The Selkie

"The deck was surprisingly small and Spartan. At the rear, holding onto the rudder handle was a beautiful maiden dressed all in white. Her golden hair tumbled down her back onto the well-used wooden handle, her bright green eyes shining against her white skin. As she smiled, I noticed her fingers had webs between them like ducks’ feet and I became curious. Her beauty was undeniable and I found it almost impossible to tear my eyes away from her. Arthur, likewise, was staring, mouth gaping open in admiration."

Selkies (also known as silkies or selchies) are mythological shapeshifting creatures that are found in Irish, and Scottish folklore. They

 are seals that can shed their skin to become humans. Stories concerning selkies are generally romantic tragedies. Sometimes the human will not know that their lover is a selkie, and wakes to find them gone. Some stories from Shetland have selkies luring islanders into the sea at midsummer, the lovelorn humans never returning to dry land.