Hmm hmm hm hmhmm. Hmm hmm hmmm…. I hummed a lullaby to myself. The water made the lullaby sound soft, almost like it had an echo. It made me smile.

A brightly-colored fish passed in front of my face. That was one thing I loved about living near the reefs- the ocean life was the most colorful and varied there. The creatures were also pretty nice once you got to know them, too.

I heard familiar voices. Someone was talking, and then there was laughing. I picked out a higher-pitched, tinkling voice among the two lower ones. The sounds didn't have the same echo as underwater, though. I figured they must be coming from the surface. I decided to investigate.

Swimming behind a large chunk of coral attached to a partly submerged boulder, I silently surfaced. Slowly, I edged around the outside of the rock, peeking around until I could finally see them. I moved my tail in slow, delicate twirling motions to keep myself afloat.

I'd never seen them in such a close proximity. There were three, just as I'd observed previously. One girl and two boys, to be exact. The girl had mid-length reddish hair, and one boy had brown spikey hair. The other was blonde.

The girl laughed again, running from the brunette. He chased her into the water, a smile splitting his face from ear to ear. "I'm gonna get you, Kairi!" He called as they ran through the knee-deep ocean. He ended up tackling her, and they fake-wrestled. Within minutes she was standing on top of him, a foot on his chest.

"I win!" She called. "You have to buy us all ice cream today." Kairi smiled, helping him up. The boy grabbed her hand, but pulled her down into the water with him. They both laughed and clambered out, soaking wet.

"Hey, don't shake it on me!" the blonde laughed as the brunette took off his shirt and wrung it out.

"Jeez Roxas, chill! It's just water!" The darker-haired boy laughed. "It's not going to poison you or anything." He staged a fake epic death that sent Kairi into rounds of giggles. The blonde, whose name evidently was Roxas, rolled his eyes.

"Whatever, Sora," He said to the blonde. "I just didn't feel like getting wet today."

Sora shrugged. "You missed out," He said. "The water was extra-warm today." He threw his shirt over his shoulder. "You gonna come back home with us?"

"Nah," Roxas said. "I'm gonna stay for a bit. I'm just gonna watch the sunset. Tell Mom not to worry."

"'Kay," Sora called, grabbing Kairi's hand. "Let's go," he said. They disappeared into the foliage behind the dunes.

Roxas smiled faintly, then turned back toward the slowly-setting sun. I scooched around the boulder to try to get a good glimpse of him. He stood up and walked towards where the water sloshed quietly on the sand. Moving slowly, almost as in a trance and ever-staring at the sun, he walked in so his ankles were submerged. Standing there, his eyes turned towards the sky, he was beautiful. His ultrablue eyes, bluer than even the water of the islands, caught the light. It reminded me of a song my mother taught to me when I was little, one of my first lullabies. It was sung in Mer.

"Rememore, lasatir, lunai.

Makadorii mo lomei ast noroth logahn.

Roth, forman lumë raeon…"

I sang to myself from behind the rock, softly. Letting myself sink underwater, I thought to myself, You can't meet him. Not yet. You've only been watching them on the beach for a week or so now. They're humans, anyway. Dangerous.

But he didn't look dangerous, standing there, watching the sunset. He looked calm, peaceful, beautiful.

A thought occurred to me. Maybe I could try talking to him through thoughts. I had discovered as a little girl that I could mold people's minds. I could put thoughts into them or alter memories, sometimes. I had had enough time to hone my skill into a fine art, as I liked to think of it. Of course , I almost never had to use it, so I hadn't really practiced on anyone before. Especially not a human. I doubted if it could work, because I usually had to be in physical contact with the person to do much of anything. I decided to give it a try anyway.

Concentrate, I thought. Focusing on my mental image of his face, I cleared my mind of all other thoughts. I closed my eyes.

Roxas. I summoned his consciousness. If I did it correctly, I would feel a surge of energy. I would be merged with his mind. I would be able to change memories, manipulate thoughts, or more.

Roxas? Are you there? I imagined my voice. I could feel a certain tingling in my fingers, which told me I was doing it correctly. Had I really done it? Without even physically seeing him? He must be special….

Hey, Roxas! I called.

"Wh-what?" I heard his voice say.

I want to meet you. Meet me on this shore at the full moon of this month.

"Who's there?" His voice sounded panicky.

It's alright. Don't panic, or you'll break the connection.

What?

Good job. You're very special.

Who are you? Why are you in my head?

Remember, full moon at this beach. After moonrise, come here. I'm counting on you.

Wait! But who—

I'll answer all of your questions then.

Are you an angel?

I giggled. What a strange idea.

You'll see then.

But I—

I'll be waiting!

I smiled as I withdrew from the connection. Humans could be so naïve sometimes. Silently, I flicked my tail as I sped off to the sea, towards my home. Weaving among the coral, I remembered his face.

I murmured the lullaby quietly, my voice distorted from the water.

"I'll be waiting…"