Sanshoku’s tail swished hypnotically in the water behind her as she pushed herself further onto land to get out of the water. She gave herself a shake, orange fur aglow as the water droplets left her. She looked up through her eyelashes at the young male, sky blue meeting icy blue. She noted the movement of his wings, how they tightened around himself. Her lips curved into a seductive smile, her koi tail twisting behind her. As her fur dried, so did her scales. She showed no signs of pain as her koi half dissolved back into hind legs, giving her all four to pad closer into the sand.

*My name is Rambaldi . . . What be your purpose?*

“My purpose?” she practically purred, her voice low and as melodic as the song she’d sung. She walked slowly around the male, the green vines along her tail draping across her hips and tails like a skirt. “What is any woman’s purpose but to find a mate? Someone to care for?” She moved closer, scenting the male that smelled like fog on a cool morning. A mist elemental.

A low rumble made her chest vibrate, and her tail came up under his chin as she circled him like a fox at the henhouse, offering her scent to him in turn. “I am Sanshoku, and I have done anything but stumble. That, sweet boy, would not be dignified now, would it?”