The Ties that Bind

[Dulcie]

That prolonged moment of Kals making faces left Kacela with an aching belly and cheeks from all the laughing and she'd let her free hand come rest on her chest as the laughter would finally fade off into chuckles and then into that bright smile of hers. She'd just look at him for a moment then thinking for a moment before she'd finally say. "You are worth the.. what did you call them? Side-effects?" She drew out the last word, the combination of words sounding extremely unusual but she was able to work it out in context. The sickness was what he had meant. "I have missed laughing." And something about the way she said it seemed to indicate that she hadn't just meant in the past few days that he had been gone.

She'd go back to being thoughtful then, thinking about the gifts that Kals had suggested, seeming to decide on something. "Feathers is good thinking." She'd seem to muse about that a little more, not so much looking at Kals for that moment but looking off into one of the trees as she though she was thinking to herself. She'd look back at him then before asking her questions. "Is it Father and Mother in your pack?" A slip of words, forgotten as she was thinking. "Does your family have more boats?"

His hand was held out to her and she'd take it, pulling herself up to her feet easily, not bothering to dust off the bits of dirt and grass that might have stuck to her, they'd come loose when they started walking anyhow. She'd keep his hand once she was on her feet, her fingers moving to lace amongst his. "I like that, yes. A few days is good. Will surprise be upsetting?" She knew that she didn't always like to be surprised or startled after all and they both knew what happened the one time Kals surprised her in the woods. "Not tough?" She'd query, giving him a bit of a confused look, not so much at the word, but what was meant behind it.

He would ask about the river and she'd incline her head, the braids swaying a bit with the motion. He'd feel a distinct almost grumpy "No" emotion, however the words from her lips were "Yes." Short and simple, her emotions a weave of determination, bravery, apprehension and just plain old annoyance. It was difficult to tell where the wolf and the woman were seperated in this particular regard, though one could make some guesses and which felt what exactly.

[Suede]

"We'll see if you still agree with that after 50 or 60 years." Another joke, and he made sure to project that fact in voice, posture, and skill. He wanted to be certain this one wasn't lost in the translation. "Just don't eat much before we go, we can get food once we're there." It'll mean less to leave on the ground afterwards. He'd have to take care of business in town over the next few days to make sure he could disappear back home. Things to do, things to do.

But she was smiling, he'd worry about the work later. He knew what she meant about the laughter and winked at her. "Then you'll not miss it for a while, with how much of I fool I intend to make of myself." Not all of it would be accidental, either.

"There's my father and mother, my brother and his wife, me, and the ship..." He ticked them off on his free hand as he went. "Well, and uncles and cousins and so forth, but they're not immediate family." The slip of using the term pack didn't seem to bother him, and he made no mention of it. "No other boats... at least not living ones. They're very rare. No family has more than one." They had more mundane sorts about, but he didn't think she had meant those.

He snorted at the question of it being upsetting. "Of course not, they wouldn't have let me come back if my mother could help it. She loves when her kids visit, even when we're not really so far away." He returned the squeeze and reached to brush some of the grass off her himself. She may be more wild, but he still had habits grilled into him by his parents that he was slow to get over when they were in the wilderness. "There'll be a bit of whirlwind about me bringing you along, but they know who you are and it'll be more about getting to see you." As for tough, ah yes, he made a show of flexing one of his arms. "I'm of course quite fierce and strong. But most of my family doesn't sail, or are older. So I hope the wolf isn't disappointed in that regard."

The arm came down and he'd give the hand he was holding a pat. "Don't worry, it'll be easier than last time and it wouldn't hurt to get a bit more used to the water before you see the big river." He gave her his biggest smile. "And you can make me do something I don't want to after just to make it fair."

[Dulcie]

She got the joke this time, the effort he put into it helping and she'd smile at his efforts. It wasn't the big belly laugh like before, but he could tell she was amused by the statement and yet all at the same time she couldn't help but to comment on it in the most literal way. "Your old would not change me." She'd assure him, even though deep down she knew that he didn't really need the assurance. Jokes were strange things. She'd consider something when he talks about making a fool of himself, taking a moment to watch his dusting himself off with a hint of amusement in her eyes at the action. "It is a strange thing that you have not had a female Ocean Walker. You have many good things to you." She'd think on that for a moment, but remembering what he had said about the girls who didn't care much for anything but frills and she'd consider that it had been more of a choice of his than the choosing of the women. "Will I have to fight off the flirtings from females?" She questioned, trying to frame it as a joke, mimicing some of the features he had used when he joked, trying to get her tone just right to make it seem that way, but the whole thing just came off rather silly as she tried too hard to make the joke work.

After he'd react to her poorly made joke she'd give some time for them to start walking towards where Kals might lead them to the water and she'd comment a little on his family. "Do they all live in the same home? Or two homes like the town-humans here do?" She was clearly forming a plan for the gifts. "I know what I will make. I can do it in a few days." She'd say resolutely, though something else was forming in her mind. He missed a family member, albeit one that was local and not truly associated with him, but pack was blood and she still shared some of what Kals had. There would be things to do there as well. "They sound good. Maybe strong in their own way? Not warriors, but good traders have to be fierce to trade yes?" She wasn't sure exactly what the wolf would think about the rest of his family. She had that nagging feeling about going to see his pack for days now and yet she wasn't quite sure what the wolf wanted with them. Perhaps she would be disappointed, or perhaps she'd simply want to know what she was binding herself into.

"It will be good to try the water again." She agreed, though the feeling he got from the wolf still resonated with annoyed reluctance. She seemed to trust that Kacela and Kals weren't going to drown themselves but that didn't mean that she liked it at all. "I do not know what you would not like as much as I do not like water." Though the idea of making him do something uncomfortable seemed to be something she was considering and it was quite clear that the wolf liked that idea very much. Almost like some of the games that they had started playing hunting and seeking each other, or the few playful sneak attacks in the tavern. The wolf would be quiet then, almost as she was when she was sleeping, though there'd be a distinct impression that she was still present, still aware.

"I want your shirt." She'd say then, the statement simple and out of place for the moment before she'd explain after a pause. "My clothes are too heavy and you turn colors when I do not wear clothing. Your shirt is light and big." A condition to the trip to the water this time.

[Suede]

"I'm not home often, even before Myrken I was usually out sailing with my father. Careful avoidance of trader parties and a good air of grumpiness when I do have to go to one do wonders for my social life." In that anyone who wasn't already a friend of his wasn't apt to approach him unless they were after business, and that was half the point of those festivities to begin with. Her poor attempt at a joke gets an amused smile out of him more for the effort than the actual quality of it. "I doubt it, but feel free to scare off anyone you want to." The reacts would be worthwhile if nothing else if she started tossing people around to get her point across. He'd have to warn his parents on that one.

"My immediate family does, the rest of the tree tends to spread out depending on the situation. But the ones you need to worry about will be all in one place." There would be too much effort if she tried to get something for everyone who could possibly be a member of his family in any sense, so he wouldn't encourage that from her. "They can trade, and play the trader games..." He reached up and scratched the back of his neck, eyes turning up to the forest canopy. "I just can't see that as being something that will impress your wild side." And he wasn't getting an answer from staring at leaves. That was a bit disappointing.

"It will be, especially since you're going to have to at least go down to the docks, maybe on the ship itself, so she can meet you." Her comment about not knowing something he'd not like just had him shrugging as if it wasn't his problem. "You're on your own. I'm not going to help you figure out something I don't want to do." The wolf's eagerness was a particular reason not to help out. He may wind up regretting the offer soon.

He actually thought the demand for his shirt was the requirement of something he didn't want to do, considering how rare it is for him to be uncovered at all. There was a slight startled look, then he raised an eyebrow. "I think you may just be trying to get my clothes off."

[Dulcie]

She was pleased that he was amused with her joke, despite the fact that she knew she hadn't got it quite right. What mattered is that it amused him and that's what jokes were supposed to do. She'd grin at his comment about scaring people and she'd look back at him. "I will be very scary. You are mine." She said possessively, though the part about being scary had a hint of amusement in her tone. He'd likely know that she had no intentions of trying to be scary during their journey at all.

"That will be easy. All in one home. It is the male that leads the family yes?" She was sorting things out. There were proper ways to do things, at least in her culture, but part of finding the right way to do things with people that were nothing like yourself had to do with figuring out a little bit about them first. "My people lived like that too. Many people in one home, it is our females who would lead the home though." Talking made the journey to the water easier, it helped her forget and to not think about what they were really up to. "Not all of my people were warriors." She'd say, trying to ease some of his concerns about the weakness of his family members. "Some were healers, storytellers, people that made food. We protected them. They were worth protecting." She'd look at him then trying to make sure that her assurances made a difference.

"I do want to meet your ship. The wolf is curious too." Though she didn't really need to say it, he could certainly feel that emotion from the spirit she shared. "I hope that she is liking of me." Though her comments about the ship were short lived, replaced by her amusement over the matter of the shirt. "I think you would like it and not like it if I did want to try to get your clothes off." Clearly she was amused by his discomfort over the matter. "I could take my clothes off but you would be... what is the word.. embarassed?" She'd question. She was grinning from ear to ear, amused at the whole scenario. She'd even let the topic rest for a minute before she'd finally offer, "You could give me your shirt and I would not look. The water would be good for hiding." Apparently trying to wade about in leather again just wasn't going to happen.

[Suede]

"Feel free, the more people you chase off, the fewer we have to deal with. I'll help and everyone will avoid us." It really didn't sound that bad to him, and she likely would have little interest in the high society sorts as they got closer to his house. He glanced her way and considered just how out of place she'd be there. He could blend in when he needed, but the ideas and concepts would be rather foreign to her. Kals made a mental note to take her to the docks first to ease her into things... by taking her to water again. He gave her hand a little squeeze. "Mark or whatever you need to do."

Her question about who led the family had him shrugging a bit. "I run the businesses, but I suppose my father." He learned forward as if conspiring with her and that there would truly be someone around the part of the woods to not only listen, but also care. "But it's pretty obvious that my mother is the one in charge. You don't mess with her." It wasn't a technical reality, but everyone in his house knew better than to cross the woman.

"I know not everyone is a warrior. And they are who they are, but I have to make a good impression too, so I worry about." Really, something would be wrong if he wasn't just a bit embarrassed by his family. Your kin were innately designed to do something to ruin your image to the man or woman you brought home. "I'm sure Eirenne is just as curious. She'll certainly like your wild side, there's a predator hiding in her, too."

"I certainly can't say I'd be entirely inclined to resist much if you lost all your clothing and then tried to get me in the same state." Embarrassment could be resisted enough to banter right back, ignore the color of his cheeks Kacela. "You don't have to avoid looking, I'll still have myself covered decently." She never said she wanted the vest, anyways. He was debating keeping that part after he took the shirt off. "Why don't you want to wear the leather?" Kals was not a man well educated on how leather and water got along.

[Dulcie]

"You have many friends and you seem not to like your own people. You are strange Ocean Walker." Though the smile on her lips would tell him that she didn't mind so much, having a feeling that perhaps most of his kind were more like his sister than they were like him. "I am glad though. Too many people would be difficult." Unpredictable, difficult to follow the customs of.. the list went on and on really and she'd let him feel some of that apprehension she had about meeting large groups of people.

She'd offer a squeeze of her hand back to him, though she could smell and hear the water that was approaching and her grip would remain tight rather than releasing it after a short period of time, those feeling of anxiety welling up in her again despite the fact that she had survived a trip into the stream once before. The best thing for her to do was to focus on something else, and the little conspiracy about who was in charge did just that, bringing her laughter to dampen some of the sounds of rushing water that she could hear. "This I have seen in this place as well. It is the females who care for the homes. Among my people the males were warriors and the female cared for the home. When two became mated they would live in the female's home with her family. Females like me were not many."

"Impression I do not know, I am thinking it is meaning you want good things to happen when we meet yes?" She nodded her head at the comments about Eirenne and he'd feel a stir of curiousity from the wolf, clearly the ship was something that intrigued her as well. "How is a ship a predator?"

But then there was red cheeks, something that drew her smile back to her lips. She found it amusing when he blushed, though he did his fair share of embarassing her in the past as well. "When we are mated." She'd say with a touch of a grin on her lips. "I have learned it is not what is to be doing before that. I think that is why you change colors." She'd still find that amusing. At the question about the leather she'd shrug slightly "It was heavy in the water. I did not like that. It did not dry for much time and then it was small and weak. It is not good for being in water I think." She didn't really understand much of the mechanics about the leather and the water either, but what happened to the last set of clothing she had worn into the water was enough to disuade her from trying it again.

[Suede]

"I don't have so many friends, but the ones I have are worth having." Kals works his hand free of her rather strong grip, trying to shift her hold to his arm so he could work on undoing the buttons of his vest and shirt as they walked. Apparently he was resigned to the fact he'd be giving them up if he was going to get her back into the water again. "You just get used to the fact that everyone around town always wants to work a trade and make money. Most of the people that will try and talk with me when I'm home are doing so for a reason." He had a few friends present, to be sure, but they were only a fraction of the people in town.

"That just makes you more rare. And traders like strong women. Especially if the male had to sale for a long time with his ship, she'd be left behind to manage everything. And they'd have to be able to play the politics and games well. I make my brother and his wife handle that." The last was added in specifically to keep Kacela from worrying about having a task she'd not be able to fulfill in his life. He did his best to reassure her about the water with lighter talk and a reassuring presence pressed against her through his skill. She hadn't died the last time she'd touched water after all. "So what you're saying... is that you're more special."

"What you see of someone. The first impression I had of you was a wild woman who hunted and lived off the land and didn't know about the culture." He stops loosening his shirt a moment to rub his chin, a small grin forming. "I don't think that's changed much, I've just had a lot of details to add in since them." As for the ship being a predator, he sent her the mental image of a dragon in the sky. "The liveships are made from the cocoons of dragons that died while they were changing a long time ago. They still remember being something else, though how strong those memories are depends on the ship." Eirenne's memories were not so fierce, but they were still there and did change her way of interacting with the world some.

Her comment about after they're mated and the suggest it held DID turn him rather red, far more than he'd been in the past. He took the moment to cover his face by pulling the shirt over his head as a way to mask just how red he'd turned. "When we're mated, and yes that is why I change color." And speaking of color, she'd get a good look at the scaling he had beneath the shirt for once. The lines on either side of his neck came together and thickened quickly into a sheet that covered his shoulders and upper back like a diamond, with lines branching off each point down the back of his arms and along his spine. Two further branches wrapped around the base of his neck to touch beneath his collar bone and cover the upper portion of his chest. They were all green with that odd copper tint that brightened in the light and matched the glow of his eyes.

He threw his shirt at her head, attempting to cover it more to hide the fact he was so red than anything else. "This won't get heavy." His tone was still amused, and he still felt that way in presence along with a thread of worry and curiosity about how she'd see his markings from the Rain Wilds.

[Dulcie]

"That is not truth." She'd say when he commented that he didn't have many friends. "There is Wolf-Keeper and Eyes of Deep Water. You have more I think that I do not see?" She'd assume him to have more friends than just those he shared with her, but even from the tone she had given it was her implication that the two were plenty. She certainly seemed content with them herself. She'd let him pry her fingers away from his, though reluctantly and she'd hold onto his arm until it became an inconvenience to continue to do so, her eyes drifting curiously to the buttons that were being unbuttoned. The scales were always a curiousity for her.

She wrinkled her nose a little at his description about the women that his people seemed to prefer. "I would not like that. To stay home and play games. I know this. They are not games like chasing and wrestling. They are the people games. Your females should learn the waters." It sounded a bit like rambling really, processing outloud and not an overall judgement on the place of the women, nor on his brother and sister in law. The subtle reassurances he made through their connection helped and she'd continue to walk with him. "Special? Yes, a little?" She'd seem to consider that. "Many females do not ask for the spirit and many die when they do ask. I am lucky, that is the word yes? Many luckies."

She laughed a little at his comment about his first impressions about her. "Yes, that is truth speaking. I know a little more. Some days I am not wanting to know I think." She'd quiet then, listening and sensing what she could about the liveships, making a soft noise of understanding when she could see the mental image that he projected her. "I am curious what the wolf will think. There are stories about the wolf but I do not know if she remembers them or what she was before she was with me."

She couldn't help but to take some satisfaction in the fact that she managed to turn him completely red. Of course there were similar things that might have made her just as embarassed, but as it was this seemed to be a little something she had won and he'd pick up on the feelings of pride and amusement that seeme dto blend between her and the wolf. The shirt would come off and she wouldn't miss the opportunity to get a good look at his scales, watching unabashed until he threw the shirt at her face, something that she caught easily anyhow. He'd feel from her a certain degree of satisfaction amidst a strong resonating possessive feeling. She'd take the shirt and offer him that bright, broad smile that she had. "There is no worries to be having Ocean Walker. You have seen what is beast in me and called it beautiful. I see only things that warm my heart." She'd look for a moment like she might reach out to touch him, but then seemed to decide against it for the moment, holding to the shirt she had in her hand and motioning for him to turn around.

"You can not get more red. I can hear your heart." She obviously didn't care if he watched but knew he wouldn't because she had asked him not to. His people and the humans had an odd sense of propriety like that. She'd turn her back to him, using a tree branch to hold his shirt for the moment while she undressed. She made quick work of her task considering what she wore, but given what an inconvenience it would be to replace clothing that had been destroyed by the wolf she was used to getting out of her clothes quickly. Her leather tunic and pants would replace the colorful shirt on the tree, the wild woman leaving them there to hang while she slipped the shirt over her head. She fumbled with the buttons, not ever having used one before and for a moment she'd even seem to curse, though it was really anyone's guess what she said as it was spoken in her native tongue. Eventually however she figured it out and would turn about, moving to replace her hand back into his.

"It is very light. I think it is so people on the boat do not drown? Heavy would not be good for ships." She was thinking then about their culture and the sense it made to wear the kinds of clothing that they wore when they were traveling. The shirt that she was now wearing came to about her mid thighs and she had buttoned it to a comfortable degree of modesty, the sleeves however hung and drooped past her wrists, his arms just that much longer than hers.

[Suede]

"A lot of folks don't see that as very many. I suppose it's perspective." He shrugged bare shoulders and glanced up at the sun overhead, frowning just a moment. He'd regret a bit of a sunburn later on the parts of his torso that didn't have the benefits of scaling, but he'd manage it he supposed. He had other friends, certainly, but by a lot of standards it still wasn't a great number... he couldn't really count employees.

Kals seemed quickly more relaxed in his current state of dress once he had Kacela's words of approval and fondness. He relaxed and set his hands on his hips, striking a pose he was more often found in when sailing and in need of scaring his crew into doing their jobs. "It wouldn't suit you at all, but with the way the world works someone has to do it. A lot of people don't even think women should sail, but there are a few who do." They all had significant reputations out on the water for it, too. "We're both lucky." A few meanings behind that. She wouldn't even be alive still if it wasn't for the wolf. "What happens to the spirit if the person doesn't survive?"

"Most days I wish I didn't know half as much as I do about the way people act and why they act. But you're better off knowing than not, or people will trick you. Pull the wool over your eyes." An interesting choice of words since he'd just tossed a shirt at the woman's head. He should have saved the toss to puncuate that line. "What sort of stories does she have?" He wanted to know what they'd both think. Kacela had seen a memory of the liveship, but no more. People tended to have rather varying reactions to seeing a figurehead move about. Especially if they hadn't grown up being able to see them in port the way he had.

He near preened a bit under her compliments, but resisted the urge and only switched from his expansive posture to crossing his arms and giving her a look at the fact she seemed so smug about the entire situation. "You're lucky I love you, or there would be a war on just now." He turned around at her request, arms still crossed, and tried to find the tree in front of him as interesting as possible. "You'd probably see it pop out of my chest if I hadn't turned around." He huffed something at the comment about his heart that turned into a snort of amusement at her frustration with his shirt. "Serves you right for stealing it."

When her hand touched his he'd uncross his arms and turn back to her, eyes taking her in much the same way she'd done to him a few minutes ago. He seemed quite pleased despite his previous embarrassment. Shy and modest about certain things, but he wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth. Kacela and her wolf could likely feel his approval of her wearing his clothing. He turned back towards the last stretch to the river and prepared to drag her along behind him. "A good thought, and most of the clothing that's part of it. Those, though, are just light because they're light, though. I don't sale in them, too valuable. That shirt is worth far more than it has any right to be, because it's so resistant to elements and you could fold it up and fit it in the palm of your hand easily. But it's also hot on deck, lighter clothes keep you from fall over thirsty." He avoided saying dehydrated, since he didn't think it was a word she knew.

[Dulcie]

She laughed a little, seeing the pose that he struck. There was no need for it of course, but that didn't stop her from taking the moment to appreciate his bold display. It reminded her a little of the animal world and the wolf seemed pleased about something, although as usual it was difficult to tell exactly what that something was. When Kals talked about her not being cut out for sailing she'd make a whole hearted sound of agreement.

"I would not want to be on the waters like you, but your females home playing games. It would not be... good feeling? I would not like it if I was one of your people." She'd think for a minute then on what he said about the female sailors and their notoriety. "It is like my people then." And she'd leave it at that. It was one comparison she could draw at least. She smiled when he said that they were both lucky, nodding her head with a sway of her braids. "If the person dies the wolf spirit waits for someone strong enough. It is many kinds of strong. The body has to be strong enough to live, and the spirit strong enough to control the wolf. Some people have bodies that live but the wolf spirit takes them over. It is not good for those people." She'd glance over at him and smile for a moment. It felt good to talk about her past, her people. It was something she generally avoided with everyone but him.

"Wool itches." She comments with a scrunched up face at the thought, perhaps missing some of what he meant to say about pulling the wool over your eyes, but she got the general point of what he was trying to say. Somethings were better to know than to not know, as much as you wished that you didn't. She laughed at the comment of the war, and he'd sense a feeling of challenge from the wolf, though it was a more playful feeling than he might have experienced before he and the wolf had seemed to come to terms. She'd take his hand and tap her fingertips to the buttons on the shirt with her free hand. "These are not sense making. How do your young match them with their tiny fingers? There are better ways to close a shirt." She says resolutely, but grins at the comment about stealing it. "I did not take what was not given."

She seemed pleased that he seemed to approve of her wearing his clothes, remembering a little about what he had said about it the first time she had done so. She'd take his hand tightly as they started towards the water. If she was concerned about ruining a fine shirt it certainly didn't show. She looked at him a bit confused about something he had said about dying of thirst. "Is it that the water burns the shoes?" She was trying to remember what he said about acid in the rain wilds before. "Here there is much water to drink if you were on a boat. Water all around it." Of course she had never experienced salt water before, having steered away from the large bodies of ocean water and only been brave enough to approach the smaller bodies of fresh water.

And then of course there was the question of the wolf's stories he had asked, something that would keep her talking and keep her mind off of the water they were walking towards. "The wolf does not have stories. I can not see what she remembers, or if she remembers. But my people have stories. I was not a story teller." She says almost apologetically and she'd try to open up her thoughts as much as she could to let him see the memory of a storyteller near a fire with many people that looked so much like her sitting around with their attention clearly hanging on the person who was speaking. "I do remember the story of the wolf though. It was told every time a person asked for the wolf." She'd glance back at him then, making sure that he was still interested. "It was said that when the world was made all the animal spirits came together in it's making. Many of the spirits gave gifts to make the world, but it was Wolf who saw the Nahuatl people. Wolf saw that the people were weak and there were still many evil spirits that had clawed their way into the world that they were making. Wolf knew that the Nahuatl would not live without help and so Wolf split into many many parts. Wolf took the bravest and strongest of the Nahuatl to hold the spirit, gifting them with Wolf's shape to protect the people." She'd pause for a moment thinking about something. "I do not know how much of Wolf is left in the spirit world. Many pieces of Wolf died with my people." He'd feel something of sadness from Kacela's wolf, a mourning for the others that were lost, but Kacela had mourned plenty on her own and she was pleased simply that he had asked.

[Suede]

"You wouldn't make a particularly good trader, no offense. It wouldn't suit you at all." She'd not survive it a day, but hopefully she'd manage to get through at least a visit. He could make sure she sees more of the more normal class, those were lived like farmers and craftsmen in Myrken. She'd probably be more comfortable there. Kals tried to imagine her wearing a dress and sipping tea while sitting in a a cushioned chair. The mental image was utterly ridiculous to him and he didn't prevent her from getting a look at it or feeling how wrong he thought it was.

He strode into the shallow water, just up to his mid calf, taking her along with him as long as the wild woman kept hold of his hand. "What did you do with someone who became controlled by the wolf spirit?" He assumed they would be killed, to release the spirit, but perhaps they just tried to separate them. "And I assume people can't become like you unless there's a wolf spirit around. How did you get them to enter someone?" A trap or a request maybe.

"Only bad wool. Good wool is rather nice, but it's up to how the farmer raises the sheep and the weaver does their work. But keep it out of your eyes anyways." He met the challenging emotion with one of his own, effectively butting heads with feelings against the wolf just to make sure she knew he was up for whatever she might try to do and he wouldn't lose easily. His effort fell apart when he was distracted by her question on the button. He looked at them and shrugged "People think they look better on some outfits. Sometimes there are ties, or you pull the shirt on. Kids usually need help figuring them out, though it's supposedly rather amusing the first time someone tries to dress themselves." His mother had a few stories about his own efforts he'd rather not discuss.

"Yeah, but you knew I'd give it to you if you asked. So it still counts." And he still approved. He wouldn't drag her further into the water just yet, letting her get used to the fact it was not going to kill her, and perhaps waiting to see if she'd take it upon herself to step further in. "On the river, yes." And he realized for once that she might have no idea about the ocean. "You can't drink it or it would burn you up inside. But unless you're sailing on a river or lake like this you can't drink the water at all. Ocean water has salt in it, if you drink it you just get thirstier. You have to carry what you can with you. The salt makes things float better, but it's bad for anyone who isn't a fish. And it can be very hot when you're sailing, so wearing heavy clothing will make you sweat more."

Kals didn't seem to care about the shirt, either. Though he was confident that the material was more than capable of handling a bit of water. It was elderling make and he'd done far worse to the thing. He was also still wearing the rest of the outfit and already soaking it in the water.

He listened quietly to her story, glancing at her occasionally to as he tried to picture what precisely that animal spirit in her was and what it meant. He'd always assumed it was just a single spirit of a past wolf called back, not the part of something greater. Kals was careful to adjust his consideration of it. When she checked on his interest she'd see he'd made a point to be watching her the way the people around the fire had been watching the storyteller she'd shown him. "Does she consider herself part of the whole, or entirely her own?" He asked only after she'd finished telling her story. "And wouldn't the spirits of Nah-hoo-at-el who die simply be released back into the spirit world until called again? Maybe they're all just waiting there for those that are still in the world to finish their journey's, then wolf will come back."

[Dulcie]

She laughed at the images he gave her about wearing dresses and sitting drinking tea on plush chairs, shaking her head a little. "You think strange things Ocean Walker. I do not understand your females and their ways. Very strange. How do they chase their young or keep up with their mates? Only the sick sit all day and drink medicine in water like that." She had learned what tea was recently, but it still seemed very strange to her that people would drink it for pleasure.

She stifled a groan of displeasure as the water was finally there, the grip on his hand tightening as her bare feet touched into the first few inches of the water. Mid-calf wasn't bad. He had reasoned with her the last time that if she fell over she could just pick herself up and she would be fine. Still she'd linger there a little while, letting their conversation calm her nerves and the stirring of the wolf who did not at all appreciate being willingly thrust into danger yet again.

"The people who became controlled by the wolf had to be killed. It is a very sad thing. It takes many to kill a wild wolf, there is no way to get back the human that there was before." She'd pause thinking about something, her tone taking on more of a sound of confession. "It happens sometimes to young Nahuatl who are not strong enough for the wolf, and to the very old who do not wish to be strong any more." Another pause and she'd look at him. "I have helped to rest spirits. It is sad helping but for protection. I would want someone to help me if I was not strong any more."

The wolf was not particularly keen on her story, it's emotions agitated and irritated and yet there was little threat of the wolf taking control, the fear of the water far too great to force a change. Kacela in her human form was taller and safer in the water than the wolf itself. She'd consider the other half of his question then, letting her second hand move to take his, finding his presence steadying. "The wolf chooses. The spirit of another wolf marks the person and there were speakings by our Elders. It does not matter what is said though, if the wolf chooses it chooses. If it does not the person does not live." She smiled then, considering his questions about her wolf and his thoughts about what might happen when they were gone. "She is part and whole. Like a wolf in a pack or a warrior with his band. She can not feel the others though. Only those that are bound like she is to me and there are none now, at least that we have found." She'd let her eyes rest on his a moment then. "You would be a good spirit leader. It is a good way to think on it. I think I will hold your thoughts for mine." Her smile would linger there tenderly for a moment before she'd ask. "What do your people believe? Do you have great spirits or Gods?" Gods were another term she had learned about lingering in the town, though more often than not it seemed to be paired with some kind of cursing.

She'd sigh heavily then looking at the water with a somewhat resigned look. "Let us keep going. I am brave." Though her last statement was one that sounded somewhat reluctant. Still it was a little easier in the water withough heavy leather pants wearing her down. She couldn't imagine why humans would swim in clothes at all, though at that thought she'd simply speak her question. "Do humans wear clothes in the water? Or do we just wear them because you turn colors?" Perhaps the clothing was all for each others benefit after all.

This of course led her back to the topic of water, which while still unpleasant to the wolf was better than their musings about death and the life that may or may not come there after. "I think it sounds brave to be on water that can not be used for drink. Your people when they were very new must have been very brave. With waters that burn feet and big water that is hot and you can not drink. To build boats and take to water, it is very brave." Something even the wolf could agree with, though he'd sense some manner of pride from the wolf about the choice of having picked a strong brave mate. If she had to suffer Kacela's choice being from another race apparently a Rain Wilder wasn't all that bad.

"Tell me more about your people. So I am knowing when we go. I do not want to have worries."

[Suede]

"Most of them rely on their presence to keep the kids in line, and their mates are expected to wait for them and dote upon them so they can dress up the way they do." Some women had the sense to dress more practically, of course. He does shake his head at her last comment, then. "It's not medicine, not that kind of tea, anyways. Some people like the taste, that's all."

She might become uncomfortable with the water, but he clearly wasn't. He did an admirable job of not appearing uncomfortable with her efforts to break the bones of his hand, as well. He'd take a few more strides into the water until it was deep enough that when he decided to sit down it would only come midway up his torso. And sit down he did, encouraging Kacela to join him with a tug on both arms. "We're not going far out today, we're just going to relax and cool off a bit. You can be brave right here." And maybe get her a bit more comfortable with spending time in and around the water. He could hope. Perhaps he was also just being a bit considerate of just how much she hated the water that he wouldn't drag her out into the middle of it again.

"I had a feeling. No one likes to kill people they know, but it's better than letting them suffer. I don't blame you for doing it." He stretched his legs out into the water and watched her, waiting to see if she'd sit down as well. "And I don't think you have to worry about not being strong anymore. You've got strength to spare." There was a grunted chuckle at her suggestion he'd make a good spirit leader, and he seemed rather amused just at the thought. "I'm not a particularly spiritual or religious person. I just have a few good ideas, and I look on the bright side. You'll find others some day." When she asked about gods he tried to pry one of his hands from her and splash the water around lightly. "Three of them. Most southerners believe in Sa, who has many faces and many facets, but is the one god that rules everyone. The northerners who we trade with believe in Eda and El, and that's spread to our lands some." He cupped the water with his free hand and held it up. "El is the father of the ocean. He's fierce and strong, and he makes his followers strong by testing them on his seas and culling the weak." He'd let the water fall through his fingers and then motioned towards the land. "Eda is the mother of the earth, she nurtures and protects. She provides food through her soil. That sort of thing. I don't really follow any of them, but I figure it doesn't hurt to try and stay on El's good side since I sail."

There was a short pause and he chuckled. "I think I curse by the gods more than I worship them."

"Uh..." He turned colors again at that question and rubbed at the back of his neck. "Most people wear them for propriety's sake, to cover themselves. But I suppose there are people who go without clothes when they have privacy. We just don't usually share our naked bodies with others, even to look at." Really he had no problem swimming in what he had on now, he did it at sea often, but that was with a bunch of other men who were busy trying to see who could drown who first. "I'd just wind up staring you weren't wearing something." A little admission there.

"I suppose way back they were a bit brave, but really people started going to sea to fish and get food. It was the best source of it. And there was some who wanted to explore and see what was out there after that." He didn't think as much of it as she did, apparently, but he thought far more of how she lived in turn. "People learned how to navigate by the stars, to make sure to bring plenty of water and food with them, and to set up ports of call to resupply so you were never sailing for too long." His own pride seemed to inflate slightly as the push from the wolf, perhaps his eyes glowed a touch more strongly.

"My people? Well, really they were more desperate than brave at the time. Bingtown and the Rain Wilds were founded by former criminals from a land called Jamalia to our south. The ruler there didn't like a lot of people, declared them criminals, and allowed them to go free if they left to go claim lands somewhere else. So they did. They wound up on the Cursed Shore, in the Rain Wilds. The river of acid, the earthquakes, the strange happenings... and how it changed people... "He held up one of his scaled hands in demonstration. "Well, the changes used to be far worse. But it was too much for a lot of folks, so they went south far enough that the land was safer and founded Bingtown. Those who stayed learned how to live in and off the Wilds, and found the magical ruins there of an old civilization, which we used to make our wealth. Bingtown is the front, where our relatives who haven't by changed by the Cursed Shore put on the normal face for the world to trade, and the rest of us mostly stayed upriver."

"We've stopped hiding as much more recently, around the time the dragons came back." He put a hand to his own face a moment. "Though sometimes we hide even in our home now. We let a lot of new people into the Rain Wilds who wanted to start new lives that were once slaves. They're decent... most of them anyways, but they look at us oddly because of how we are." He frowned a bit at that, at least he didn't have some of the more bizarre traits about him. "They're going to be surprised when they start having kids that look like us and change themselves."

[Dulcie]

"Your females are strange. I will try to behave around them. It is good you are answering my questions now." She could at least start to imagine how it might be perceived if she had asked them to his mother or sister in law. It wasn't the sort of impression she was hoping to make.

When he went to sit she'd release his hands for a moment, giving him a look like he was crazy as he went to sit down in the water. She'd watch him there for a moment her eyes calculating a number of risks, much like she might have if she were chasing prey that was leading her off into somewhere risky. There were factors that were meant to be considered. She'd look at the height of the water and where he sat, weighing the risks against rationality. The water still wasn't that deep and if for some reason she tipped over she could still stand herself back up and it wouldn't even be as high as her waist. Finally after those very long silent moments she'd give in and move to sit beside him, though the effort was more hilarious than the idea of watching her sit in a plush chair. She moved like an old woman, slow and careful, her feet dusting across the bottom of the stream to make sure there were no rocks or uneven surfaces she'd slip on, one of her hands coming to rest on his shoulder so that she had support as she settled herself down into the water, a little shiver running through her body as the water soaked through her borrowed shirt, rising a little higher on her than it did on Kals as she was shorter, yet still remaining below shoulder level. When she was finally settled she'd sigh and move to loop her hand about his arm, her fingers clenching tightly at his bicep. He was her anchor and despite the fact that it was highly unlikely she'd be swept away in the tiny trickling stream it made her feel better that she had him beside her.

She'd just let herself settle a moment before she'd finally touch on one of the things he had said earlier, feeling reassured by his feelings about how necessary her help had been with the mad ones. "I will be too old one day. Not while you are living, but some day. You make me stronger." She had said such things before of course, but it was evident how much she believed in what she said, especially as she said them now, sitting there in the water. She'd let him go on to talk about the Gods of his people, though she'd only let him have the one hand, holding onto the arm that was closest to her with no intention of wanting to release it any time soon.

She listened carefully, attending to what he said about the Gods and what they ruled. She seemed to like the sound of Eda, relating to some of the same ideas about nurturing and protecting. His comment about cursing made her laugh however and she'd just smile back at him before asking her question. "And your family? Do they worship?" The last word was new to her, it had that same funny sound about it that they always did when she was trying a new word on her tongue, but the context of it had been clear and she understood what he had meant by it.

The colors he turned amused her as they always did, that broad smile returning to her lips. She'd shake her head a little, her braids swaying a bit, casting shadowy patterns on the water from the movement when she did. "Clothing makes it hardto be in the water and people still worry about how they are seen. Very strange. I wonder that more do not drown." But she'd seem to consider it then, letting her free hand move back and forth a bit in the water, much in the way a child might who was exploring the beauty of water for the first time, her eyes following the weight and movement of the wet sleeve in the water, watching the way it tugged and moved. "This is not so heavy." She'd look up then pleased at his comment about staring, her own eyes drifting for a moment at the scales along his chest. "You are good to stare at too." She'd say by means of repaying the compliment, giving his arm a little squeeze that would actually lessen her death grip on it when she had finished.

"I know about travelling with the stars, yes. My people would travel with them too." She'd nod her head, seeming pleased that there was something that they had in common in that way. "It is different with ground beneath feet I think. Safer. Your El could blow winds or move the water. Not safe."

She'd listen then with that quiet respect that she always had when he or someone else she cared for spoke, interested in hearing his whole story, and perhaps he'd notice that some of the way she listened mimicked the behaviors of those she had shown him in the image of the storyteller. Her people while they didn't read or write had a heavy respect for the stories of others. She was interested in what he had to say, considering each word and motion that he used.

"The leader of Jamalia is like the Glenn Burnie I think. He would send us all away who are not like him if he could." It was something she could empathize with at least. "How long ago did the people leave for the Rain Wilds? Before your Mother and Father?" She wasn't usually so inquisitive, but it was clear she was trying hard to understand as much as she could about the people he had come from and the people she was going to see.

She seemed to consider something else for a moment, her eyes flickering back to the fluttering fabric in the water for a moment. "My mind thinks some times that maybe Dragon is a spirit my people did not know. And it has touched your people like Wolf has touched mine." Though she hadn't thought much further on it beyond that. She was certainly no spirit leader, but sometimes there were parallels between them that fascinated her, and she'd let him feel a touch of that, her curiousity about it.

There was another question then. "Will people hide from me then?"