Lehua Parker - One Shark, No Swim

Raw ahi tuna glistening like rubies on a bed of green cabbage would definitely hit the spot. He smacked his lips, remembering the taste of shoyu and wasabi hot on his tongue and how the flavor of cheap wooden chopsticks lingered in the back of his throat long after hed swallowed each morsel. Cant forget to chew, he thought. Humans chew. For Kalei, eating fresh ahi was no big deal, but having someone else catch, clean, and serve it on a platter was once in a blue moon special. When a sashimi craving hit, there was only one place to go: Haris in Lauele Town, Hawaii. With the moon as his only witness, Kalei gracefully shifted from Niuhi shark to human form.

Blinking salt from his newly human eyes, he pulled oxygen deep into his lungs. The first human breath burns like smoke from a fire. Gills are so much better. In the middle of spiting seawaters tang, he paused. Blood. His nose twitched. He opened his mouth and inhaled again, feeling microscopic flecks trickle past his teeth to coat the insides of his cheeks. The strongest is fish blooda deep water fish, not something from the reef. The strongest is fish blooda deep water fish, not something from the reef.

Smells like the best belly part of the fish, not the rubbish head or tail. Not crab bait, then. Theres a hint of banana leaves, too. Someones lunch? He sniffed again. No whiff of spice or rice. Not even a trace of plastic wrapper.

Now why would somebody place a prime slice of raw fish on a banana leaf in front of Pohaku? Its likeAn offering?Interesting. Pohaku was a sacred round aumakua stone that sat guarding the waters edge at Piko Point. Roughly the size and shape of a basketball, Pohaku was often mistaken for an ancient Hawaiian fishing god leftover from the days when stone and wooden gods dotted beaches and hills, but the truth was much more intriguing. Most days, Pohaku was content to watch surfers on the Nalupuki-side of Piko Point or families splashing at Keikikai beach on the other. Most days, but not all. Kalei craned his neckone of the few advantages to his human formand searched for the bloods source. His eyes confirmed what his nose told him: whatever smelled like a chunk of deep water fish on a banana leaf was long gone.

Who remembered you, Pohaku, but forgot you dont like fish? Pohaku didnt answerat least not in words. Pohaku spoke in mental images and emotionswhen he condescended to communicate at all. Too embarrassed to tell the story? Dont worry. I know its not your fault. Humans are short-lived and stupid. Kalei opened his mouth, letting the breeze tickle his tongue.

Like a wine connoisseur, he concentrated on each bloods distinct note and ignored the flavors of jasmine, seaweed, and hot asphalt. I know blood when I smell it, Pohaku. Theres fish and two other kinds of blood here. Why? Silence. Still not telling? Fine. Ill figure it out for myself.

Kalei pulled himself completely out of the water and onto the lava flow. Holding his arms high above his head, he gently pulled on each wrist until the joints in his shoulders, elbows, and wrists popped. Giving his back a twist and bending his knees, he frowned at his missing right toe. After all these years, Im still not whole.