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"As you wish m'lady, up you go!" he said, bending down to scoop Sayuri into his arms. She was lifted with little effort, his left hand and arm just behind her knees, and his right arm supporting her back.

"Light as a feather," he smiled coyly at Sayuri.

The path towards the beach was fairly easy to follow, if a little rough going at times. He stumbled once or twice, but made sure to catch himself before Sayuri would worry.

The sights of the small patch of jungle they traversed through was the only thing that distracted Oz from Sayuri. His little mind influenced too much by Indiana Jones and Tarzan films, he almost ached to climb trees and discover hidden secrets. All he needed was the hat and the whip...and to maybe shed a few pounds if he didn't want to break any trees.

Hehe, 'Oz-san.' That must be so awkward for her to say. I wonder what it means?

He came to a gentle stop as the beach came into view and Sayuri tapped him. He leaned down to let Sayuri find her feet before finally releasing her, almost reluctant to let her go. It felt so...heroic and chilvalric...to carry her like that, not to mention he got to hold her.

But the beach was beautiful. Particularly in this morning light. Such bright sand, and blue waters. If he had known, he might have brought his trunks and gone for a morning swim.

"Wow, this is a really nice beach. Almost too good to be true."

Sayuri looked like she didn't have a care in the world as she twirled and pranced on the sand, obviously enjoying the scenery. She almost reminded him of a small child who was visiting a beach for the first time. Right down to running away from the waves. Eventhough he'd come to this place with a purpose and a plan, he could see how easily it was to slip into a more care-free state of mind.

Oz chuckled as he watched her. The webbed feet hadn't even entered into his mind yet.

"The water won't hurt you, y'know," he smirked as he ambled over, leaving his shoes on for the time being. He could just make out a few remaining marks from where she'd written her name.

"You think that is cold water? You should see the waters around Britain - very murky and freezing cold. Certainly wakes you up if you go for a dip," he said whilst trying to wrestle his shoes from his feet. He might as well walk barefoot on such a nice day.

This was her first time on a beach? Well, that would explain her girlish glee at the sand and water then. And it was perfectly reasonable. She showed a deep love for the beach as he had shown for the jungle. When he'd successfully removed his large shoes and tucked his socks into them, he craned his large figure back up and caught Sayuri staring out over the ocean. It had never occurred to him that he actually didn't know where this Island was. It made him feel a bit homesick really. And he wondered if maybe Sayuri was feeling it too.

"Me? Oh lord no! I can't think of a single girl who'd want to marry a gargoyle like me," he laughed. "And my family...well...they don't know I'm here. I think they'd feel...ashamed of me if they did."

Oz's normally cheerful outlook always dimmed as he recalled his family - the hard-to-please father, the coddling-mother, the know-it-all brother, and the prodigy-sister. For all their faults, he still loved them and craved nothing more than to make them proud.

"And what about you? I can't imagine a stunner like you staying single for long," he winked at her.

Sayuri's words cut a little deeper than he could physically show. If only she knew what he was like when he was drunk, she wouldn't think him quite so friendly then. But for now, he took at as a sincere compliment, which made him smile. Second day here and he had a friend!

"Yes, I'm from Britain. Its a really big island and is part of Europe. Its generally very wet and cold all the year round, which is why a lot of British people are miserable," he laughed.

It was a stereotype and one that wasn't altogether true, considering Oz's obnoxiously cheerful outlook sometimes. But he did love poking fun at his own nationality. Sayuri's comments following her interest in his home country perked some curiosity in Oz. He knew nothing of Geisha, so he couldn't quite wrap his head around what one was exactly. If she could not marry, did that make her some kind of, for lack of a better word, escort for men?

"Well...would you ever stop being a Geisha so you could marry? Sounds like a terribly lonely life otherwise," he said, his tone of voice sounding far more soothing than it had previously.

Oz shrugged his broad shoulders.

"I guess I do," he chuckled. "I used to love my training sessions in the rain, because the fields used to get really muddy. You ended up so dirty by the end."

Typical. A man and his mud. Oz was becoming increasingly uncomforatble with Sayuri's comments. As much as he had been a bit of a douche-bag to women in the past, he'd never thought them lower than himself. Were Geisha's respected in society or just no-strings entertainment? You could practically see the cogs turning in his head.

"Well...love shouldn't be about luck...well, it is because you have to find the right person, but..." he trailed off, not sure how he wanted to say what he thought. So he left it. He wasn't about to jeopardise a new friendship.

"Yeah, kissing is nice," he began with a cheeky smile. "But only a crazy person would get mad with a kiss from you."

Oz wouldn't be surprised if he had maybe bored her a little. After several years of having to crash into other equally big men and try to steal a rugby ball from them, one does tend to lose a bit of brain function. Maybe that was the alcohol too. And Oz was even less likely to guess what a woman was thinking, let alone a Geisha. Maybe he could find a book about the culture, so he didn't offend his new friend through his ignorance...

His gaze drifted down to his feet as he wriggled his toes and sifted his feet through the sand. Then his eyes settled on Sayuri's partly covered feet. They were...blue? His brow furrowed for a moment in thought but was quickly dispelled when Sayuri spoke to him again.

"Nah, I'm not crazy. I wouldn't get mad if you kissed me," he teased, smiling down at Sayuri. Her actions to move closer didn't go un-noticed and made Oz smile even more.