[Open] It's getting hot in here

[showsnopiety]

Who: Caren and anyone visiting the hot springs!
When: Post dungeon, could be right after fail/success, could be days after
Where: Hot Springs of course
What: There's a hot springs, so now there's a hot springs episode.
Rating: Could be a p-13 and beyond because some people are only wearing towels in this place.





[Win or fail, everyone needed a reason and a way to relax. With the fall of the towers, there was all sorts of good things to come from it. Some would say it was the birds; and others would say it was the hot springs.

The large, large pools of heated water. Sure, they could be used as a way to get all steamed up (or even steam punk) but after all that hard work, everyone deserves a break!

Bring your swimsuits, your towels, your drinks and snacks-who knows, you should be able to find them in the bazaars, or even on Airy. It's time to soak in the heat!]

Comments

[penitents]

[ Sasuke, evidently more than comfortable with this sort of thing (or maybe just not having any feeling in most of his body) walks directly passed Bolin and straight into the hot water he just pulled his leg out of. It's warm enough, Sasuke can tell, that staying in too long without something to cool off would be inadvisable, but Sasuke still doesn't flinch— a feat possibly remarkable since he pulls the (small) towel from around his waist to fold and balance on top of his head as he sits down nude in the water.

He sinks into the water up to the middle of his chest and leans his head back on the stone behind him, closing his eyes with a long, slow exhale. Luckily, there's still plenty of room in the spring, and if he's just done something odd he doesn't seem at all to be aware of it... ]

[sediments]

[ ???

Bolin just stares as Sasuke blatantly ignores him, frowning a little at the slight as he peers at the all to familiar man. It's the one armed wonder. ]

Hey. [ He scoots over, peering at the man. ] Hey, aren't you hot at all?

[penitents]

[ Fighting their way through that dungeon had been far from easy. He's exercising skills he hasn't had to think so hard about since he was a little boy, and coupled with getting used to the way he burns through mana like nothing else, the feel of the heated water against his skin is better than a balm. There's speculation that the water might have mana properties to it, and Sasuke can only hope it's true, because even now he's much more tired than he's been in a while. ]

It feels good.

[ He doesn't open his eyes when he answers. ]

[sediments]

Are you going to sleep?

[ Bolin leans in closer, wondering if he should take the hint and get lost, but also feeling to lazy to find another spring to submerge himself in. ]

Hey, I don't think that's a great idea.

[ It's a familiar sense of being ignored, and though Bolin's not so easily annoyed, it does make him frown when the other man pays him no heed. But he's an adult, not a petulant smile, so he presses on with politeness and a determination to be acknowledged. ]

[penitents]

[ Sasuke is keenly aware of how close Bolin is to him when he leans in, and Sasuke is struck with the childish desire to grab him and pull him into the hot spring. He doesn't, of course, because that would be rude, but he does slit both dark eyes open to look at the kid. Not for the first time, he's reminded of another stocky, bright-eyed person in his life. Sasuke blames the similarity on that unbidden reflex to dunk the boy. ]

You should just get in. It's worse if you do it slowly.

[sediments]

I dunno. [ Bolin counter offers, leaning further still with a thoughtful frown. ] I think I'd rather ease into it.

[ And it's certainly something that he plans to do, not about to give up on the springs just yet.

Of course, things don't always go as planned, and it seems like Bolin has just gone too far. That is, too far as he leans over the edge of the spring, and the earthbender honestly does even see it coming as both his hands slip, leaving only a startled ] waugh! [ in the space where he'd been perched as he pitches forward toward Sasuke's lap ]

[penitents]

[ Well if Bolin's expecting to be caught, he's got another think coming, since Sasuke does literally nothing to help cushion his fall. He's spent too much time around rambunctious and clumsy people to be fazed by this kind of behaviour anymore. Generally if the people around him aren't walking disasters they don't have much concept of personal space, so again, Sasuke appears remarkably serene despite the possible awkwardness of the situation.

Mostly, Bolin's fall will be cushioned by a face full of water and probably by Sasuke's thighs, which is a lot nicer than the hard rock he could have smashed his face against. It's more of a belly flop than anything, which means when Bolin eventually comes back up Sasuke will be regarding him flatly though soaking hair.

Finally he moves to push his hair out of his face, running his hand over the top of his head, giving him the ridiculous look of slicked-back hair. ]

[sediments]

[ That's pretty much how it goes. Though Bolin is desperately trying to shove his way away from the other man, coming up with his own hair plastered unattractively over his forehead. Despite being the one to have crashed gracelessly into Sasuke, the earthbender fixes the man with a slow, irritated gaze. ]

You could've put a hand out.

[ And not let me almost headbutt you in the crotch. ]

[penitents]

[ Sasuke shrugs. He's experienced stranger things having Naruto as a friend, and having traveled around with the likes of Karin and Suigetsu and (he tries not to think about it) Orochimaru. ]

Now you're in the water.

[ Somehow, he looks kind of smug about that. ]

[sediments]

[ Because Bolin is no longer a surly teenager, but an adult, he doesn't sulk in the water. Instead, he rises up, so that the water is closer around his chest, pushing his hair back before raising one eyebrow at Sasuke. ]

Are you bullying me?

[ He doesn't sound particularly accusing or upset as he says it, but more a mix of disbelief and amusement. Is this the type of guy that gets his jollies discreetly, when he thinks no one will notice? ]

[penitents]

[ More amusing is how quickly this kid points out his behaviour, and for that reason alone Sasuke feels the corner of his mouth twitch, a crease in the corners of his eyes that betrays his amusement in an otherwise cool expression. If possible, he seems even more smug.

What are you going to do about it? ]

[sediments]

[ Oh, Sasuke might be cool and aloof, but Bolin can definitely see that smug look, and his eyes narrow at it as he huffs in disbelief.

With incredible maturity, he sends a small splash of water toward the older man. ]

Hey, you totally are. Don't think I'm fooled by that cool act.

[ He's not even mad, and isn't anywhere close to being serious in accusations, and it should be fairly apparent. ]

[penitents]

[ He lifts his chin, just a little, to avoid getting more warm water in his face, but otherwise doesn't retaliate. Satisfied and surprisingly unbothered that this kid has seen through him, Sasuke leans his weight comfortably back against the edge of the hotspring and cocks up an eyebrow. ]

You seem like the gullible type.

[sediments]

[ What could possibly give you that impression, Sasuke? ]

What? Maybe you shouldn't judge a book by its cover. [ He turns his nose up slightly.

But then he's very quickly struck by an idea. ]

But since we're on the topic, I'll make a couple of guesses too. One: your voice dropped at the age of 12. [ He's holding up a finger, adding another as: ] Two: you know that your hairstyle isn't that great, but changing it now will mean admitting you care. And...

[ Pausing for a moment, he tilts his head to inspect the other man. ]

Three, you lost your arm in a tragic sports accident but tell your friends a bear took it because that's cooler.

[penitents]

[ Sasuke's expression eases back into neutral as Bolin attempts to read him. He can only imagine the kid comes from a radically different place from Sasuke, to jump to such novel conclusions. The first one could be true, the second was ridiculous, but the last...

He lets the silence stretch uncomfortably too long before saying, deadpan: ]

I lost my arm to my best friend. I was trying to kill him. The power behind our combined attacks ripped my arm off.

[sediments]

[ S...ure...

That's a new explanation for a missing arm. Bolin's eyebrows draw together as he narrows his eyes, trying to figure out if Sasuke's just playing at the "you're gullible" bit from before or if this is actually serious.

Eventually, all he says is: ]

You must be really bad at expressing your true emotions.

[penitents]

[ The retort is almost funny, given Sasuke's long background of lying not only to himself by the people around him. Given the train of their conversation, though, he isn't surprised Bolin is skeptical. He doesn't owe this kid any explanations about who he is, or where he came from, so it doesn't really matter in the end. Its true that Sasuke isn't well versed in expressing himself, and that he ends up relying heavily on those he cares for to understand what he's trying to articulate, so it doesn't matter that he doesn't understand. ]

You aren't.

[ Sasuke seems pretty confident in this, despite barely knowing Bolin at all... ]

[sediments]

I do my best.

[ His reply is entirely earnest, and he's not embarrassed by Sasuke's comment because he has no reason to be—it's a good thing to be able to convey emotions clearly. (That said, he still struggles to articulate thoughts sometimes, and his words come out jumbled and irregular.

But then at least he's got body language on his side.) ]

[penitents]

Hn.

[ Sasuke has no reason to tease him for it. It's a quality he had never been able to embody himself. Maybe when he had been a small child, when his parents were alive and his brother with him— but as he grew up, he lost the ability to do it behind layers upon layers of quickly and fiercely constructed walls.

He watches Bolin for a few moments longer with an odd sort of intensity before he closes his eyes and leans back again. ]

[sediments]

...

[ Anyway, Bolin moves across the spring then so that he's beside Sasuke instead of across from him, his own back against the stone rim, enjoying the uneven press of the rocks against his back. ]

Did he feel bad, after you two ripped off your arm?

[ Just making conversation. ]

[penitents]

[ He should have expected Bolin wouldn't want to sit in silence. From his energy alone, Sasuke had a feeling he was the kind of guy who liked to socialize and talk. Sasuke couldn't be more opposite to that, but he's accustomed to being around people who run their mouths without reservation. ]

I did the same to him.

[ He isn't sure how he would articulate what happened. His relationship with Naruto was so complex— even in speaking with one another, they can't seem to explain the bond they share with just words. ]

[sediments]

[ It's pretty hot in the hot springs, but the rate at which Bolin can feel sweat gathering at his nape probably doesn't have anything to do with the steam that's soaking the air all round them. His eyes are growing wider, just slightly.

Bolin's met his match. ]

So you guys are matching. [ His voice pitches awkwardly as he cracks the joke, and his laugh doesn't fare much better.

Valiantly smoothing out his features, the earthbender clears his throat. ]

That seems like an unhealthy relationship though, you guys probably should've considered couples' therapy first or something.

[penitents]

[ Sasuke smirks, though he tries valiantly not to let it slip. There's no way Bolin could understand what their relationship was like. Unhealthy or not... things were not simple and easy in the ninja world. Every bond Sasuke had ever had was interlaced with pain, a kind of love that felt like hate that felt like love all over again. ]

You would understand if you had someone who knew you without needing words.

[sediments]

[ That gets Bolin to stop and think, needing a moment to really consider whether or not he has someone like that in his life. The first possibility that comes to mind is Pabu, since Pabu literally can't speak, but somehow he doubts that's what Sasuke is going for.

But then - ]

Why would you try to kill each other?

[ It's unfathomable to Bolin, who wouldn't even kill an enemy if he was put to it. He can't bring himself to make that kind of decision, doesn't have big passions like that, the kind that would drive him to kill someone. ]

[penitents]

[ The humor bleeds out of him in the wake of Bolin's question. Naruto had never wanted to kill him— his response, his promise that they would die together stemmed wholly from Sasuke's bloodthirst and refusal to stray from the path he'd thought was the one he needed to follow. He lost that battle, but even now, his guilt over what he'd done remains. His arm is a physical reminder of that.

In the silence that stretches between them, Sasuke debates how to answer. It's too complicated to explain in a short way. The ninja world, Itachi... He lifts his good hand and pushes it through his hair, sweeping it out of his face again. ]

I made a lot of mistakes when I was young. The path I was walking, I believed I had to kill him.

[ Sasuke pauses again, looking across the hotspring without really seeing it. ]

He led me out of the dark.