With what Kaleeth explained, Janius lowered his head as well in sympathy. It must have been horrible for Kaleeth with what she experienced. "I'm sorry," was all Janius could think to say. He silently regretted bringing up sad memories in Kaleeth and kept quiet for the rest of the short walk to the water.

Thankfully, Leaps wasn't fazed. Instead, he happily waddled into the water with such enthusiasm that it made Kaleeth laugh. Janius shared her laugh as he undressed himself in turn before wading in a short distance and diving under. It was a good thing that Leaps' antics lifted the atmosphere somewhat. Once Janius surfaced, he wiped his eyes and took a refreshed breath through his mouth. He stroked through the water back towards Kaleeth with a smile. "Gods, I always forget how good the water is in this weather."

Leaps seemed to start slithering and meander through the water like a snake and started to circle the two. It caught Janius' eye. He stood upright and watched in wonder. "He's a natural, isn't he?" Janius remarked, "I didn't learn to swim until I was six years old," he motioned to the hatchling and put a hand on his hip, "He's barely a few days old and look at him." He then turned to Kaleeth, "Though I suppose if you live in the marsh you would learn to swim early on as well, wouldn't you?"

---

Sabine curled her lips and nodded. The voices seemed to chaotic and unordered that she supposed that it made sense for them to be unpredictable. While she ground some seeds into a mortar and pestle, she thought more and came up with another question. "The Hist, did they say anything to you? When we drank the sap?"