inkling \INK-ling\ noun
Meaning
1 : a slight indication or suggestion : hint, clue
*2 : a slight knowledge or vague notion

Never before had I felt it; the sensation was quite, quite new. I would not say this was unsettling, only that it was unexpected. To discover something about yourself this late in life is at once surprising, and also reassuring: it's nice to know your race isn't quite yet over. The truth of the matter is that the first inkling went completely unnoticed. Those first few days were just like all the others, and it wasn't until things had progressed beyond a point of return that I was aware of her. She changed everything eventually, but entirely gradually.