"Alt ... modes?" Jay says, slowly and then his eyes light up with understanding. "Oh! You're ... you're a perevjortysh! Well, a golem made to be one, but still ... I suppose it makes sense a golem would become some sort of usually inanimate thing rather than a wolf or a bear or what-have-you …"

Satisfied with the explanation that Riptide is a golem wereboat, Jay grins. It's all a lot simpler than he thought!

"You know, protests are more effective when they're directed, darling," he adds, as an afterthought. "Just general protesting mostly gets you arrested for loitering. Or soliciting."