pawnstorm | [Open] It's getting hot in here

[It took a bit of time for her to discover this place. It started off with rumors, and the like; she hadn't known until word had spread. Though the very idea that the dragon and the phoenix were getting together again, and the hot springs were the way...

It made her scoff.

But she was curious. After testing it with one toe dip, she went back to the bazaar and to the Airy. And shortly thereafter, she managed to come back, with her arms full of things. Strange, when she was clearly going down dressed in a towel.

But with her, she brought liquor, tea, and snacks, not just for herself, and had ribbons to have her hair pulled up and away from her neck. For some of the time, she sank down, right down to her chin or shoulders, her eyes closed.

Others, she would be a little more active, offering a towel-pointedly at times-or food or drink. She brought plenty. And during others, she simply poured water on herself with her hands while sitting on a rock.

...siren allure anyone?]

[THE GREAT HOT SPRING DEBATE.

Vietnam, having quickly went to look at the hot springs, found herself backing away to a crop of rocks and pacing around. There are now two schools of thought concerning the hot springs: Bare or Swimsuits?

She heard Japan goes bare. But Taiwan's hot springs (and most other places overseas) needed swimsuits.

Either way, this was her observation, and she's beginning to worry that there is too much skin around. She's still not used to the Hall of Glory's baths, as one can tell.

When she spots a Hero walk towards the hot springs, she tries to stop them.]

B-before you go. I have a question, please excuse how bold it is. When you bathe in the hot springs, what is your preference?

[She's still fully clothed, by the way.]

Edited 2016-05-21 07:14 (UTC)

[ Hot springs seem like quite the luxury to Bolin. There aren't that many in the Earth Kingdom, and are more popular in the Fire Nation—which Bolin has never visited, even though he does want to visit the country of his mother one day. When he'd heard that there were some right here in Gisela, following the fall of the towers, it seemed like a good opportunity to relax after the dungeon.

Of course, people are naked. But by now Bolin is used to focusing on a specific target, and ducking his gaze when a pretty girl walks by. He is, of course, not naked. He's never been to a hot spring, has no idea about any of the customs surrounding them, and no one's told him that he can't wear swim trunks so he's feeling quite comfortable.

He manages to finally find a lone spring, perking up and ready to relax when— ]

WHOA! [ He yanks his leg back out. ] That's hotter than I expected it to be...

[ Looks like he'll have to ease himself in slowly. ]

[Are you someone who wouldn't normally go to the hot spring? Are you shy about the idea of mixed baths? Are you just hoping for an excuse to go but can't come up with one?

Well here is your sword! Jiroutachi, the pretty oodachi, is here to drag you to the hot springs! It doesn't matter if he knows you or not because here he is to bring you along. What state of dress he's in really depends on when he saw you but his grip is firm and his desire great.

It's time to party in the hot springs.]

Don't worry! I have the alcohol! We'll make a celebration of this!

-In all honesty, while Jiroutachi had indeed insisted on Kasen coming along to the springs once the mission was over and the dust had settled, it wasn't as if it had taken too much convincing. Kasen was beat up, exhausted, and definitely in need of some tender loving care. And maybe some sake. Just a little, though.

Kasen had opted for the traditional bathing attire. Which was to say, no attire at all, soaking up to his chest with a small towel layered onto his head, leaning back against the rock and just... letting everything melt away from him. All the stress of dungeon-ing, all the sweat of battle, and of course a litany of bruises and healing cuts.-

They should really consider building a bath house in the Hall like this... Don't you agree?

[ While Allelujah has come to the hot springs of his own volition, it doesn't look as though he's very concerned with a post-dungeon relaxation binge. Rather, as he makes his way through the steam-wreathed forest, going from pool to pool, he seems intent on... looking for something? Not wanting to disturb the other tourists and Heroes, he tends to give the occupied pools a wide margin of space. Especially if he catches wind of The Great Debate.

All (fully-clothed) work and no play.

And because there was outcry for a gunshow. ]

Edited 2016-05-21 19:46 (UTC)

Prompt A;

[ The hot springs was a place of peace and relaxation. But Juzumaru only went at the insistence of Jiroutachi. Juzumaru knew full well that it was a good idea to cleanse one's body and soul before embarking into the hot springs itself. So he'll just be washing himself before he gets in. And once he is settled in he'll be resting in the the hot spring itself. It looks like he's sleeping but he's totally awake?! Also he sure...has a lot of hair. Gomen to anyone sitting nearby. It kinda looks like a gigantic monster is roaming the waters around him. But really what's he supposed to do with all of it?! There's too much to really tie it up effectively... ]

Prompt B;

[ Snacks are very important too so Juzu is gonna be looking curiously at whatever other people brought or what he himself brought. He's not really familiar with any of these things so he'll just hold out a sample for someone to take. ] Do you happen to know what this is?

[ He totally just last minute bought stuff before being dragged here, don't mind him. ]

[Kaede, as usual, cared little for modesty. Her towel was folded on the rocks behind her to dry her hair with afterwards, and despite its length said hair did absolutely nothing to conceal the fact that she wasn't wearing a stitch of clothing. Or hide the four big scars on her back, ragged marks from shoulder to shoulder like something massive and clawed had slashed her to the ribs. Which was more or less exactly what happened, though they were too old to have happened in the dungeon. Still new and unfaded, though.

She wasn't intentionally putting herself on display, but she also cared exactly nothing about it. Kaede had been doing this since she was very small, though she didn't exactly have many manners to show for it. She didn't step over any corpses to get here. That was totally polite.

But for once she actually didn't mind that there were people around. She may have plopped herself down right beside someone, or across from them, or otherwise in a pool that might have people in it.

She had important things to do, like soak away aches.]

[Surprisingly enough, Aisha wasn't used to mixed hot springs. Planet Tenrei had separate ones for men and women, but this wasn't a big deal at all. After all, she was pretty shameless.

So you could catch her in a white swimsuit looking for the hottest spot to hop in the water, arms full of treats for the occasion. Or be around when she's nude and yes, literally hopping into the water, making a big splash.

Whoops.

Once she's in though, she's just surrounded by floating trays, holding a sake cup in her hand. It's hot, and it calms her down considerably. This might be the one advantage to being weaker.]

This being a Hero thing isn't bad, huh?

[ The funny thing about being a British ex~~communicated~~ Vatican Exorcist from a pseudo-Victorian era is that Allen is actually familiar with hot springs. They had them in the Order. (Albeit gender separated...)

Which is why he's not terribly perplexed or anxious about this one. Other than the fact he's found a place off to himself somewhat (for now). Both because one, liberal that the Order is... girls don't bathe with boys... and two, well...

Maybe secondly because he's covered in enough grayed (grayed??) scars it looks like someone tried to both saw him rather roughly and slowly from stem to stern and stab him through the gut—and mostly succeeded on both accounts. Beyond the general red scar on his face and inhuman, dark red left arm.

And because that's not really something he likes to be a topic of discussion or disturbance, he's sunk down up to his shoulders in the water as much of a polite distance away from the nearest crowd that he can, a towel knotted rather tight around his middle while intent on using another to scrub vigorously at a golden, winged golem that's wiggling about in his grasp like it's torn between squirming away and finding a game in being tickled. His hair's tied back in a messy, half wet ponytail as well ~~he needs a haircut~~. ]

♪

[ No. He still hasn't named Timcanpy 2.0 yet. But, with his tongue stuck out a bit in concentration, he's treating his new companion in the selfsame way. He could swear you got aello goo on you too, how....

It's a distraction that helps him feel a little bit less tired at least after the tower.

Maybe a bit less stuck in his head about how it went, too. ]

Edited 2016-05-22 06:52 (UTC)

[ Jae-ha isn't happy, perse, about being forced to wear an article of clothing into a hot spring, but he has to admit it isn't as obstructive as he thought it would be. He's still plenty relaxed, soaking away the exhaustion and grime of their latest dungeon endeavor. This spring is a bit more isolated, and he deliberately chose it as such, because even he relished a little quiet time.

Someone else has found this spot, however, and while he doesn't mind, it's her hair that catches his attention. It's quite vibrant, and it reminds him of...

That special person he was sworn to protect. The uncertainty of knowing Yona's safety is something that eats away at him every day he's here, though it never shows. The reminder makes his chest feel a dull ache, and he tries to push those thoughts away. Instead, he calls out to her, waving cheerfully in what he hopes is an inviting gesture. ]

Hello, dear! Are you here to enjoy the relaxing hot springs, too? [ Even though she's fully clothed, so maybe not. ]

[You have a choice of two things to notice with this kid.

The first is that with only a towel around his waist and the eyepatch, when he's not busy being up to his neck in the water, his back is covered in scars that do not look at all pleasant, and count entirely too many in number for a boy of his age. But he's ignoring any staring he might be getting because the water feels really nice and is making him purr happily.

The second thing is he is totally feeding snacks to his carrier who is swimming with him. Every now and then you might notice what is very obviously a shark fin just casually cruising by you. Step in its way and you might get bitten, Kiba is not a friendly shark. But then it swims right back over to beg another treat off Akito like a puppy, which is why he can't bring himself to scold the trolling carrier.

This was kind of just what he needed]

[Well, this is Weird. No, not that Yukari is at a hot spring - she likes hot springs.

Not that she's only wearing a towel into said hot springs, that's what they're there for.

Not even that she's purposefully sitting by herself as far away from the nearest person as possible.

What's weird is that she isn't talking to anyone, isn't smiling, isn't trying to make any friends. If anything, she's just sitting there, occasionally rubbing at her head as though it'll quell the headache. She doesn't seem to care if anyone - no matter their gender or otherwise - sits anywhere near her, but she does seem to care about staring at the sky.

Again, though, that is Strange for Yukari. She usually talks to people, not just kind of looks at them, and goes back to whatever she's doing. She doesn't even care when guys sit next to her.

Investigate, y/n/y?]

[Of all the hot springs experiences to have, Naruto is sad to say that most of them have been with a perverted old man with peeking practices that always threatened to get them thrown out. It seems like that might not be as much of an issue now though, since there are... there are girls and guys all in the. Same. Place.

Sweating intensifies.

While he's always been told that he doesn't spend enough time in the baths to really get a good soak in, Naruto has been in them with enough frequency that he isn't phased by the prospect of hanging out naked with a bunch of dudes. It's-

It's seeing all the cute girls here too that's the problem.
Don'tstaredon'tstaredon'tstaredon'tsta SOMETHING JUST TOUCHED HIS LEG UNDER THE WATER WHAT WAS THAT]

[Under any normal circumstances, it'd be easy to see Nobunaga enjoying this kind of atmosphere with this kind of scenery. Mingling with everyone else shameless enough to throw caution to the wind, encouraging those bashfully avoiding other people the best she could. Confidently reminding everyone how attractive she thinks she is. Pretty predictable to anyone who's spoken to her for longer than five minutes.

But that isn't what's happening.

In fact, the shy looking woman wringing her hands together and indecisively looking between the springs themselves and the exit isn't anything like that. She's still fully clothed for one thing and her body language is entirely drawn inwards, as if trying to hide herself from being seen. The strangest thing, though, is she hasn't said a word. Even being greeted by someone only gets a quiet, polite greeting in return.

After some time, her deliberation ends and she shakes her head.]

N-no way! I can't do this! Hot springs...this kind of thing is just too embarrassing...!!

[Looks like someone failed to conquer the recent dungeon.]

So Lola was happily soaking in the water, although often as not she was near the springs to better show off her swimsuit. She considered naked, but without a boy she had her eye on she hardly felt the need to show off everything. Of course, she was boyless. Tiny was great, but Tiny wasn't here. She couldn't just wait hoping any of her friends at home would be brought here as heroes.

She used this opportunity, of course, to ogle the boys wandering around. In towels, not in towels. She carefully looked around, trying not to stare but being sure to see who was hot, who was not. She looked at the girls too, looking for anyone she could befriend, anyone who could use her help picking out swimsuits. But mostly she was just relaxing to enjoy eyecandy.

Edited 2016-05-23 01:07 (UTC)

[After just barely surviving his first grueling dungeon experience, to say that Hinata is feeling exhausted is a massive understatement. His body hurts all over, especially his arms -- in fact, he can barely even lift them anymore, and his brain is fried from all the mental stimulation he experienced in the dungeon. The constant fear of falling off the tower, actually falling off and just barely saving himself, that boss fight, the terrifying descent at the end as the tower collapsed around them... It was all so draining.

That's why, clad in only a white towel wrapped around his waist, he slowly approaches the hot spring with heavy and rigid movements. He won't be able to properly retire for the day until he can unwind first, and the hot water will hopefully take the edge off of his muscle aches so that he can get a better rest. He wasn't expecting the springs to be mixed, though..... It's embarrassing to bathe with a bunch of girls around, but for the sake of his own physical and mental well-being, he'll try to tough it out.

With every step that he takes, pain sears throughout his body, resulting in a quiet chorus of "ow's" and groans under his breath as he approaches the edge of the spring in a spot where there isn't too many people. Lowering himself into the water is an even more painful ordeal, but eventually he manages it. From that spot, Hinata carefully rests his back against the spring wall and absently observes the people around him, though not allowing his gaze to linger too long on any women. He isn't planning on moving from this spot anytime soon.]

[After a hard-earned victory, it was only natural for the King to crave relaxation. Relaxation and cleansing, with so much sweat clinging to his body, rendering him sticky and unsightly, even as one so naturally flawless. So Gilgamesh soaks by himself, but only for a little while, only long enough to make himself clean and proper and presentable to the rest of the world.

And then Gilgamesh does what he does best: he goes on the prowl.

Dressed in merely a thin, silken towel about his waist which leaves nothing to the imagination, he seeks out his fellow Heroes. He drops in on them, from nowhere, grinning and cozying up close. Men or women, he joins both as he strolls along, sinking into the water then out again whenever he decides to move on to his next target. Effectively makes his rounds by preying upon anyone he thinks could use a bit of company... and especially those who wanted none at all.

Eventually, he finds you, and offers up a greeting in the form of a pat from behind. If you were particularly unlucky, it was a pat straight on the ass.]

Going for a dip, then?

[The may I join you is strongly implied. Gilgamesh cocks his head, then adds, ever so helpfully:]

It is quite an honor to bathe with a King, you know. We should enjoy ourselves.

[Gilgamesh looks determined to make this a group activity. It may not be so easy to get rid of him here.]

[There is a robot girl floating on the bottom of the springs. She is actually not moving, but she doesn't seem to be damaged. Is she? It's not like she's breathing, so there aren't any bubbles rising to the surface.

She's just lying there.

Aigis is not good at hot springs.]

[ So here's the thing: he's exhausted, he's irritable, he's a little bit miserable, and a significant part of him just wants to go home. Straight back to his cozy little cottage, his soft bed, his comfortable kitchen, his welcoming hearth ... but instead, he's here. Dragged cheerfully along in the wake of Gil's seemingly impenetrable enthusiasm, as always.

Adra spent quite some time walking around the area, trying to find a relatively secluded spot. Because, truly, here was the other thing: it was near impossible to get him to do what he didn't actually want to do. Adra is creature of fire, and this place was made for him. He's only ever visited one natural hot spring in his life, and that was surrounded by vicious prehistoric lizards. This scenery (now largely cleared of lizards) is infinitely more preferable, aside from all the people around, of course.

Hence, he makes an effort to find a relatively isolated pool--or so he thinks.

He stops worrying about it once he's in the water, anyway: it's just as searingly hot as he'd hoped for. Adra stands upright in the spring, submerged to his waist. His long, blond hair spills into the water, floating artfully. His tattoos, scrawled over every inch of him from the throat down, glow faintly red and seem to shift as he moves through the water, their patterns breaking and connecting in time with the strain of his muscles.

Adra is still as slender as ever, but there's fresh substance to him now, after a few hard months of training. His arms and back have new tone to them, a firmness and weight that wasn't there on his arrival. He feels gratified, a little, to see it.

Adra runs his fingers through his hair, sighing. He's begun to relax, just a bit. It's quiet. No one can see him. But he does wish that he brought a comb. ]

Edited 2016-05-24 02:34 (UTC)

[ This is it. ]

[ No, that's honestly it. He's an inherently lazy person, and what better way to laze around than to relax in the hot springs? There isn't a better way, especially after a good meal. He's going to be spending quite a few hours just soaking regardless of who is around him.

You find him...

> Drooling happily with his head resting back on the side of the spring.

> Dead asleep mostly underwater. He's blowing bubbles through his nose and his towel may actually be floating a few feet to his left. Leave him to be indecent...?

> ...Maybe actually dead underneath the surface. Seriously, how long has that guy been in there? And why aren't there any air bubbles coming up? Do you save him? ]

[ In terms of experience, these hotsprings are the most familiar thing Sasuke has encountered since his arrival. The fighting is familiar, as is the idea of a war, but the circumstances and how things are done are as foreign to Sasuke as the way mana feels under his skin. The similarities to chakra begin and end with it being a worldly force within their bodies they use to perform fantastic feats, but Sasuke's experience with chakra is a far cry from the feeble well of magic he works with here.

Getting through that dungeon hadn't been easy. His body still aches, and he's sporting a number of ugly looking purple bruises on his one arm and his knees and shins. None of them experienced anything close to fatal, but Sasuke knows luck is a large part of the reason he, his wife and his friend got through that dragon infested tower alive.

In short, he's looking forward to the hot spring.

There isn't much of a divide between the people wearing bathing suits and those going in only towels, but being part of the latter group himself, Sasuke still moves to a relatively empty section of the spring before pulling his towel off, balancing it on the top of his head and easing himself one-handed into the hot water with an audible sigh. ]

Edited 2016-05-24 05:27 (UTC)

[ It wasn't like going to the hot springs with her parents at an incredibly expensive resort in the mountains, but a hot spring is still a hot spring. For a girl like Maki who enjoys the finer things in life she couldn't pass up the opportunity to go.

With a towel and a bottle of Tomato milk from the Airy (it's not gross, at least try it!!) she finds herself secluded in a corner of the spring. Her clothes have been shed and left at the edge of the pool.

She might have thought go to with a friends... but she can say she's thankful she was given a Carrier as protective as Diva. Because just out of sight, sitting on a tree-branch overlooking Maki's clothes, is a black panther waiting and watching, ready to pounce should anyone get too close to Maki. ]

It feels so good to relax... [ Finally in the water Maki feels free enough to take her towel off and slide down to her shoulders, the tips of her short red hair just dipping beneath the surface. If anyone else were to be around she wouldn't even know, sighing in contentment as she tries to recuperate from the long week of healing and fighting she's had. ]

[ He dozes.

His head artfully pillowed atop his arms at the edge of a less populated spring, the Hero King's eyes are gently closed, silvered lashes fanning against his cheeks as his breathing slows in his repose. Some would call this a miracle, that Sion Astal who so seldom sleeps a wink is taking his rest here, of all places, at a public venue, and others still would say such a thing is a sign of the coming apocalypse, but Sion...

Sion is only asleep, having worn himself to the bone. After emerging victorious from the towers with his his company of (one little sister, one battle maiden, one radiant Queen, and one King makes...) four, he'd seamlessly moved from one task to the next, volunteering his aid at Airy's medical bay, and...! Exhausting his mana reserves, a sacrifice which had lead him to the here and now, where the temperature of the water had only fed into his fatigue, sapping from him the strength with which to stay awake.

And so, it would likely be for the best to ~~rescue~~ prod him into wakefulness before his skin prunes something awful, or some poor soul falls victim to the entity alive that is Sion's knee-length hair. Unless, of course, you are that victim, with the embrace of one such silky tendril coiling about you like a snake as it floats upon the surface of the water...! In which case, good luck, you'll be needing it for this venture, Hero. ]

[There's probably been no better justification for taking R&R than this. Potemkin's first preference is to go in naked, to fully enjoy the natural properties of a hot spring, but the fact that this is a non gender segregated area makes that not an option, according to his principles. His compromise is to take the soak in a pair of incredibly tiny briefs, maximizing skin exposure to the waters.

Despite his best efforts to not be disruptive, it's hard for a neighbor to not take notice when almost any action he takes moves the water like a tidal pool. And eventually, he does want to douse his back. Anyone who looks at that wall of muscle could tell there's room for a lot of knots. An onlooker can see him shimmying around to find deeper pools, creating a wake behind him all the while.]

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