( with the sun now risen above them and the warmth of the rays enveloping them both, she remained silent for a brief moment as she heard him speak. she held him close, the cold water still dripping down the sides of her arms but soon her left hand gently rose up from under him and swept away a few locks of his hair to check on his head. while she hadn't seen just how hard that fall was, she figured it must have been at the very least painful enough to leave him out of it for this long. a concerned expression still remained on her face but slowly it softened up when she failed to see anything beyond what looked like mild scuffs against his skin.

when it finally hit her what he had said, reira couldn't help but let out a soft sound of amusement at his words. it had been a long time since she interacted with a man, let alone a human, and while she had been wary that he came along these parts for something nefarious—

clearly he was harmless. in fact he was a bit more handsome than she would have liked to admit. so for now she remained holding him given she couldn't do much else on land. )

I appreciate the kind words, but are you sure you're alright? That looked like a pretty bad fall...

Why were you running anyways? You nearly scared me into thinking you were hunting me down.

( he probably wasn't able to see at this angle her tail, but given her state of dress [a simple flowery bikini top and pearls dangling from her neck], surely he new by now she was a merfolk. if not, he was in for a surprise. )