"Just be yourself, you'll be fine. As long as you don't go trying to make any bows in the middle of the house, anyways. They might not like the smell." Kals was being a particular good anchor at the moment, particularly in the fact that anchors don't speak, and neither did he. He simply stretched out in the water, taking a moment to realize he'd forgotten to remove his boots and that he'd have to leave them out to drain later. If she wanted help he'd obviously provide it, but he was mostly watching the far bank and trying his very best to do no more than smirk faintly as he exaggerated efforts to sit down.
He wanted to dive under for a moment, but with her pinning him there he just resigned himself to having warm, dry shoulders. He also considered trying to get her to put her head under, but thought the wolf might really lose it at the idea. "Well, I'll help you be stronger, and just make sure you're around someone that can help you one day when you don't want to be strong anymore. Someone able to do what you used to do."
"Worship." He said it again for her benefit after she had sounded it out. "Not anymore than I do. Not really. I suppose my mother is a bit more of a believer than the rest of us are. But we really just... don't. Eda and El I've never really heard of having organized worship at least. You just give them offerings at the right times."
He turned red again, though less than before, when she made her comment about staring at him. He was watching her move the shirt through the water and grunted. "We're modest, and people can sometimes get clothing that's better for the water, like what you're wearing. We're not completely silly. No one swims in the Rain Wilds anyways, the water is bad. We swim when we leave, and you might be out at sea or away from prying eyes. Besides, salt water is easier to float in." And his family only really swam with friends and relatives about, which meant less need to cover yourself up in layers, veils, robes and other accessories.
She wasn't holding on so tight at the moment, which was good for the circulation in his arm, so he took the chance to scoop some water up in a palm and rather blatantly dump it on her head. "He could, and that would change where you're going, but you just keep watching the stars and the landmarks and correct your course. Not much different than a storm coming in on land, though it's a bit more annoying."
"Oh, a lot longer than my parents. A few hundred years, at least. It takes generations for liveships to quicken, and most of them have been awake a long, long time." Kals appreciated her curiousity, and he was more willing to speak on his land when she asked the questions that she wanted to know about. "And Glenn is worse, really. At least the newer Satrap of Jamalia was a fop for a while, but he's progressed a bit." He said Satrap slowly, letting her know the name of the leader. "I think getting kidnapped and then rescued by Bingtowners helped things." Kals also couldn't lie about appreciating her focus on him while he babbled about what was common knowledge in his home.
"Not a spirit, I don't think. Unless the dragons themselves are. They touch us and change us, but we were changed wrong for a very long time by living on the cursed shore." There was some similarity, but what changed the Rain Wilders was far more tangible these days, and not simply a pox upon the people who lived there. "They've as much told some people that they can direct the changes in those they see fit, to make them more. And that just being around dragons will change you anyways, not always for the better the way a guided change is." He slithered his hand through the water slowly, trying to mimic a snake for her to see. "They're very alive, they start as serpents in the water, the swim up our river to cocoon and change to dragons. Apparently the cocoons hold their ancestor's memories." He did his best to sate that curiosity. He didn't know enough about the dragons to really be sure, but he gave her what he was aware of.
Her last question made him grunt in agreement to it. "Yes, my family probably not, but yes. People tend to hide themselves and how they've been changed from strangers. We're embarrassed, cautious, shy, whatever you want to think of it. But we don't like everyone seeing how we are. So there will be people around dressed the way I do in town." He made sure she'd know that they'd hide, but it was from everyone, not just her.