made his way back to land and shifted back into his human form, assuming he had gotten his point across. 

“Selkie. Seal man. People have a few different names for us. The long and short of it is, I’m a shapeshifter. This pelt,” he gestured, holding his pelt up for Mona to finally get a better look at “allows me to change into my seal form. My true form.” 

He allowed a moment to pass for her to absorb his words. Even other people familiar with the supernatural had rarely heard of selkies before, so he figured it’d be best to give a more basic explanation. 

“The pelts themselves…” he began, but decided against discussing the value of his pelts. Even if she wasn’t a hunter, she may know one that she could work with “they make me a target for some of the more…seedier people in town. So I don’t like revealing myself to everyone. But anyway, that’s my secret. Any particular reason you can toss around lightning like a Greek god?” 

Mona couldn’t help but laugh at his explanation. “A– you’re a what?” It seemed silly, for a kitsune to mock that of another shifter’s existence, but it wasn’t so much mocking as it was just pure disbelief. She wasn’t sure what a selkie was, even if she had heard of them. Most of the time, she waved off the explanation. How did it make sense that a person could put something on, like a costume, and exist in that form? Everything else– there was a means of changing your body for it. Though, she supposed in the way that he had done so, there was truth to that, even if it wasn’t… as it was with her, or other shifters. 

She looked towards the pelt in his hand, brows furrowed. She had questions, even if she wasn’t quite sure she believed what she was seeing. 

He was talking about his pelt and how it made him a target and she couldn’t begin to wonder why he would carry it around so freely. Was it a connection to the water? She didn’t know of shifters having any special connection to anything like that. Even with her fire and lightning abilities, she didn’t feel particularly in tune with it, not in the way that a fae might describe. 

Inhaling sharply, Mona kept her gaze on the pelt. “Uh, yeah, I’m a kitsune– wait, so you just put that on? Were you born in it? Did you like, come out of it like a cocoon?” She looked up to meet his gaze. “Can I touch it?” 

The mention of kitsune piqued Marcus’s curiosity. He had seen sirens, at least the aggressively territorial ones from back home. He had also seen werewolves and encountered pretty much every type of fae under the sun. However, he had only heard of kitsune in passing. Truthfully, he knew essentially nothing about them other than that they were described as “fox people”. 

“Kitsune, huh? Can’t say I’ve ever met anybody of your kind. It’s nice to meet you”, he said, trying to keep his calm. He had no knowledge if kitsune and selkies were, historically speaking, on good terms with one another. Of course, he knew that didn’t mean much. He had fought with the sirens his kind were supposedly allied with, and he had also befriended werewolves and even some fae, who his kind are supposed to be at odds with. 

“I was technically born with this,” he began, holding up his pelt for Mona to see. “But I couldn’t use it right away. I had to grow up and mature to learn how to use it. Most of my early childhood I was raised as just a regular human being. Once I was ready, I needed to learn how to charge the pelt with magic so that it would allow me to “merge” with it, if that makes sense. See, the pelt kinda works like a second skin almost. Only, instead of skin, it’s my entire body that changes to fit the pelt.” 

He had always been raised to be fiercely protective of his pelt, and he had only recently gotten shared custody of his pelt back after having it stolen already. While he wanted to build good will with his new friend, he didn’t want to risk losing it again. He knew now not to let his guard down again. 

“You can look, but it’s probably best if you don’t touch it. There’s a lot of energy running through here and I don’t know if it’ll react and hurt you if you’re not its usual owner. These things almost seem to have a mind of their own, sometimes.”

He then held the pelt out further and moved closer to Mona so that she could get a better look. He kept his grip tight, not wanting her to make a quick grab and run off with it. 

“No, my name is Mona.” It occurred to her then that he was talking about what she was– she was far too distracted by the pelt in front of her to put much thought into their actual conversation now. Mona cleared her throat, gaze leveling with his. “But sure, it’s nice to meet you too, Selkie.” The name was reminiscent of something she’d definitely heard in passing, but not something she ever thought twice of. She thought they were something of folklore, but others would say the same of her, so who was she to minimize this person’s existence? 

As he explained what the pelt did, or rather– how he used it, Monafound herself way more confused. It still made no sense, how somebody could be born something and have to learn how to use it. It wasn’t like her fox fire or lightning– this was very different. She couldn’t wrap her head around it. Half of what he spoke of seemed like lies, and most of it was so outlandish that Mona decided it had to be true. “So you weren’t born as that, and you had to use magic– you have magic?” The world was full of surprises. She arched a brow, gaze locked on the pelt, as if she were to look away, it might vanish into thin air. 

Mona frowned slightly as he told her she couldn’t touch it. Then again, how would she feel if he tried to make off with her hoshi no tama? She could relate, in a sense. The pelt was important to him, even if she couldn’t quite understand how it worked. “Did you always know you were a selkie, then? Did your parents just spring it on you?” She’d always known she was a gumiho, she’d been raised as such, so the idea that this person might not know they were a shifter until they were ready was so confusing. “I don’t really understand it, if I’m being honest, but that doesn’t mean I’m doubting you.” Okay, so maybe a little bit. Mona crossed her arms over her chest and continued staring at the pelt, “can anyone be a selkie? Or is it just specific people? Could a human use this?” Finally, she lifted her gaze to meet his for verification of her question.

“My apologies, Mona. Very rude that I didn’t even introduce myself properly. My name is Marcus, not selkie.” 

He wasn’t exactly sure how to respond to her next question. The pelt had magic, certainly. It just wasn’t his magic, per se. “I always knew I came from a long line of seal people. My mother taught me early on how she manages her powers and cared for her pelt and that I would have to do the same one day. My first time transforming was…difficult. But the body gets used to it after so many times. As for the magic…” He took a pause. Clearly the woman he was speaking to had some degree of magic, and may not be keen on him having to steal magic to keep his pelt charged. She may even be fearful that he’d try to steal magic from her. Of course, that was originally the idea he had in approaching her, but she didn’t need to know that. “It’s borrowed from other sources. A little bit from a meddlesome fae playing tricks on people or a spellcaster setting fires serves to feed my pelt and keep the town safe all at the same time.” 

While he did try to steal from those who deserved it, he did end up stealing from the innocent and unsuspecting more often than not. Those who were more mischievous and threatening with their powers tended to guard their magic much more effectively. 

“Others can steal the pelt and drain its magic, which is part of why they fetch a high price. Some can even use it to restore the powers to a magic user who had theirs stolen before. But only another selkie can wear the pelt and transform into a seal. Well, you can also turn into something similar like a sea lion or walrus, but the seal appearance is the more “traditional” appearance.” He thought back on William and how desperate he must have been to track him down and steal his pelt just to restore his own powers. Marcus also remembered how desperate he was when he was without his pelt for nearly 3 months. 

“The highest profits come from other selkies, actually. Those who have lost their pelts or had theirs stolen. Those who are in the peak of their withdrawals. You see, our seal form is almost like our true selves. And without it, there are a lot of physical and mental drawbacks. We can even die if left without our pelts for too long. Unfortunately, thefts and damages to pelts from hunters has lead to a great deal of infighting and mistrust amongst other selkies. Not enough pelts to keep everyone alive, basically.” 

He had probably gone a bit too in depth, but if Mona wanted information he figured he may as well give it to her. He also wanted to keep talking so that they could skirt over the “stealing magic” topic as smoothly as possible. 

“Mona and Marcus, M&M, we could be best pals, you know.” Besties, if Monabelieved any of what he was actually saying. She still couldn’t believe it, but the proof was right in front of her, and she knew she had to believe it because a shifter was a shifter, no matter how you spun it. Even if lamias were created out of a curse in their bloodline, at the very least they didn’t have to put something on. It still felt like a mockery, and Mona wasn’t sure how to feel about it. 

Marcus continued to explain and Mona stayed silent, doing her best to piece it all together. She couldn’t remember her parents ever discussing selkies, but then again, they hadn’t had much to discuss with her anyway. Her friends back in Ireland, however– they seemed far more knowledgeable with this stuff. Mona wondered if Inge knew what selkies were and made a mental note to ask. Maybe Felix knew a thing or two, as well. She could ask them questions instead of being invasive. Then again, that never really stopped her from asking the questions she had. 

Though, the mention of magic seemed to put Marcus on pause. She wasn’t sure why. Maybe it was a sacred thing, something like her hoshi no tama. But then he was explaining he didn’t have magic, and that it was both fae or spellcaster magic that kept his pelt charged? It was all so weird. In her seventy something years, she’d never heard anything like it. It wasn’t like she was refusing the story or the history that Marcus brought to the table, but she was having a hard time digesting the idea that somebody could just try something on and recharge it with magic that wasn’t even theirs to begin with. 

She had so many questions, but she tried to do her best to let Marcus speak. What was the use in interrupting him? Especially when she had no idea on where to start and with what questions. “So it’s… gatekeeping you, sort of.” She wasn’t sure if that was the right word, but she had heard it used a time or two, “or gaslighting–?” A puzzled expression peeled over her features and she shook her head, tucking her hair behind both her ears before her hands came to rest around either side of her neck. “I believe you and I don’t, but only because it’s so different than anything… and the magic bit, the part where you siphon it, that…” It left her uneasy to say the least, “I’m not really sure I understand that at all.” At least she was in the clear– her powers weren’t really magic, they just were. 

“Like, I just eat ghosts to sustain myself, but I don’t– I mean, I eat other things. I really like tacos.” She scrunched her nose before letting out a breath. “Okay, Marcus. Let’s say I believe you and your little pelt story.” She’d seen it with her own eyes, but she still felt like there was something missing, “I’ll keep your secret if you keep mine, obviously.” She extended a hand, eyes narrowed with faux suspicion. He had a lot to lose, and it was obvious. She hadn’t divulged nearly as much as he had. 

M & M, Marcus didn’t exactly hate the sound of it. After all, in a town like this, friends were very valuable resources. Yet this friend didn’t seem all too familiar with how her abilities worked, and also didn’t seem to show much interest in figuring it out. 

“Hmmm, I guess gatekeeping would be a decent way of putting it. Can’t have my powers unless the pelt wants to cooperate with me. Sometimes, if you’re pelt isn’t charged and you can’t use it for a long time, it feels like when people get withdrawals from coming off some kind of vice. Except, instead of the symptoms getting better over time, they continue getting worse. So you could say it’s kind of essential for everyone to keep a hold of.”

“Basically, the pelt uses magic to mold itself and transform. But there’s no inherent magic in the pelt itself. So it has to come from somewhere, you know?” 

Sometimes when he spoke of selkie pelts he felt as if he were attributing to them a mind of their own. And sometimes, it felt as though they had a mind of their own too. 

“You…eat ghosts?” Marcus asked incredulously. He had only dealt with the ghost of the old man in the lighthouse previously, he didn’t know they could be eaten. Couldn’t they phase through shit? Wouldn’t they be able to just…walk out of her? 

“Glad to hear my secret’s safe with you…but for real you eat ghosts? Because that could be really useful down the line some time. There’s a lot of spooky things hanging around here and not all of them can be handled with a knife.” 

“Your secret is, of course, safe with me. Folks like you and me have to stick together and look out for each other after all. I’d keep a low profile if I were you though, which means cool it with the light shows” he said, gesturing back up at the sky. 

The explanation that Marcus put into his pelt should have reassured Mona that she wasn’t being fucked with, but there was still something strange. “In a way, I can understand that.” It was the closest she’d get to admitting that there was something she was guarding, too. There was no use in going into the details, especially considering how she wasn’t sure where to start. Besides, she was sure if he really wanted to do more, he could research it himself. 

Marcus went on further and Mona’s brows furrowed. She tried to align everything, tried to make it perfect and pretty– to make it make sense, but she still wasn’t quite sure how something without magic could need magic, especially a shifter. Mona decided silently that she’d do her own research. “Your pelt is magic, got it.” She wasn’t sure that’s what he was trying to say, but it was what she landed on anyway. 

At his question, she nodded. “Only the non-aggressive ones, and not like, poltergeists.” She shivered, thinking about the number of spirits she’d left in her wake after realizing they were a little too big for her appetite. “I eat ghosts, I eat fries, I like to eat fish, too. You’re a seal, you can understand that.” At least she was agreeing that he was a seal– that was a good start. 

Mona smiled at his extension of understanding and nodded. “I’m glad that we met, even if I’m not sure I believe you.” So much for giving in to the reality of their situation, “but I’m sure I will overtime. Do you do tricks, like at the circus? Is that rude?” She paused, face relaxing slightly, “how about we talk more about it over fries? I’ll get you your own.” 

“Well Mona,” said Marcus, “at least we’re a little bit closer to an understanding. It isn’t magic itself, but it uses it.” 

Marcus pondered, if she didn’t eat dangerous ghosts did she just eat the poor souls who were stuck here without a way to be laid to rest. Furthermore, what happened to a ghost that was eaten? Is it fully conscious inside her stomach, do they pass on to whatever afterlife there is, or do they just cease to exist completely? He didn’t want to think on it too long. Those types of thoughts always filled him with existential dread. 

“I do like fish, although when I’m not in the water I do prefer them cooked. But eating a scallop or oyster fresh from the seafloor is an experience most people can only dream of. I mean, talk about a fresh catch”. 

“Can’t say I’ve ever tried doing tricks”, he laughed at the question. He wasn’t offended, more amused at the idea of balancing a ball on his nose while a bunch of onlookers surrounded him, enjoying the show. “But yes, I’d love to talk with you more about it. And I just so happen to know a really good spot to go for fries, too!”