[Open] Dip, dip, and swing....

[in_summer_leaf]

Hisoka waits beside the canoe, which is drawn up in a foot of water with its bow on the sand. Two paddles are in the bottom of the boat. Friends and strangers, all welcome

Comments

[villageson]

11-12 has seen neither a canoe nor a river or lake before he'd arrived at the Mansion. But he sees Hisoka and offers him a wave.

[in_summer_leaf]

Hisoka greets him with a smile. "Hey, 11-12! I'm glad you could make it!" He indicates the boat. "This is it!" And he holds up a pair of canvas shoes, which he snagged from the Plothole that morning -- one pair of deck shoes, in 11-12's size. "In case your feet get wet, I brought these for you." (Hisoka himself is wearing an ancient pair of canvas shoes he brought with him from the previous world, and has his pantlegs rolled up to just below the knee.)

[villageson]

"Thanks. So what do we do?"

[in_summer_leaf]

This time, Hisoka has the boat pointed out towards the lake, with the stern end barely resting on the sand. "Just step into the boat, go to the front and sit down. And grab a paddle. I'm gonna hop in in a minute."

[villageson]

He nods, getting in a little shakily and seating himself, looking nervous.

[in_summer_leaf]

As soon as 11-12 is seated, Hisoka says, "Hang on!" He grabs the canoe by the narrow little triangle of its stern deck and half-lifts, half-shoves the boat into the water. He vaults in over the gunwale, and slides onto the stern seat. He picks up one of the life jackets that are lying at the bottom of the boat, and passes it to 11-12. "Just in case, put this vest on," he says, "It's a safety precaution. It will keep you comfortably afloat if for any reason you were to end up in the water. But don't worry, I won't tip us over." He moves them quickly into deeper water.

[villageson]

11-12 blinks then carefully slips on the jacket. "I'm not that good at swimming."

[in_summer_leaf]

"It sounds like you may not have had much use for it at the Village," says Hisoka. "Have you been in the water, here at the Mansion?"

He turns the canoe so that they skim along parallel to the shore, realizing that 11-12 might not yet be comfortable out in the middle of the lake.

[villageson]

"No, the biggest water we had was a pool which I rarely visited," he explains about the Village then goes on. "I haven't really gone into this water either."

[in_summer_leaf]

"I see," says Hisoka. "Well, if you ever want to learn to swim, let me know. I'd be happy to teach you. October's kind of late -- water's too chilly, for most people. Next summer, if you're interested?"

[villageson]

"Sure, I'd like that."

He peers over the side. "How deep is it?"

[in_summer_leaf]

"Here, probably around fifteen feet. Out in the middle, I'm not sure...maybe around seventy or eighty feet? Maybe deeper..."

[villageson]

"That deep? Really?" He didn't not believe Hisoka. He just wasn't used to such figures.

[in_summer_leaf]

"Yes. Think of a lake as a deep basin in the rock..." He lifts a hand from the paddle and makes a deep scooping gesture with it, as though he were excavating the lake bed with a single swipe.

[villageson]

"All filled with water? How does that happen?"

[in_summer_leaf]

"Well, it rains. And a lot of the rain runs off the hillsides, and it has to go somewhere, so it ends up in the lake basin. And also, there's this thing called the water table..."