"a banana fiend? like what people sometimes say, eat too many bananas and you'll turn into one" Mikki giggled "I didn't know that reincarnation included fruit, how annoyed would you be if you went through your whole life to come back to be eaten by a 7 year old"

Mikki couldn't wait to get to the hot spring, she'd never seen a real one before but they always looked like fun. When they got there she thought the spring looked lovely, she sat on a rock close deciding where she wanted to get changed. Suddenly wishing she had changed before they came out.

"oh dont be afraid you wont sink" Kyra joked as she sat down farther into the water "its fine nice and warm today" she smiled "come on in the waters fine it doesnt bite"

Ikki had changed into her swimsuit. The swim cap she thought was unuseful and took it off. She grabbed a ribbon and tied her hair up. She slowly stepped in and sat on a rock. "This feels so good." Ikki leaned back and looked at everyone. "Hans, Leonard. You aren't getting in?"

Leonard seemed to have no interest in peeking behind the girls' designated changing spots, and Hans was far too occupied with figuring out how safe it was. He took off his shirt and handed it to his brother, saying "I think this belongs to you," snidely as he tried to go in further.

"Are... are you sure I'm going to be safe," he asked, sticking his whole leg in. He hugged the edge of the spring like a lifeline.

"im in here arent i so therefore it must be safe im not melting" Kyra laughed "unless your a wizard like in the wizard of oz and you melt" she joked "so yes it's safe so you can come in" she moved over "if you want you can have my rock"

"Hun, this is a standing depth. Its not a pool. You're not swimming; just sitting. You haven't been to many of these have you?" Ikki wondered why he was so afraid. It wasn't even deep. She understood though. Not everyone could live as priviledged as her.

"Its not the melting I'm worried about... and I'm not a wizard," he defended, clearly not getting the reference. He dog-paddled towards the rock frantically and held onto it for dear life.

"I feel like soup," he concluded.

"Hans, the water is shallow. You don't have to swim," Leonard said sensibly. Of course, that didn't mean he was going to be getting in anytime soon.

Mikki changed and slipped into the spring "Don't worry it's not really that deep" she and held her hand out to Hans "come on, you'll be fine, besides I did my life saver swim badge" she smiled. She hadn't met anyone his age that couldn't swim before, though she knew there were.

"Then why aren't you getting in Leonard?" She smirked at him. She thought about pushing him in. How could he come and not get in? It was nonsense. Ikki would get him in one way or another.
[[ Sorry for the writer's block. I'm finally starting school tomorrow and I'm out of it today :sweat: ]]

"good to know your in now can your brother swin because he seems more reluctent to get in here does he feel uneasy around other people and i know your not a wizard im sorry if you thought i was judgeing you" she moved farther away from the rock and near the center were she liad down on her back floating in one place "wow we got i life saver here she sat up and moved towards the near end of the springs

(same here school tomorrow)

Hans looked down from the rock. He could see the bottom less than three feet below him. "....Oh," he said, turning a slight shade of pink and letting go of the rock. He felt a little dumb now, making a big deal over three feet of water.

Leonard looked up from his thinking. "I'm... uh... just not a water person," he said stubbornly. He supposed that if he had to choose and element, it would be earth. However, one doesn't choose their element: their element chooses them. Regardless, he was a bit apprehensive about sticking his feet into volcanic activity.

((I've been at school for two weeks now. =D))

Ikki giggled. "Hans it's okay. Hot springs are almost rare around here. Most of time all you see are lakes. Those are deep, if you go in too far." She didn't want him to feel uncomfortable. She saw him as a child no matter what. Ikki had always wanted a child but she never quite fell in love.

"Oh. Okay," Hans said in response to Ikki. "I don't think I've ever seen water more than in a puddle or a bathtub. And I kept hearing stories about how people drown and sharks and sea monsters and stuff, and I didn't know what was in here or if it was actually water and not just something that looked like water but was actually really, really bad for you," he continued, spouting off conspiracy theories and rumors and the sorts of things that he might have read in comic books. This was a sign that he was less nervous about sitting in a naturally heated crater full of water. He leaned close to her and whispered "You'd make a great mom some day."

Ikki laughed again. "Thanks. But I don't think that will be happening anytime soon." It wouldn't be happening ever. She was dead and and think that it was impossible. All she could do was smiled and pretend that it didn't hurt that she never got to finish her life.

"Yeah," he said. "You're right. You're too young to start thinking about having kids." He got up and tried wading through the water. He wasn't used to walking with such resistance. He wobbled and wavered, trying to keep his balance.

"im not sure she can handel kids ever let alone when shes older" Kyra laughed knowing that neithr of them could but she didnt care she like being the way she is and it hadnt bothered her since as she treded through the warm water she pulled up to Leonard "you dont like waer do you" then she kicked through the water away from him trying not to splash him luckly she didnt "Hans did you take baths often or do you just not like swimming or being in water"

"Yes of course. Way too young." Ikki giggled at the irony. She closed her eyes and relaxed. It was beyond her why all the spirits wouldn't go into human form and relax. She was sure Mikki would love to see her brother. Ikki knew that she'd love to see her old friends... That abandoned her. Maybe she wouldn't be happy to see them. Ikki never really had friends and didn't like her family.

"Momma only had us take baths when we were really dirty," Hans explained. "She didn't want us wasting water that we could have been using to drink or make the plants grow." He submerged his face halfway beneath the surface so that only his eyes were visible... then exhaled, watching the bubbles come to surface.

"Water plus Earth equals mud," Leonard said abstractly.

"A mud bath does wonders for skin." Ikki pointed out. She had heard some rich customers speak of it. She never truly thought a mud bath was ideal. Mud was a horrid thing to be covered in. Only little kids played in mud.

"My skin is not my concern for now," Leonard said. He kept looking back and forth from the spring to the path, making sure there was no one coming.

"Well people do drown but unless you're like 2 years old or drunk there isn't much worry about you drowning in here" Mikki said leaning back in the water against a rock. She'd never been in a hot spring before, it felt nice like a hot bath without the bubbles. Then she wondered what would happen if someone slipped some bubble bath into the hot spring. She started giggling to herself at the thought of a hot bubbly spring.

"come on Leonard, it's really nice" she said closing her eyes and leaning her head back. She sighed and lifted her right leg out of the water and wiggling her toes.

"No one is going to attack us. It's not like anybody will be looking for you up here." Ikki had watched him keep looking back. "Or is there somewhere you have to be?" She had wondered why his behavior was so odd. "Trust me. We're all safe here."

Leonard sighed. "If it will get you to stop pestering me about it." He took his shirt off and slid into the hot water, trying very hard, out of spite, not to relax.

"Come on relax. How can you not? This is a hot spring. I can't believe you." Ikki thought that any person would relax once they got into the spring. She shrugged and closed her eyes again. It didn't matter to her. It was his choice if he wanted to be happy or not.

"Its nothing against you, Miss," he said. "Your hospitality is greatly appreciated, honestly. I just... don't take time for myself often. I have my brother to look after, and you've seen how much of a handful he can be. That and.. well," he stopped himself in mid-sentence. He was about to just give away information that he had been warning Hans against doing since they'd set out. He looked in another direction. "And about a million other things," he said vaguely.