an ill-advised venture (for sarcaskick)

[ It's another frigid night in Ishgard, and M'ahina finds herself arriving somewhat earlier than the appointed hour. She's content to order some wine to at least warm herself as she waits, but in spite of the good drink, she grows bored almost comically fast. Left to her own devices she would probably strike up conversations with other patrons or the like, but in this case, there's a fear it may be somewhat counterproductive to make friends of everyone.

So she simply waits obediently at her own table, idly tracing the rim of her goblet with a gloved finger and a small sigh. Seeing her, one might think she's waited ages rather than several minutes. Keeping to herself is not her forte, it would seem. ]

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[ She does take it as a challenge, but not a direct one. Throwing him out or trying to chase him out immediately doesn't sound terribly fun when she's quite relaxed in here herself. No, she'd rather see what she can get away with before the breaking point. ]

No complaints here. I take that to mean you won't care too much if I settle in?

[ She shifts against him a bit more. It's the unbruised side, at least. ]

[ ... Ah. That's her game. On the one hand cuddling is definitely not in his wheelhouse - physical affection in general falls under that umbrella, and no, sex doesn't count. But he's tired, and sore, and the water feels so good, so...

He shrugs against her, tilting his head back again to rest on the edge of the tub. ]

I know you can't keep away. Go on, indulge.

[ She is, admittedly, not the worst person to be huddled up against. ]

What can I say? You're fun to be around.

[ It's the truth. She supposes if she's going to be doing what she wants anyway, there's no harm in in indulging his ego a touch. She lets her head sag into him a bit and lets out a content sigh. This is quite nice, actually. ]

I hope you realize I'll have a difficult time taking no as an answer, after this.

[ Indulge her once.... ]

[ She thinks so, does she? A part of him wants to believe it. Another part of him is sure that she just enjoys him in these small doses, and that being together for any lengthier span of time would find her feeling quite differently. People don't really attach to him. It simply isn't done.

She rests her head against him, and he reminds himself that he doesn't attach to others, either. ]

I hope you realize that I could say the exact same thing.

[ Under the water, one of his hands brushes against her thigh. Not actually making a move towards anything obscene ~~yet~~, he's still drained from the day's work. Just... making a point.

Indulge him once... ]

[ Her eyes drift closed for a moment, contemplating. An action unlike her; the truth is she likes to drown out the sound of her own her own thoughts as much as she possibly can; they always seem to spiral into discomfort. Discomfort she neither needs nor cares to indulge.

This could too, if she cared to unpack it more, but the truth is she doesn't mind casual sex. ... Or at least, not between friends. She's never used it as a tool to simply get off. She could wonder if that's truly what's happening here, or something else, but...

It would seem she's not prepared to consider that quite yet. ]

... I don't mind. [ A pause. ] So long as there isn't any undue flattery.

[ Any lies. It's not as though she's completely naive to the potential fallout from all this. But for the time being, it's... nice? Different than what she's used to, and one might even call that exciting. ]

[ It's not like he expected her to object, or to fluster; she was nestled up against him in a bikini while he was wearing even less, clearly she wasn't going to embarrass at the mention of (gasp) more sex. But that little remark at the end does catch his attention, drawing his gaze back to her once more. ]

Do you think any of it has been undue so far?

[ ... has he offered flattery beyond just indicating an interest in sex, even-- ]

I don't. [ She doesn't has to hesitate or ponder much on that answer. Still... ] If anything, it's still a bit of a mystery. You said you'd simply go with the flow, and I've yet to figure out where that ultimately leads.

[ She shakes her head. Why is she acting like this, all the sudden? ]

.... Sorry. I didn't mean to get so serious. Maybe I'm still more tired than I thought.[ Let's just push that out of mind again. ] I could grab us some drinks? Something cold ought to pair well with the bath.

[ That sounds much more exciting than the road thinking too much is leading. ]

[ He counts on some more banter, some teasing back-and-forth where they both look to get a little under the other's skin. It's why she's cuddled up against him in the first place, right? Just messing around.

But what she said is... unusual, because it indicates she's thinking about him. Not just for right now, but "where that ultimately leads" indicates thinking forward, right? He's barely able to plan ahead to tomorrow or the day after. Hearing that someone is even hypothetically considering him being in their life for some period of time is...

How do you deal with that, when you live from one job to the next? When the idea of someone wanting to actually be around you barely makes sense? ]

... Drinks might be good, yeah.

[ You just don't think about it, that's how. ]

Just don't get me anything too bright and colorful.

[ he's a manly man okay manly men drink manly drinks or... whatever, toxic masculinity is a thing ]

[ ... Right. Drinks. Drinks sound wonderful. She pulls herself out and a tosses an errant towel around her shoulders for the trip. The second she's out of earshot and (hopefully) sight she slaps her hands to her face and shakes her head vigorously. What in the world is she doing? Why would she say such a thing?

She makes her way to the bar and, as a joke, she indeed grabs two very colorful drinks, making her way back to hand Mercury one with a grin, as if nothing happened. ]

Don't worry, it's much stronger than it looks.

[ She takes a very large sip of her own to demonstrate, shedding the towel and settling back into the bath. Though she chooses a higher ledge this time, the water only reaching to about her stomach. ]

[ He tries to just focus on the heat of the water while she's gone, closing his eyes and sinking down to his nostrils. It's not like him to read too deeply into things or to overthink them. There's no reason to start now.

Even if he is curious, maybe, about what her intentions are at the end of the day.

One eye cracks open as she returns, his head popping back out of the water along with one arm to retrieve... ah. Well, yeah, okay. He should have seen that coming. ]

Picking on a wounded man? You're heartless.

[ He straightens up so he's above the water from the shoulders and up, wasting no time in taking a sip from his drink. It's... definitely sweeter than he's used to, from the look on his face, but she isn't wrong about its potency either. ]

Well, that's one way to numb the aches and pains.

[ She's laughing. The look on his face is well worth it, as far as she's concerned. ]

You know, depending on the job, I could be persuaded to come along, so you need not take quite so much damage.

[ It's a thought. She takes back more of her drink. It isn't terribly sweet, and crisp enough to be quite refreshing, in her opinion. Precisely what she needed. ]

[ He raises the drink to his lips again - maybe it's an acquired taste - but hesitates at her suggestion. ]

I don't think you really want to make that offer. Wouldn't do well for your reputation.

[ Another swig, now - larger than the last, as if trying to get to the pleasant buzz that these drinks offer. ]

My reputation, is it?

[ She could laugh. It doesn't always protect her, and it isn't always terribly accurate. Besides... ]

You don't think I do things for the attention or the recognition, do you?

... okay, maybe I need to make sure of something first.

[ Another swig - larger than the last - before he sets the drink down next to the tub for a moment. ]

What kind of jobs do you think I'm taking?

[ That was not a question she was expecting. She leans a back a bit, lifting her gaze to stare out at the mountains. ]

I'm beginning to think it's the most violent ones you can find, and they're not always good. [ The signs are there--she doesn't forget that he originally called her out to bash some heads in, as it were. The scars, the bruises. The way he sometimes alludes to the underworld. She may not be great at examining herself, but she isn't stupid.

Or bothered. She doesn't feel like she knows enough to make any sweeping judgments. ]

But... That doesn't mean our paths can't always align. Here we are, after all.

[ That's good enough for her. She would like to think she meets the people she does for a reason. ]

[ The most violent ones. Not always good. ]

Well, you're not wrong.

[ Though he'd point out that "good" is subjective. Even then, he knows that most of the jobs he takes would definitely not fit most people's moral compass. He does dirty work for dirty money. Such is life.

She saves the world. He tries to survive in it.

But her saying that is... almost something of a relief, if only because it really seems that she has no illusions as to what it is that he does - and yet, as she said, here they are after all. ]

But maybe we keep this thing we have separate from our... professional lives.

[ Well... It is a fair request. And oddly, quite the relief. She was worried for a moment that things might take some strange kind of turn, but mayhap the tension was solely in her mind.

She takes some of her drink and stands, wading a little a deeper into the water to settle back into his side, where she was before. ]

I understand--no mixing work and fun. It's a good practice.

[ She does follow her own version of it, so perhaps helping was a stupid suggestion to make. Or maybe it's so much a habit by now she forgets to think it through.

She sighs, and... Places a small kiss at his temple with a small smile. She's uncertain why. Mayhap she feels like being an annoyance again. ]

I have a good idea from time to time.

[ Things might have gone in quite a few directions, based on her responses - not all of them good. But she isn't as naive as he thought she might be, and she didn't seem to judge him for doing work that she described as not being "good". That's... rare. He's used to the judgment. Almost thrives purely out of spite against it.

He doesn't have to spite her.

So that's... new.

He doesn't resist her claiming her spot at his side again, though the light kiss earns her a look. Not an angry one, or even annoyed - in fact, after a moment (and with a visible roll of his eyes) he stretches one arm up and around her back, letting his hand drape lazily over her opposite shoulder.

He's stretching his arm, okay, it's not cuddling if it's practical. ]

[ The rolled eyes she views as an encouragement; it means he's not going to put up much of a fight. The arm around her, however, she was not expecting, and she can't stop the laugh that escapes her lips. Honestly, she can't figure out why this is ao difficult--especially when their current scale is... well. What happened the other night.

Still, it feels like victory, and for once, she doesn't want to ruin it by saying too much. So she simply curls into him a bit more, looking entirely too pleased with herself. This this the kind of silence she's actually willing to enjoy for a bit. ]

[ The difference, of course, is intimacy. What they did in the tavern the night prior was extremely physical, wants and needs being satisfied in an almost primal way. It wasn't... this. Gentle touches just to enjoy one another's presence, a soft kiss to show affection with not ulterior motive, closeness purely for the sake of closeness.

He's thought himself allergic to it for a long time. Even now, with their state of undress and their proximity, his mind can't help but wander to just what else they could do in this tub.

But he's not doing it.

Why the hell isn't he doing it? ]

Laugh again and you're going to be wearing your drink.

[ A truly vicious threat when they're basically sitting in a bath already. ]

[ If he's going to put things like that, of course she's going to laugh again. An arm around her shoulder is a strange thing to feel a sore winner about, and yet... ]

Not if there's no drink left, you aren't.

[ She's going to choke back the rest as quickly as she can, in defiance. ]

[ Well, shit. That actually got a laugh out of him.

What has he become. ]

Damn. I've been outsmarted.

[ ... but he'll pick his glass back up to follow suit, just because. ]

[ Huh. That's quite cute, actually. It's not a thought that she was expecting to have, but that's okay! She can go along with it.

She sets up her cup back up on the ledge above them, still with a faintest of chuckles on her lips. ]

Think we should get more? [ It sounds fun. Though on the other hand. ] I'm so comfortable... Getting up sounds terrible.

"We"? I already told you I'm not moving an inch.

[ He turns his head to look around, a bit of a scowl creasing his brow momentarily. ]

Place like this doesn't have someone to bring drinks to you? Seems like a wasted opportunity.

[ He says, not moving his arm or otherwise indicating that she should get up instead. ]

I believe we're not actually supposed to be drinking in these.

[ Hence the lack of waiters. ... Not that it stopped her. Though she doesn't have much intent on leaving while they're like this. ]

I suppose we'll have to make due without them.

[ Ah well. At least for her, it's stronger than what she was drinking last night anyway. Especially after downing the majority of it in one go. ]

an ill-advised venture (for sarcaskick)

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