The Sentinels returning in a way

Sockeye looked on in the way he often did, appearing amused and besotted by Fable's antics. It was just a normal conversation but it wasn't, and Sockeye thought maybe he loved him for it, just a little.

And when he looked at the girl, he thought, Aw. And that was it — Aw, and he was smitten. Why shouldn't he be? He'd spent a long time looking for his wife, and just look how that'd gone. He didn't have time to guard his heart the way he used to.

"Rosette spoonbills," he said, his tone bland. "You ever hear of them? Me neither, but this one says 'e seen 'em. What's a spoonbill even look like, I wonder?"

Glib. Innocent. But there was a glint in his eyes that said he knew he was an embarrassment and revelled in this fact.