"Kay! That sounds good!" Alex replied happily, nodding. He then grabbed Tom's wrist and raised above the water to ask, "Tom, can we play with the sinking toys?" He looked imploringly up at Tom, as if that would really improve things.

Tom sighed slightly. "Not right now, Alex...I left them at home today."

Slumping slightly, Alex put his soft head on Tom's arm and said, "But home's right over there," he pointed off toward the boat dock, of all places, "So, can't you go get them?" He paused, "Pleeeease?"

Tom laughed and patted Alex's head lightly. "I'm sure you can find something else to do for a little while." He then looked up at Kali. "A fear of under water, huh?" He looked thoughtful. "Well, I think the first step to fighting that would be being able to stand in water that's shallow enough to do so."