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Aphismet toted the beachbag on one shoulder, grinning. It was heavy with food and towels and drinks, but he hardly felt it; his step was light and bouncy. He was on Vacation!

He'd saved up money that he normally would have spent on rent, had he still been living in his apartment, and he'd found that it really piled up quickly! Before he knew it, Aph had paid off most of his debts, and had enough left to pay himself and his family a nice vacation to Isle de Gambino. The cottage they'd rented was wonderfully rustic, the porch steps leading directly to the beach itself. An area for campfires was set up there on the sand, and Aph was looking forward to tonight for everyone to try making smores.

For now though, the ocean was calling! Their first vacation day was a clear, sunny-skied, warm one, with the soft ocean breeze cooling them just enough. Aph's suggestion to go find a nice spot and swim had been quickly followed up as things were packed and snacks were made. The group now walked along the shore.

Rivener in particular had been a surprise; he, who disliked the cold water of the ocean, had been very happy to go on vacation. As a matter of fact, he was uncharacteristically content. Smiles flashed at everyone easily, and he often sighed softly, relaxing. The reason for all this happiness was simple: warm sand. It spoke to a deep down part of him, and made him feel like he was Home. He was looking forward to lying down on the beach and not moving for hours.

Aphismet wore his swim trunks and a sleeveless hoodie, which he was starting to regret putting on. It was getting warmer by the minute. "Here seems like a good place, what do you think, guys?" he asked, eager to put down the beachbag and remove this shirt.

"Fine by me!" Rivener called with a smile, immediately plopping himself down onto the sand and sighing as he spread his wings out. His ribbon spun in a strangely snake-like pattern before settling itself. "Aaaaahhhhhh," the Scorpion sighed, closing his eyes.

Nearby, an unattended beach blanket in a rainbow of colors waited beneath the shade of a palm tree. A messenger bag, sandals, and a towel awaited the return of their owner. However, Natsuki would make them wait a bit longer. The summer sunshine charged her battery, as she ran along the coastline, salt water breaking at her feet. Day in and day out, she worked her feet to the bone, but unlike the long days at Cafe Jubilee, the shop owner could enjoy the sensation of sand and water massaging and refreshing her feet.

Short terry cloth shorts and a matching zip up jacket in pale gray complimented her petite figure. Her morning runs contributed to her new bikini body, sunkissed highlights, and beach glow. Her long red ponytail bobbed in sync with her pace, in time with the music fueling her gait. Dark sunglasses shielded her stormy gray eyes from the sun glinting off the crests. Finally returning to her starting point, her beach blanket, Natsuki rubbed the back of her neck, and clicked her music player off.

A soft smile crossed her lips when she noticed that Aphismet found his way to her favorite beach, and he wasn't alone. Rivener, one of the raevans she liked least was in tow, as well as two other individuals, whom she didn't know; from the looks of it, another raevan and possibly another guardian. Taking her time, she wrapped her headphones around the music player and tucked it into her bag. She stripped off her jacket, revealing a colorful halter style bikini top in a flurry of vivid colors. Stretching again, she unceremoniously dropped the jacket atop her bag, and proceeded to draw her long hair up into a bun, fastening it in place with a couple of hairpins.

"Hey Aphismet, finally got a chance to take a vacation?" Natsuki called out, as she walked over to the group slowly. Recalling their last, albeit brief conversation, she really didn't get much of a chance to talk to the fellow raevan owner. However, she did avert disaster by intervening in his heated discussion with Julian, a situation she still couldn't make head or tails of. "What brings you up to my hometown of Isle de Gambino today? Family outing?" she asked, politely nodding to the motley crew of four.

She knew family was an odd choice of word, but after seeing the interaction with other raevans and their guardians, there simply was no better words to describe it.

"I'll make it around as long as I'm not trapped in a padded room," Isi chuckled and he very carefully moved himself onto the sand, dully making note of how the sand rippled and moved underneath the towel to conform to his body. When Aphi offered him a piggy back ride, the boy loudly scoffed, but as soon as their eyes connected, Isi gave slight nod of his head which said in brother language, Could you, please?. He still couldn't bring himself to ask for piggy-back rides out of pride, but it was his brother. It was Aphi, the only person who he'd let himself receive help from. He was just getting to unwrapping his crutches from his arms when a new voice came out of no where. Jerking his head up to inspect the new comer, Isi tried to pick her face out from his memory, but to no avail. The red hair was...somewhat familiar. She was barely on the edge of his recognition. Unable to do much else than smile and paint himself as the picture of a sweet younger sibling, Isi continued untying the crutches from his arms. When Aphi pointed to him as an introduction, Isi waved his hand as his left arm became free, "Hello, Natsuki, it's a pleasure to meet you." Glancing over at his raevan, Isi continued "Eiry is probably just as happy to meet you... Eiry! Eiry, say hello!"

"How do you do!" Eiry called mechanically from where he sat near his brother, raking his hand through his turquoise hair. His ribbon was tangled with Riv's arms so he playfully curled his ribbon and yanked. He succeeded in knocking Riv's arms out from behind him so that the older raevan fell back against the sand. He was still feeling the after-effects of being tickled, so he giggled like a boiling pot of water, trying to brush off the sand that had been kicked over him by the scuffle. He immediately decided that sand...Was hot and sticky. So he simply went intangible for a couple moments, in which the sand simply rolled off his skin, and became solid again.

Huh? A new person? Eiry turned bright blood red eyes at the newcomer, full of wonder. He didn't recognize her, so he didn't show any particular amount of excitement.

Aphismet smiled, but he struggled to keep his eyes from straying to the brightly-colored top of Natsuki's outfit. "Erm, a swim would be great! that's what we came here for, right?" he asked, turning a bright-eyed smile to his brother.

Rivener, his arms tugged out from under him, fell onto his back with an Oof!, but it didn't wipe the smile from his face. He simply wiggled and worked his arms free of the other's ribbons, staying on his back as he answered the red-haired woman's question. "I'm very much enjoying the sunshine, yes. I love beach sand and warm sun..." He sighed happily, digging his fingers into the sand by his sides, wings spreading out contentedly. "I'm not going to swim, but you should, Eiry. I'm sure you'll like it," Riv said, partly to get rid of his little brother for a second, partly because he truly thought Eiry would like it.

Aphi got up, and for a moment he fidgeted with the zipper of his hoodie... He wondered if he had the guts to take off the shirt in front of a girl. He'd taken a long time to convince himself to bare skin in the first place, knowing there would be girls around. But now, with a girl he actually KNEW around, he wasn't sure he could do it. "S-so come on then, Isi... We're going in?"

She wasn't surprised that Rivener would decline the invitation. From what she knew of reptiles, frolicking in the waves wasn't exactly their forte, and she certainly didn't want to force the issue, since they were being relatively civil.

She smiled as Aphismet suggested they go swimming, but she couldn't lay her finger on what exactly had the guy so distracted. A pang of guilt hit her when she saw Isi struggling to stand up and his crutches close by. How could she be so insensitive? Her charismatic smile faultered a litle when he fell over, onto all fours. Kneeling down at his side, she put a soft hand on Isi's shoulders. "Shall we walk together?" she asked, trying to politely offer a friendly hand to Aphi's brother.

A small squeak of surprise, slipped past her lips when Eiry touched her hair. Her gray eyes sparkled as the fresh-faced raevan called her 'Pretty Lady'. "My hair is only fire colored," Natsuki said, wrinkling her nose in appreciation of Eiry's intelligent question. "I'm just a human with no special powers, Eiry."

When Natsuki bent down beside him and gave him that...that look of pity...That sad smile of compassion...and the hand...Well, to put it plainly, if Isi was a cat, his hair would be standing up on end, his eyes laid back and his teeth bared in a warning hiss. Luckily, before he could communicate much more of his dispassion for being pitied, Aphismet broke in and interrupted everything. Isi breathed a sigh of relief and put down his shields. Thank god, for...Family. Isi felt his stomach flutter gratefully for having a big brother who'd protect him and save him from situations such as this. Before Aphi, it was hard times for Isi whenever he went out to public. Even more so because he had to keep himself in check with his old grandma running around like a lunatic. Reaching up, he clambered onto his brother's back, using his shoulders to pull himself up so that he was standing. Then he straddled Aphi's back and clung tightly. Once Aphi had hooked his elbows underneath his weak legs, Isi released his grip. Leaning forward a bit, he whispered into the thick bush of Aphi's hair where his ear should be, "Thanks, big brother."

"Oh," Eiry said. Alright. So, all hot, red, fiery looking things weren't hot, red, and fiery. He tucked away that mental note and gave her a small smile, "Doesn't mean that you're not a special human. Uncle Isi's special to me and so is Uncle Aphi. Maybe you're special like them, too?"

Aph glanced over his shoulder at his brother and smirked. "Here we go!" he announced, not saying a word about Isi's secret thank-you. Jogging forward, Aphi struggled to keep his balance on the sand, heading for the waves. He was still wearing his hoodie, but he figured it would be ok to get it wet. He'd just have to deal with a wet shirt for the rest of the day, but it was preferrable to baring abs in front of a girl who knew him. He'd just be too shy to function otherwise.

When Aph reached the waterside, he slowed to a walk and sloshed in, making sure he had secured his footing before taking another step. He didn't want waves knocking him and Isi over; it would be hard to pick up the boy again with his wet shorts dragging him down. He grinned as the water was pleasantly cool, but not cold. "Natsuki, are you coming?" he called, glancing over to the woman who was conversing with Eiry.

Once Aph reached above hip-level water, he hiked up Isi on his back and said teasingly: "You ready? One, Two, three, GO!" and he dropped the boy into the waves.

Riv, now alone on the beach, sighed once again and wiggled, bending both arms and lacing his fingers together behind his head. This was nice. The only thing that would be nicer would be... Yes, that would be perfect! Sitting up (or rather, floating up), the Scorpion began peeling off the layers of clothes that kept the sun from warming all his skin. Jacket, bracers, bracelets and rings all came off, until he was nothing more than a half-torso with a rune coming out of the tattered flesh below his ribcage, like torn lace. Already, he could feel the sun all over... It was so comfortable! The Raevan stretched contentedly before laying back down, ready for a looooong nap.