"Giancarlo?" Maria asked, astonished. She looked at the building he'd just emerged from, at the sack in his arms, and at the aimlessly wandering fish, and a suspicion began to form. Here was another possible reason why he might not have told here there were other sea monsters in the area. "What are you doing?" she asked. "Are you stealing?" She'd always assumed that the food and other objects he brought back to the Island were foraged, but this didn't look like that.

Giancarlo stared at her, then glanced down at his armful. "I... you're asking me what I'm doing here? What?" He looked her over? "Maria? Is that you?"

Maria ducked her head, suddenly embarrassed. Somehow it had never occurred to her that she might meet him out here. It probably should have – after all, she had no evidence that he'd gone anywhere else or indeed had anywhere else to go. Unlike her, he didn't have family nearby. Now that she'd met him, however, she was going to have to talk to him, and where would that end up?

"Maria?" he repeated.

"Yes. It's me," she said, and attempted to explain. "There are these two older ladies in town... they're sea monsters too, and they gave me this plant. They said if I ate it, I'd be able to change in the water like you do. So I did." He didn't need to know the messy details.

"Two old... oh, yeah. The long-lost Aragosta aunts," said Giancarlo. He came a little closer.

"You know them?" Maria asked.

"I know about them," he said. "They ran off during some family feud. I haven't actually met them. At least that I know of."

Alberto had been squirming in Maria's arms. Now he wriggled free and swam to his father. Giancarlo caught him, and put him up on his shoulders like he'd used to do on land. Alberto giggled and wrapped his tail around his father's arm, which made Maria smile a bit. Had the two of them used to do that in the water where she couldn't see?

"So that's why you disappeared," said Giancarlo. "You didn't know for sure it would work."

"No, that's not... I mean, I didn't know whether it would work," Maria said. "But..." Before leaving the Island she'd planned what to do about a lot of different things, but she'd never thought about how she might explain herself to Giancarlo. She'd never expected to see him again. Now she didn't know what to do. She'd left because she thought Alberto needed to be around people, but people didn't necessarily have to mean humans anymore...

"You look fantastic," Giancarlo said. He let the sack he was carrying fall to the silty bottom, and took her hands. "I mean... you're so gorgeous. I just... wow."

Maria could feel her cheeks getting hot, and wondered if sea monsters could blush. Maybe... maybe this could actually work now. Maybe if she were also a sea monster, they could do as they'd planned and travel the world together. They could take Alberto with them and not have to worry about hiding him from everybody. Land would still be a challenge, but in the water they'd just be a family of three. Giancarlo could teach her about sea monster culture, so nobody would know she wasn't what she appeared to be.

Giancarlo shooed Alberto off his shoulder with one hand. The baby didn't seem to mind – he flitted down to play with the wandering livestock. Maria very slowly raised her head again, and looked at Giancarlo. He was gazing at her with wide eyes. It reminded her of one evening back when they'd only known each other a couple of days... she'd played a mandolin and sung a song for him by a campfire on the beach, and had looked over to find Giancarlo watching her almost the way people in church looked up at the statues of saints.

He gently took her face between his hands and leaned closer as if to kiss her. Then he hesitated, and it was up to Maria herself to close the gap. Their lips met, and the shiver that passed over her was much like the ripple she'd felt transforming. The fact that both were in the water meant their feet were literally not touching the ground.

Maria could have floated there all day, with Giancarlo's hands on her cheeks and her arms sliding around his waist. What interrupted her was Alberto tugging on her skirt, and she had to leave the embrace and gather him up again.

"Let's go home," said Giancarlo.

Maria stiffened. "What do you mean, 'home'? Back to the Island?"

"No, no," Giancarlo said quickly. "I was thinking of Napoli. My family lives there in the gulf... you can meet them now!"

She backed up a little. "You talked about them like you didn't get along with them."

"I kind of don't," Giancarlo admitted, "but if they meet my wife and son they'll know I've settled down."

"Maybe," said Maria, but she already knew what her answer would have to be. She couldn't possibly leave poor Helena all alone and run off with Giancarlo, at least not until they'd found Massimo. "You never suggested going to see them before," she pointed out. "They wouldn't have approved of me, I'm guessing."

"Well, yeah," he said. "I mean, your family didn't like me even before you told them, and I bet now they like me even less."

"What? I haven't told them anything!" Maria informed him. She was rather hurt by his assumption that she would betray him like that. "I haven't even told them Alberto's a sea monster! Nobody knows except the Aragosta ladies and my sister-in-law. I had to tell her because she saw him transform."

"You told Massimo," said Giancarlo, accusing.

"I did not! She insisted.

"You might not have told him what I am, but you told him where we were living – otherwise he wouldn't have come looking for me!"

Maria was about to repeat that she had done no such thing, but then she realized what Giancarlo might be talking about. "You've seen Massimo? Where is he?"

"Is he missing?" Giancarlo was surprised.

"Sort of. Yes. Did you see him?" she repeated.

"Only briefly. I got out of there," Giancarlo said. "I'm not going to sit around and get harpooned."

"Where is he?" Maria insisted.

"What, so you can get harpooned?" he asked. "If you really haven't told him anything, he's not going to know it's you."

"You knew it was me!"

"I heard your voice!"

"So will he!" If Giancarlo hadn't already realized that Massimo was also a sea monster now, Maria didn't really want to be the one to tell him. Part of it was that she didn't want to explain that the whole thing had really been an accident, but another was that she thought Giancarlo was likely to laugh about it. That would only make her more upset.

Giancarlo grabbed her by the shoulders. "You think I'm going to let you take that risk?"

"It's up to me whether I take risks!" Maria wriggled free.

"Really? You want to put yourself in danger when Alberto's still so little?"

She bristled. "You only bring up Alberto when I'm doing something you don't want me to!"

"Well, I don't want you doing things that might leave him without you!" Giancarlo huffed.

"Whereas you can run off and do whatever dangerous thing you want!" Maria said.

"I'm trying to support my family!" he protested.

"By stealing?" She pointed to the sack, lying on the seafloor below them.

"I'm not stealing! I work here."

"Oh, do you?" Maria huffed. Shortly after Alberto was born she'd asked Giancarlo not to 'borrow' things from the town or the boats, and after that he'd started bringing back more of their food and supplies from the ocean. That had satisfied her at the time, but now that she knew there were people and farms down here, she had to wonder. "What's the owner's name?"

"Why would you even ask that? It's not like you know the right answer," Giancarlo pointed out.

"Why won't you answer?" she shot back. "If you think I don't know, you can just make something up!"

"Oh, so now you want me to lie to you?"

There was the sound of a throat being loudly cleared, and both looked up to see the Shepherdess floating over them. The baby on her back was now awake, staring at them with huge red eyes over its mother's shoulder.

"Is this man bothering you?" the Shepherdess asked Maria.

"I'm not bothering her! She's my wife," said Giancarlo defensively.

"That doesn't mean you're not bothering me!" said Maria.

"I was working, and you came and bothered me," Giancarlo reminded her.

The Shepherdess moved down to float in between them, as if afraid the two were about to come to blows. "Then perhaps she ought to come with me," she said to Giancarlo, "and you can get back to your work. I'm sure Ettore and Bianca wouldn't want to hear you've been making a mess." She looked suspiciously around at the wandering fish, and Maria felt her worst suspicions had been confirmed.

"This is none of your business, Daniela," said Giancarlo crossly.

"No, she's right," Maria said. "I shouldn't bother you at work. I'll see you again, Giancarlo." She was unfortunately sure of that. "Alberto!"

Alberto popped up out of the flock of fish and swam into his mother's arms, and Daniela the Shepherdess shot Giancarlo a withering glare before ushering them both away.

"I'm sorry," said Maria.

"You've got nothing to apologize for," Daniela assured her. "He's been hanging around here for months. Sometimes he takes odd jobs, and sometimes he'd just a nuisance. He says he's looking after a human lady and her little son, but we've got our doubts."

"He said... what?" Maria asked.

Daniela explained: "he said he'd found this woman in a shipwreck and he was taking care of her. I thought it seemed like an odd thing to do. If you want to help, why not just take her back to her own kind and be done with it? It's not his problem."

"I suppose not," said Maria quietly. That was, after all, what she'd intended to do after cutting Giancarlo out of the mess of nets and wreckage where she'd found him – set him free and let him go back to wherever he'd come from. It was he who'd sought her out after that. She didn't mind him borrowing the story, and the fact that he hadn't wanted to admit he was the one who was stuck was ind of funny... the part that hurt was the implication that he hadn't told anybody Maria and Alberto were his.

"Are you all right?" asked the Shepherdess. "You don't look very well."

"I'm fine," said Maria, swallowing hard. The encounter had upset her more than she'd realized. Maria was not a cryer... how did Giancarlo always manage to get under her skin like that? She hoped it wasn't possible to burst into tears underwater. She didn't want to do so in front of a stranger.

Daniela put a hand on her back. "Come and have some lunch," she suggested. "Things always seem better after you've eaten – and the little fellow will be hungry, too, they always are at that age. I'm Daniela Paguro, by the way."

"Maria S... Maria Scorfano." Better to use what she knew was a sea monster name, even if she really didn't want to claim it right now. "And this is Alberto." She looked down at her son, curled against her. He wasn't sure what was going on, but well aware that Mamma and Papà had been fighting.

"Hello, Alberto," Daniela said with a smile, tweaking his little snout. "Luca here is just two seasons. He's shy around strangers, but once he gets to know you, he'll babble all day long."

Maria made a note of the way sea monsters measured their ages. "Alberto is six seasons... nearly seven. He loves people. I'm sure you noticed."

"I certainly did. Come on, this way!"

Daniela led the way back to a little house built, like the others Maria had seen, based on a set of rock formations already on the sea floor. It was a fairly busy place: an older man, the same turquoise blue as Daniela but having lost all the fins on the top of his head, was feeding a group of brown crabs out front, while another, dark green fellow was up on top of a little tower transplanting clumps of waving seaweed as if thatching it. It was the older man who noticed Daniela first, and waved to her.

"Hi, Dad!" the Shepherdess called out. "I've brought company for lunch! This is Signora Scorfano."

"Arnaldo Gambero," the older man introduced himself, and chuckled as Alberto swam down to take a look at him and his crabs. "Careful there, little man. They pinch. Scorfano, eh? You're not related to that chap who hangs around... who hangs around, are you?"

Maria wondered what he'd been about to say. "He's... Alberto's father," she said, coming to collect her son. That was less uncomfortable than calling him her husband.

"Ah, okay," Arnaldo nodded. "Is it true about the..."

The man from the roof had come down to see what was going on, and Daniela seized his arm and changed the subject. "This is my husband, Lorenzo – Renzo, this is Maria Scorfano and Alberto." She waved for Maria to follow her. "My Mom's inside getting lunch ready, Maria. Come on in."

"Thank you. Nice to meet you," Maria told the two men, and let Daniela escort her through the arched doorway into the little house. There a short, plump sea monster woman with predominantly pink colouring was indeed working on lunch, cooking something in a basket over a little vent that produced hot water. Whatever it was, it had a vegetable smell that was actually very appetizing.

"Hi, Mom," said Daniela. "Is there enough for guests?"

"Of course there is, dear," her mother replied, and turned to greet them. "Who have you found?"

"This is Maria Scorfano, and Alberto," Daniela repeated.

"Libera Gambero," the older woman said. "A pleasure! Would you mind keeping an eye on those stuffed sea cucumbers for me?" she gestured to the basket.

"I'd be happy to," said Maria, moving closer to watch the food. She was surprised to be asked to help with the cooking, as if she were an old family friend rather than some stranger Daniela had brought home on a whim... maybe that was just how sea monsters did things.

"Maria's been looking for her brother," Daniela told her mother. "Have you seen a man with... which arm did you say it was?"

"His right. He's missing his right arm," Maria said. It occurred to her that she didn't know what she was watching the sea cucumbers for. How would she know if they were overcooked? She didn't dare ask, though, for fear she would have to admit she wasn't a real sea monster. The family seemed very welcoming, but what would they do if they knew?

"You haven't seen him, have you?" asked Daniela.

"I haven't, but I'll ask around," Libera promised. "Have you asked the Branzinos?" she inquired of Maria.

"I suggested it," Daniela said, "and she went off in that direction, but then I remembered they're usually out this time of day, and went to let her know." Maria winced, bracing herself – but Daniela stopped there. Apparently she didn't feel the argument she'd witnessed was something her parents needed to know about. Maria caught her eye and nodded, silently expressing her gratitude.

Libera started finishing up a couple of other dishes, and Daniela set baby Luca down on a shelf of stone so that she would have both hands free to set the table. It seemed that Alberto had not noticed the younger child before, and it was apparently the most intriguing thing he'd seen yet. Maria let him go, and he swam over and turned upside-down, studying the baby as if trying to figure out what he was.

Luca looked back with wide eyes, then reached up to grab Alberto's dangling tail. It took him a couple of tries to get a hold of it, and then he immediately stuck it in his mouth. Alberto squeaked in surprise, and Maria laughed as she came to separate them.

"Luca doesn't usually like strangers," Daniela repeated, although now she was impressed rather than trying to caution anyone. "Of course... most of the kids around here are quite a bit older than him. Maybe Alberto isn't big enough to be threatening."

Maria held on to her son so he could inspect the baby without getting close enough to be grabbed again. When Alberto himself had been born, his sea monster form had been almost transparent, like a newly-hatched fish, with little bones and a beating heart visible inside him. He'd darkened up quickly once he'd spent some time in the sun, although Maria had been surprised to see him turn purple instead of blue and gold like his father. Little Luca, despite being around six months old, was still partly see-through at his extremities, though his face and torso were turquoise like Daniela.

"What do you think?" Maria asked Alberto. "It's not often you meet somebody littler than you."

Baby Luca wasn't content to just sit and stare. He wanted his new toy back. He reached out with one hand, and kicked off the ledge to move towards Alberto. Marias instinct was to catch him, but that wasn't necessary. Rather than falling, Luca just floated there, wriggling a bit as he tried to swim. Daniela scooped him up, while her mother took the basket of now-neglected sea cucumbers off the vent.

"Somebody go tell the boys that lunch is ready," Libera said.

Daniela called Arnaldo and Lorenzo inside, and the entire family arranged themselves around a large central rock formation to eat.

Alberto was fascinated by the unfamiliar foods on offer. Giancarlo had sometimes tried to cook for the family, but he wasn't very good at it. It had mostly been up to Maria to do her best with the edibles he brought home from land and sea. This, however, was a proper meal, with main dishes and sides. There were the sea cucumbers, there was a salad of several types of seaweed topped with plump red roe, and dumplings tied up with strips of kelp. Alberto grabbed handfuls and tasted them, took them out of his mouth in surprise, and then stuffed them back in.

Maria herself barely tasted any of it, because she was so busy watching the family interact. She hadn't been to family dinner like this since she was quite small, when Mamma and Papà were still alive and Uncle Alonzo and Aunt Camilla would sometimes stop by. Everyone was talking, eating, and laughing all at once. Arnaldo and Lorenzo were deep in conversation about their crabs and how they moulted. Daniela was mushing up food with a crudely-carved wooden spoon for Luca, who devoured it messily, getting it all over himself and his mother. Libera chatted about what the neighbours were up to whether or not anyone was listening.

There was such a feeling that everybody here loved and was interested in each other... how in the world had anyone concluded that these happy, hospitable people were something to be afraid of? If anyone in Portorosso could see this, surely they'd never want to hurt a sea monster again!

Then she wondered... what did the sea monsters think about humans?

She found out a few moments later.

"How long has your brother been in these parts?" Libera asked.

"Since yesterday," Maria replied. "He had an errand and he was supposed to be back by supper, but he never came. My sister-in-law is..." she paused, remembering that Giancarlo had told her sea monsters laid eggs. "Her baby is arriving any day now, so I went to look for him myself."

"You can't leave an egg on the verge of hatching," Libera nodded. "You should have seen Daniela when Luca's egg began to twitch! I thought she might crack before the shell did."

Daniela rolled her eyes.

"I hope your brother hasn't been spotted by the land monsters," Arnaldo said.

Maria's mouth was full, and she paused in chewing. The salad with the roe was both salty and sweet, but she swallowed in a hurry to say, "land monsters?"

The family looked at her in surprise. "Don't they have those where you're from?" asked Libera.

"Oh, yes, of course," said Maria quickly. "I just haven't heard them called that before." Of course. If humans thought sea monsters were frightening, the opposite must also be true. Especially when the humans came after them with nets and harpoons.

"What do you call them, then?" Libera asked, interested.

Maria was saved from having to answer by Arnaldo. "There's definitely something going on up there today," he observed. "They're running around like cleaner shrimp in a grouper's mouth. I haven't seen so many boats in ages."

"People are keeping their children inside," Daniela agreed. "I wouldn't go anywhere near the surface if I were you, Maria. If they catch so much as a glimpse of you in the mood they're in..."

"I'm not planning on it, don't worry," Maria assured her. Her eyes went to Alberto, who was squashing fish eggs between his hands and then sucking the goo off his fingers. Luca had been watching this, and was now grabbing at the spoonfuls of food his mother was offering him, rather than letting her put things straight into his mouth. Maria covered her mouth with one hand to hide a smile.

They finished their lunch, and Maria pitched in to help Libera gather up the dishes and scrub them out over the hot vent with handfuls of sand. This seemed to be expected – nobody told her to sit down and let them do the work. Not that there was anywhere to sit, since there was no need underwater.

Alberto and baby Luca, meanwhile, were free to wander around the room, and had begun bothering the crabs that were scuttling on the floor. These were different from the brown crabs that were kept outside, being larger and rounder, with bright colours and patterns. Maria had never seen anything like them before. Lorenzo noticed the activity, and came to shoo the two children away.

"Don't stress them!" he urged. "We've got the Crab Show coming up in the fall. They need to be in top condition!" He snatched one up and inspected it for damage. "Where is... Daniela!" he looked around in a panic. "Where is Titano? The kids were chasing the crabs, and..."

"Looking for this fellow?" an unfamiliar voice asked. A silvery male sea monster appeared in the door, offering a bright red crab that had certainly earned its name, being twice the size of any of the others.

"There he is!" Lorenzo dashed over to take the crab and inspect it for damage. "Thanks, Ettore! Where was he?"

"Just out here," Ettore replied. "We wouldn't want him getting lost."

"What, you don't think we stand a chance without him?" Daniela asked. She sniffed. "We are going to dominate the crab show this year, and you can tell Bianca and Niccolò I said so!"

"Now, Daniela," Arnaldo chided, "the Crab Show is supposed to be a friendly competition. There's no need to get upset about it. Since you're here, Ettore, I think Daniela's new friend had a favour to ask of you." He looked at Maria, watching from the other side of the table.

"Ah, yes," said Maria, approaching. She'd started to relax during lunch, since she had not yet violated any rules of sea monster etiquette, but now here was a new person and a new situation.

"This is Maria Scorfano," said Daniela.

"Scorfano, eh?" asked Ettore, one brow raised.

"Yes," said Maria, and did not explain. "I'm looking for my brother, Massimo. You'd know him if you saw him, because he's missing his right arm. Daniela said I ought to ask you, because it's possible the dolphins have seen him." She left off Daniela's implication that dolphins were awful gossips. That wouldn't win her any friends.

"I haven't seen him myself, but I'll spread the word," Ettore promised. "Will you be staying with the Gamberos here?"

"Um, no," said Maria. "Actually, I should probably be running along – I mean swimming along. My sister-in-law is waiting to hear from me, and she can't leave her egg."

"Of course, of course," Ettore said. "If I see your brother, or hear about him from anyone, I'll leave a message here with Arnaldo and Libera," he decided.

"Thank you very much," Maria said.

She thanked the Gambero family for the food and for their hospitality, and then set off. Part of Maria was worried she wouldn't be able to find her way back. She'd tried to take note of landmarks, but had quickly gotten distracted by Alberto's antics, and ther'd been several changes of direction along the way. Once she got started, however, she found she knew exactly which direction to go, and followed that instinct all the way to the beach.

By the time they arrived it was late afternoon, and Alberto was yawning. Maria picked him up out of the water as they both transformed, and gave him a kiss on each cheek.

"That was an exciting afternoon, wasn't it?" she asked him.

Alberto leaned his head on her shoulder and shut his eyes.

"You're right, it's time to go home."

Nobody else seemed to have been to the beach while they were gone – Maria's shoes and Alberto's little shirt were right where she'd left them. She got them both properly dressed and wrung the water out of her skirt, then headed back to town with the afternoon sun warm on her shoulders.

Signorina Repetto, the Farmacista, was arranging things in the window of her shop, and happened to look up as Maria walked by. She quickly set aside what she was holding, and came scurrying out to talk to her.

"Signora Scorfano!" she called out. "Where have you been all day?"

The urgency in her voice got Maria's attention at once. "I was... seeing friends out of town," she replied. "What's the matter?"

"Dario came by about half an hour ago," Signorina Repetto said. "Signor Marcovaldo thinks her contractions are starting, and apparently she forbid the boy from going for the doctor but asked him to see if he could find you. He's been looking all over for you."

Maria's heart leaped into her throat. "Thank you! I'll head home right away."

The roads were too steep and Maria too tired to run, but she walked as fast as she could down the slopes and steps to reach the Pescheria. On the way she was greeted by several more people who'd been wondering where she'd gone, but she didn't dare say more than a few words to any of them as she hurried past. She arrived to find Dario pacing in the doorway.

"Signora Scorfano!" he called to her. "I need to tell you..."

"I've heard! Thank you, Dario, you can close up and go home," Maria said. "There'll be nothing to sell tomorrow anyway."

"What about Signora Marcovaldo?" he asked. "She doesn't want me to go for the doctor, but she can't have a baby all alone!"

What would he think if he'd known that Maria had done exactly that herself? "I'll look after her," Maria promised. If the baby stood a chance of being a sea monster... no, they couldn't possibly call the doctor. Heaven knew what would happen.

"Can I help at all?" Dario asked.

"No! Go home," Maria told him.

Dario stared at her, startled and hurt, but then he nodded and went inside to do as he was told. Maria felt bad about shouting at him, but what choice did they have? He couldn't be allowed to see this any more than the doctor could.

She went upstairs dreading what she might find, but it didn't turn out to be so bad. Helena had all the pots and pans down from their hooks and was determinedly scrubbing them out. Crockery all over the table and even some of the chairs suggested she'd been at it for some time, and there were also rags and furniture polish out.

"Helena?" Maria asked.

Helena turned around and stared at her for a moment, then waddled over and threw her arms around Maria, still holding a wet colander. Maria couldn't hug back because she couldn't let go of Alberto, who had somehow managed to fall asleep on the way down the hill, but she leaned her head against her sister-in-law's cheek and tried to reassure her.

"It's okay," she said. "I told you I was coming back."

"You didn't find him," whimpered Helena.

"Not yet," Maria said, "but I might have found some help. The sea monsters are... they're nice people. If they find him, they'll help him."

"He won't let them," said Helena.

Maria thought she same, but did not say so.

Helena finally relaxed her grip, and Maria was able to set her sleeping son down on the bench so that she could embrace her friend in turn.

"How are you doing?" she asked.

Helena put a hand on her belly. "I... I don't think it's starting yet, actually," she admitted. "I've had a few cramps, but nothing regular. I just panicked and sent Dario to find you because I was too scared what the doctor would think if the baby was... you know..."

Maria nodded and rubbed Helena's back.

"So then I just decided to clean the house again," Helena went on, "so I've been scrubbing things all afternoon and wondering..."

"I'm fine. I was fine," said Maria. "It's absolutely beautiful down there, and Alberto made a friend, I think."

"Please don't do that again," Helena said "I don't think I could bear it, being here all alone..."

"I won't," Maria promised. If the Branzino and Gambero families put the word around that Maria was looking for him, maybe somebody would pass it on to Massimo himself. Then he would know to come home. The question was: why hadn't he done so already?

Albino had said he just threw rocks at the monster until to got back in the water. Maybe Massimo hadn't tried to get out again. Maybe he hadn't yet realized he would change back. Another reason Maria really ought to have told him something.

"Why don't you sit down?" she suggested to Helena. "I can finish cleaning up in here."

"No, no." Helena picked up her scouring pad. "The doctor told me when the time comes, moving around will hurry things along. Anyway, if I don't have something to occupy myself, I'll go crazy. I need to do something." She went back to the sink and ran more water to warm up what had gone cold. Maria noticed her watching her hands as the liquid splashed over them, but nothing happened.

"Do you want to hear about it?" asked Maria, meaning her trip underwater. If Helena said no, she would keep it to herself, but she would much rather talk about it to somebody.

"Please," said Helena.