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[ The locket, as always, is held up in mid-air when the Outsider turns it on. He is not alone in this recording, though; behind him are four women in long, gauzy black dresses and veils. With them are several children, eyes all black; the women are gently ushering them along the shore of the beach behind them while two massive dogs run back and forth.

In the distance is the black line of the Void, creeping over the ocean.

Next to the Outsider is another one of the children, and next to him the resemblance is clear: the same eyes, the same curious tilt to the head, the same bony cheeks. The child looks a bit more fey, but he sticks close to his sire, hands clutching to his arm. ]

Do not harm the children, [ the Outsider begins, and his voice is cold, shows every century of age and power. ] Do not harm the children or we will use your blood and bones, and you will be lucky if you are dead when we start.

[ A large palm smooths over the hair of his son. A daughter comes up on the other side, humming. She smiles at him and her teeth are sharp and red. The Outsider leans in so she can murmur in his ear. ]

Ah, yes. Should anyone find themselves with a need to desecrate shrines further -- the same warning applies to you. I will know, should you touch one of mine.

[ His daughter giggles and takes the hand of his son, and the two go to join the others. The Outsider watches, head half-turned. A seagull swoops down and perches on his shoulder, ruffles its wings, and the feed ends. ]

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[Wan almost asked the Outsider not to kill anyone, but he remembered what the children had done. And he knew what animals did to protect their young. The Outsider was not human, nor was he animal. He was somewhere in between, as most spirits were.

Wan nodded.]

That's possible. I hope no one will, but it's possible. Be careful. And uh... do you know what this is for? A few of your children gave this to me a few days ago.

[ Is it really killing people if you're summoning rat swarms to eat them alive? ... Probably, yeah. ]

Ah- hold it up, let me see the runes.

[Yes. Yes, it is.

Wan shifted the locket so he could show the charm better, angling it so the runes were visible to the mirror. The small thing was only large enough to fit into his palm.]

I don't recognize the runes. I've been trying to learn how to make runes, but these ones I don't know.

They are of my world.

[ As is the design. He knows it well, lets his lips curve into a slight smile. ]

Luck. It is for luck.

[A smile. That was new.]

Luck.

[He put the charm away, smiling himself.]

Well, thank you. And thank them, too. I did already. I just didn't understand it before. So thank you to them again. How many do you have? Can they travel from shrine to shrine the way you can?

Many.

[ He probably knows the exact number. Probably. ]

And no. They are more like their mother in how they travel.

Their mother?

[...they had a mother? Wan had assumed they were just created from the Outsider's essence the way many new spirits were created from parts of others. Sure, some spirits had sex, but not all of them.]

Who is that?

[ He hadn't until the harps got in and did their thing. ]

Ceit the Siren.

I don't think I've met her. But I'm sure she's a great mother. They look like very strong and capable children.

[With very sharp teeth.]

So when did you two get married? Before I got here?

She appreciates gifts of gold, if ever you would like to.

[ ... uh ]

We have not.

[He could probably find some gold, but now he's just confused.]

Then why do you have children?

[He was confused enough that he didn't realize how incredibly ignorant that sounded.]

[ erm. ]

You are aware of how reproduction works, are you not?

If you mean sex, then yes.

[Wan rolled his eyes at the question.]

That's not what I mean. What I mean is... if you're not married, why did you two choose to have children? Why didn't you get married first?

We did not plan for it. Or- I did not, at least.

Okay, so you just had sex.

[He could understand that. The kids were an accident.]

But uh, if you're keeping the kids and taking care of them with her, why don't you get married now?

I am not certain whether or not Sirens get married.

[ Though now he's curious about it, even if he doesn't really think marriage is for him. ]

...huh.

[He had not considered that. Maybe the siren hadn't asked the Outsider to marry her because her kind didn't marry. Wan certainly didn't believe the mermaids or naiads married the men they attempted to lure into their arms.]

Maybe they don't. Only way to know is to ask.

Perhaps I will, then. It's already been suggested that I ask her if she loves me.

[ This is a hot mess. ]

[Now Wan was even more confused.]

...what does her loving you have to do with marriage?

[He can only assume the Outsider brought that up because he thought it was relevant.]

They often go together. In any case, it is simply another thing to ask.

Not in my world.

[Which was a shame, now that he thought about it. It just wasn't a true consideration most of the time. Not among most of the customs he was familiar with.]

...it would be nice if they did, though. Well, whatever her answer to those questions, I'm glad to see you taking the care of your children into your hands.

It is not done among those with a larger interest in politics, in my world. But those with little else do often marry for love.

[ He wonders if that is enough for them. ]

I am... linked to this world, now. In ways I did not anticipate.

[ The children, Ceit, the sigil that sits in his chest... all of it. ]

Live some place long enough and you'll make ties to it.

[Something Wan knew from experience. Lots of experience, considering how much his world had changed in his life time and how much he traveled from place to place.

He looked over his shoulder for a moment, reacting to a sound that didn't quite reach the locket, and then waved goodbye.]

I have to go. Tell the kids I said hi?

[ There's a nod of his head. ]

I will.

[ And if he gets a chance to ask Ceit, maybe Wan will get a strange call in the middle of the night about the marriage habits of sirens. ]

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