Wheeling Gull Isle he can hold you, and shake you child.

with each new plant laid across the sandy plate of psalm’s five star course, ava’s delight grew. there were some things the turtle snubbed; marigold, aster, and clover. but the anne’s lace, the yarrow, and lavender! these she ate heartily. 

after a while, ava forgot malakai had been watching her. in her bustle she did not see he’d slipped off in a patch of late summer grass. while he snored, ava’s quiet laughter filled the sound as she found each new treat to present to psalm. 

that night she would dream psalm ate a thousand crabs — gliding through an ethereal kelp forest that somehow seemed intimately familiar, as if her soul had once lived there long ago.