"It was a beautiful day on the beach when I met my stalker," Sigma explained to his children as he began a story he told everyone at least once.

"Wait a minute now," Unna said. "Don't tell them your horrible version." He laughed. "I was not a stalker."

"I'm pretty sure the definition of a stalker would include a tiny, little Chihuahua following me down the boardwalk," he teased before turning his attention back to the pups sitting before him, waiting eagerly to hear the rest of the story. "As I was saying."

---

It was a a beautiful day on the beach, and I remember this because I have hundreds of photographs to prove it. Our town is always bleached by the sun, but that day, a storm was just clearing out. Instead of blinding sunlight, purple and amber skies cast a dark tone that photographers yearn to utilize in their craft. I sat down after an hour to look through what I had captured so far, and I began to notice a pattern. Staring down at the screen on the back of my camera, I studied several photos in a row, realizing one little dog kept showing up in them. When I looked up to see if it was still around, it, or I should say he was sitting right in front of me.

"Are you following me?" I asked him. I knew he had to be a shapeshifter like I was, he was clearly not just a stray dog, though I had never seen a shifter with such a small shift before.

His response was his tiny, very happy tail flinging sand as it whipped back and forth and his two front paws tapped up and down.

I couldn't help but to laugh at my very adorable stalker. "Is it because you are vain and enjoy having your picture taken?" I asked as I lifted my camera to snap a photo of him up close. He barked at me, spinning in a circle. "Fine, I could use some company and you are cute." I said as I stood up and headed down the beach. "I'd ask for you to go stand in the water, but I'd be afraid you'd get washed away." I teased.

He dashed down the beach anyway, just to prove a point - a typical chihuahua. I laid down on the ground to capture photos of him as he ran through the water. He was the epitome of happiness as he frolicked and, quite obviously, put on a show. He was so caught up in making me smile that I dropped my camera when a large wave did come in. He was unaware of it, and I feared he really would get washed away when it reached him. I quickly got up and ran down to grab him up out of the water with seconds to spare.

While my heart was racing, he seemed quite proud of himself. "I never drop my camera, you should feel special." I said once I set him back on the ground. From that day forward, I saw him nearly every day, and when I didn't, my photography outings felt lonely. That little dog really grew on me, and when I finally met him in person I never would have guessed it was him. Funnily enough, I was still drawn to him as I was taking photographs. I spotted him leaning against the underneath of the boardwalk, staring off at the waves. I try to be sneaky when I take photographs, as I don't want people to notice me or it ruins the spontaneity of the scene, but he noticed me very quickly, almost as though he had been waiting for me. And he had been.

"There's my favorite photographer," he said with a grin as he straightened himself out to come meet me.

"Do I know you?" I asked.

"A bit." He said. Now that he was closer and I had a better look at him, and looked at his face instead of his muscular, and I must admit amazing body, I noticed the familiarity in his eyes.

"You can't be..." I said. There was absolutely no way that teeny Chihuahua could turn into this person.

He laughed. "I get that a

lot

. But you do recognize me, I can tell."

"How is it even possible?"

"Shapeshifting is a funny thing." He smiled. "My name is Unna, by the way. And it's nice to finally formally meet you."

"Sigma." I smiled. "It's nice to meet you too."

---

"We spent a lot more time together after that point when we started talking to each other. I loved creating history with my photography, while Unna, it turned out, loved pop culture and reveling in past decades, which is where all of you got your names," Sigma said.

The pair chose the 90s for the fun, vibrant, and somewhat reckless atmosphere it portrayed, much like their own relationship. Just as they jumped into a relationship made of two strangers sharing an evening stroll together, the 90s were all about doing whatever, whenever, and however.

"The 90s were indeed a great time to be alive. There was a sense of optimism that I never felt before that decade, and I haven't felt since." - Corey Taylor