It’s been four years since Tammy was inducted into the Barabba Tribe through his marriage with Avi, and nobody could have expected their partnership would last so long. He’s 10, she’s 11, and everyone figured Avi would have either gotten herself killed, or Tammy would have gotten so sick of her that he’d find a better wife.

But instead of those obvious outcomes, Avi’s mother, Chaya Barabba, is watching the psychic and the runt sit at the bow, making gestures and faces at each other. Salty wind whips by, the sun beats down, and conversation fills the air. The tribe is migrating across the planet, with different groups taking roundabout paths. The 6-engine speedboat carries 15, and the storage space below is crammed with supplies and personal belongings. The bridge is enclosed with glass and has a hatch to the lower deck, with the aft featuring padded seats for the passengers.

Chaya’s strong hands dent the metal wheel.

She has no idea what they’re talking about; their sign language is unique and only they know what each gesture means.

The two made this sign language years ago, but Tammy has since learned how to communicate telepathically. Are they doing it to show off? Does Avi insist on communicating this way to let everyone know that Tammy’s heart still firmly belongs to her?

“…Hedwin.” She says calmly.

Avi’s litter-brother perks and rushes towards the middle of the boat. “Mom?” Hedwin is the prized son of the litter. A strong head of red hair, and big for his age. At 11 years old, he stands at 5’8, while the runt only reaches 4’9.

She smiles, “doesn’t your sister look a bit thirsty?”

Hedwin looks over the navigation equipment, through the glass canopy. His sister is sitting to the left of the bow while his brother-in-law is on the right. There’s a metal beam that trails the rim of the boat, Tammy is wearing a harness with a short cord connected to the beam, preventing him from falling off, while Avi’s tail is coiled around it. He smiles, “oh no, poor girl isn’t keeping herself hydrated!”

Chaya shakes her head, “what are we gonna do with her?”

Hedwin leaves the bridge and heads to the bow. The boat leaps over shallow waves, but Hedwin has great balance.

“Hey sis!”

Avi turns her head for just a second before returning her attention to Tammy. She gestures something, Tammy gestures back, and she laughs heartily.

Hedwin frowns. Whatever that was, it was an insult. “Your hat flew off a while ago and the sun is beating down pretty hard. Figured you might need something to drink.”

“[Piss off.]” Avi gestures.

“[He can’t understand you.]”

“…” Avi turns to Hedwin, “dearest brother,” she says with a honeyed voice, “I am ever so grateful for your offer, but-“ before she can properly refuse, Hedwin grabs under her arms and hoists her up, “h-hey! What are you-?!”

“Have a drink!” He tosses her overboard.

“Avi!” Tammy screams at the top of his lungs. He tries to get up, but the harness keeps him in place. There’s a little commotion near the back of the boat, but nobody’s in a rush to see.

Avi lands in the water with a large splash, her tail still hooked around the beam. Tammy scrambles to undo the hardness.

Hedwin leans over and puts a hand to his mouth as he calls out, “make sure to fill your belly!”

Avi twists and turns, beaten and dragged under the water. She pounds against the ship’s hull and can’t get her bearings, the black cord in her tail stretching under the strain. She tries to open her eyes, but her vision is occluded by a storm of bubbles. She flails her arms to try and grab hold of something, but the white hull is too smooth, and she can’t even tell which way is up.

Hedwin holds his gut from laughing so hard. “Have you seriously not pulled yourself up? Use your tail!”

Tammy finally removes the harness, and he sprints past Hedwin, leaping into the water. “[Avi!]” He screams telepathically, “[I’ll get you!]” In his panic, Tammy assumed she was left stranded.

“Ah!” Hedwin reaches forward to grab Tammy, but he’s too slow. The boy lands hard, the momentum causing him to skip and twist across the water’s surface. His shoulder disconnects and he starts sinking.

Chaya, watching the affair, inhales sharply and turns hard to port, pressing buttons on the control panel to slowly drag the ship to a stop.

Avi, sensing Tammy jump into the water, lets out all the air in her lungs in a surprised cough. Before she can drown, Hedwin grabs her tail and roughly yanks her to the deck. She coughs up water and gasps for air, with Hedwin diving out to rescue his brother-in-law.

The ship halts, and some bone-tails reach the bow. Hedwin swims back, gently laying Tammy down.

“My-..! My arm!” Tammy cries through gritted teeth.

Avi tries to scramble closer, but she’s blocked by Chaya, Hedwin, and everyone attending to Tammy.

“Why’d you jump!?” Hedwin cries, injecting a nerve suppressant into Tammy’s shoulder.

Tammy screeches with fire in his eyes, “why’d you throw Avi overboard!?”

“It was a prank, I would have pulled her up.” The pain suppressant active, Hedwin snaps Tammy’s shoulder back into the socket.

Chaya kneels, “Sammy,” she brushes wet hair from his face, “you need to be more careful. Your body is frail.”

“He needs to apologize!”

“Sammy, I’m so sorry.”

“N-not to me, idiot!”

Hedwin huffs and lazily looks over his shoulder, “sorry, sis.”

Tammy, scowling, stands and pushes through the crowd to Avi. “A-are you okay?” She nods, still coughing. Tammy’s numb arm hangs limp, but he helps his wife up, “let’s get below deck.”

Avi coughs hard, then turns her head to glare at the others. She smiles fiercely, “yeah, where these distractions can’t bother us.”

Chaya expertly hides her frustration behind a smile.