pet pet pat pat good water show her the water boy

[kobblublu]

Today was definitely a different sort of day.

Zen’enji had crept away from his daily duties, his mother had tasked him with gathering specific plants from the bottom of the river, but the boy wanted to procrastinate. He wasn’t typically the sort to disobey his parents, in fact he usually followed their words without any sort of response, but today he felt an adventurous spark within him.

Today was different. Today he wanted to explore past the river.

He knew so much of the rivers in the area of the Steppe, he could easily dive into the water and navigate his way to wherever he needed to go. The currents spoke to him, they told him what was happening on the surface. Water was calming to him, it made him feel like he could just disappear and be apart of the waves. He wanted nothing more than to disappear, some days. He was rather quiet himself, choosing to listen instead of speaking out. His thoughts were always focused on the well-being of others... even though most of the children of the tribe didn’t want to speak to him.

They said his hair was much too bright, too much like fire. It felt like a bad omen to them and their ways of the water. He agreed, truly he did, which is why he would prefer to be submerged in the river. At least while in the water he couldn’t think of his hair as on fire.

Yes, but today was different. He kept on telling himself that as he swam through the currents, making his way closer and closer to the edge of the river. He saw the rocks coming closer, and he could tell that he was nearly upon the plains. He hadn’t dared to step foot on to the grassy lands, not without his mother or father around at least. His father, thankfully, had been teaching him the ways of the blade since he was small. He knew how to wield a sword, his samurai skills were much like the Doman warriors he had heard so much about. His father had interacted with them, had fought beside them even in a few battles, and he would always share such tales with Zen’enji.

It made him curious, it made him want to explore, and it made him want to step foot on to the grassy plains without his parents.

And so, he made his way to do just that. When he went closer to the edge he saw something, however, a pair of hands moving in the water. They were at the surface, putting some cloth and fabric into the water, using friction to rub the fabric together, only to then bring it back out. He had seen this before of course, his tribe wasn’t so barbaric as to not do laundry. The Ejinn were a people of the water, and thus they were constantly in a state of being clean.

The boy with the fiery red hair nodded to himself, gaining courage, before he swam up to the surface. He wanted to say hi to this person, just a little conversation, before heading back to his parents. Zen’enji swam up and up to the surface, reaching it finally with a dramatic finish. He burst out of the water, coming up and inhaling a large amount of air. He would have been fine in the water for a while longer, but it still felt good to intake the fresh air. He breathed, quickly shook his head to get the water out from his eyes, and then opened them to see....

“Ah....” a girl, it was a young girl washing clothes. She had a horrified look on her face, she trembled for a few moments before she....

Screamed. She screamed at the top of her lungs and ran away. She scrambled up the bank, forgetting her laundry entirely. She continued to shriek and cry, flailing as she sprinted back to where Zen’enji could only guess her own mother was.

“....Wha-” Zen’enji breathed out, a hand coming up to his face in order to slick his red hair back against his head, “...am I really so frightening? To deserve such a greeting is...”

It was beyond him, truthfully. Zen’enji gathered himself, concluding that perhaps the girl was also frightened of his bright red hair. It was understandable, the color was such a stark difference against his dark skin it must have been a surprise. Zen’enji swam over to the edge, pulling himself up, and once he was settled he began to gather up her clothes. A good Ejinn always helped those in need, and Zen’enji had been taught to be humble, to have honor. It was how the Doman’s lived too, after all, and Zen’enji looked up to the stories his father told of them.

Once Zen’enji had grabbed all of her wet clothes, he moved to the nearest low hanging tree. He hung them up, the best he could considering his height was that of a child’s, before he backed up. He nodded to himself, thinking this was the best course of action.

“Perhaps next time I will meet someone with a bit more backbone,” he smiled at the thought. Once he was finished he turned back to the water, diving right in.

It was time to head back home... and time to plan another excursion out to the grassy plains of the Mol tribe.