14. The Waterfall 

Amancio started to move. There was no need for Sofi to hold on as tightly as she insisted. He never broke past a lazy speed. He and Sofi drifted through the river maze. They dodged floating logs and alligators at rest. Cranes fanned their wings and took flight whenever they came too close.

Sofi smiled at the sight of a butterfly hovering slightly ahead of them, fighting to move onward against the breeze. With wings the color of lemons, it reminded her of the one she followed from the shorehouse.

Amancio swam towards a cluster of dark, lush islands. Sofi swallowed as they entered the complex levels of this river labyrinth.

Thin, starved rays of sunlight needled through the dense canopy and softly illuminated their path. The water became shallow, the river more narrow. Vines stretched lower and lower until they left sticky kisses along Sofi's face and shoulders. They were doors, she realized. And their lord, whose back she clung to, carried her to a place that felt equal parts sacred and secret.

Sofi didn't remember sliding off of the dolphin or when he transformed back into Amancio. How long had she been turning in place, cycling through marvel after marvel?

A sky of roots, vines, and budding flowers. They formed a ceiling, concave – an impression of God's thumb.

Transparent fish swam about Sofi's legs. If she were anywhere else in the Amazon, she would have been blind to them. But this waterfall basin revealed everything with impossible clarity.

"We call this place the cathedral."

Amancio waded beside her, balancing the yellow butterfly on his index finger. He glanced at Sofi, grinned like a child, and pretended to whisper something to the insect. Then it fluttered off in search of some water blossom to feed from.

The waterfall called Sofi's name. She hugged herself. "Amancio, this place . . . am I even allowed to be here?"

Sofi looked around. "Amancio?"

"Hey, Sofi! Up here!"

She followed the urgent call coming from the very highest rock in the basin. Amancio's hair practically dusted the ceiling.

"Watch this!"

He turned around, stiffened his arms at his side and cried out in exhilaration before backflipping into a freefall. His tanned limbs flailed disastrously in his descent.

"I can fly! I can fly! I can flyyyyy!"

It practically stung when Sofi heard that inevitable wet slap. Seconds later, Amancio reemerged, his expression too adorable for her to deny.

"Did you see? Did you see what I just did?"

Sofi couldn't resist a smile. "You're insane."

Amancio sank until his shoulders were submerged and went into orbit around her. Sofi shrieked when he applied pressure to her waist.

"Your turn."

It was a battle to escape him. "Amancio, no. I'm not going up there! Oh my God!" His arms became the basket and Sofi the fruit. She laughed into his shoulder as he climbed the rocks.

"Don't take me all the way up there or I'll – "

Amancio paused and jostled her so she had to look at him.

"Or you'll what?"

Sofi tried to create some distance between her face and his lips and his eyes and his damned scent.

"You have no concept of personal space, do you?"

Amancio ignored her. "Or you'll what?"

Sofi huffed and poked him hard in the chest. "Or I won't talk to you anymore."

He was smiling. So was she.

Amancio put her down.

"Thank you."

Then he pushed her off the rock.

An incoherent scream of curses and threats followed Sofi until the pool swallowed her. The transparent fish fled at the impact. Sofi opened her eyes under the water and took in the quiet clarity of the basin.

The fish scattered in reverse, reappearing from their hiding places. Sofi only got to spend a few moments with them before Amancio joined her underwater. They grinned at each other in amusement as tiny bubbles escaped from between their teeth.

Then Amancio relaxed his mouth and it made Sofi want to do something very, very stupid.

Amancio was a fabled monster. He had hypnotized her. Attacked her. So far their relationship read like a cheap werewolf novel. And yet here she was, about to kiss him.

Do it now. While no one is watching.

Sofi answered her impulses and easily found his lips. Then he . . . pulled away.

Natural laws brought them to the surface. Though their contact had been brief, Sofi could still taste remnants of citrus. She wanted to wipe it off. How dare he lead her on –

"I've never –" Amancio started, but looked at nearby lilypad in what was very clearly embarrassment.

They floated in silence, the warbled roar of the waterfall going on like pitying applause.

"What if," Sofi said, "it'll help you remember?"

Amancio didn't draw back when she came closer.

"Maybe you've done this before," she added, lowering her voice. Amancio's lips parted in uncertainty.

"Close your eyes."

The Encantado obeyed. Sofi took his head in her hands. She inhaled the acidic aromatherapy on his breath. His throat bobbed in anticipation, but he kept his eyes shut.

She tried again. And . . . he hadn't been lying. The Encantado was not at all acquainted with this sort of intimacy. With each advance, she was met with curiosity and mild wonder. He wasn't remembering. He was learning.

Sofi relaxed her jaw and showed him how humans could be magic too.