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only this afternoon that I had watched the young couple walk happily down the street.
    Aisling walked past us into the gentle waves, muttering the word “babies” under her breath as she disappeared off to wherever it was she hid. I couldn’t believe her.
    After an immeasurable moment, we calmed. I looked over at Miaka. I heard people say they had a tough first day on a job before, but she would put them all to shame. She had withstood it all with a level of grace that surpassed me. I had seen grown men collapse under less strain. I hoped I would be able to comfort her now.
    “So,” I finally said, “I guess you’re stuck with me, huh?”
    She laughed a little at that and nodded.
    “Where would you like to go?”
    “Oh… I don’t know. I’ve never been anywhere but Japan. Can we live there?” she asked.
    “That’s not the best idea for now,” I said, summoning all of Marilyn’s wisdom. “You don’t want to accidentally be seen. And it’s better if we go where we can be alone— it’s hard to get used to talking to only one person. And it’s easier for your family if you just… just vanish.”
    She quietly let that sink in. There was no struggle in her to get more than I could offer. I guessed she had lived her life in submission until now. I think it was my position as a favored child that made me think I deserved more than I currently had. But Miaka was meek. If she could hold onto a little of that timidity, she would do exceedingly well at this job. Still I hoped there was more to her than that. She looked out over the blackness that surrounded us.
    “Could we go somewhere with a lot of lights?”

  CHAPTER 3
    If I was on a honeymoon here, how would it be?
    My husband would take my hand and spin me around in circles. I would laugh out loud, my voice glowing brighter than the lights around us. We would be dressed in casual and crisp styles; he’d give me anything I wanted. He’d pull me in, his face lingering inches away from mine. Whoever he was, he would be too beautiful. Sparing my eyes for a few moments, I’d look up and examine the crisscrossing metalwork above us. How many hands had made this structure? His fingers would find my cheek, pulling my gaze back down. Without warning, I’d be lost in a kiss.
    A romantic thought. As it was, no handsome stranger held me. Instead, I walked the streets of Paris with Miaka. She’d said she wanted lights, and these were the best I knew of.
    Time passes slowly when you have a lot of it. The last of the 1920s and the beginning of the 30s found us in France. Paris wasn’t exactly Ocean-front, so we had to check in a lot. I often questioned the Ocean’s timing with us in my head; we were both so young. I didn’t know much about the history of sirens, but this seemed to be a bad idea. She was lucky She chose responsible girls back to back; otherwise, we would have been helpless.
    We borrowed apartments from strangers. It was easy to get into empty flats, and after watching for a few days we figured out where some furnished but temporarily uninhabited ones were. We quietly moved in, listened to the tenant’s music, lounged on their beds, and disappeared. Things like that are simple if you just have your eyes open. I think this ability is wasted on thieves. And us.
    This was just how we lived. We didn’t need a place to cook food or sleep the night away, but after so long, being outside was boring. At night all the shops closed and there was nothing to see, so we retreated inside. The Ocean was too far away for us to go and be with Her. Besides, I didn’t really care for the waters here.
    From Paris, we silently skipped around Europe enjoying the sights until the War. I longed to visit London, but kept my distance. The place, the very word haunted me. I wasn’t sure I’d ever go there. Maybe I would once I was living my own life. That city held a sort of unanswered promise for me. But it, like so many other things, would have to wait.
    War made me