Marriage of the Sea

" She could surely be no older than twenty, tall and slim in a way that could have been attractive had her bones not sliced up so harshly beneath her ashen-pale skin. Her long silver hair was crowned with a garland of roses and, I saw to my surprise as I drew closer, soaking wet, plastered to her scalp and shoulders. My bewilderment only grew as I saw her heavy white gown, also soaking wet and looking for all the world like a wedding dress. "