Hot Springs and Ryokan

[battymynameis]

Guess what, y'all. It's time for a field trip. We're heading to a Hot Springs and an Inn for the weekend, and everyone is invited. This place is huge, and has multiple springs both indoor and out. There's separate bathing, mixed, and even a spot for foreigners and prudes who like to keep their swimsuits on. Table tennis? Got it. Room service? You bet. Massages? Possibly. Ghosts? Maybe.

1. Hot springs: after you rinse off come take a relaxing bath. There are multiple options as to what kind of bathing environment you can have, so please choose wisely. Also, please read the signs. None of the springs will kill you, but if you choose the wrong one you might end up with some... adverse effects. Cursed springs might just be a Thing.

2. The Inn: you'll be here for a few nights so find your rooming buddy and get friendly. Whether bonding over food, games, or even just exploring the place there's certainly something you can find to occupy yourself. Just don't be too curious after curfew. The staff are pretty insistent, but they aren't cops so responsibility for your actions are your own.

Comments

[fujimaru]

You worry too much about me.

[ She says it gently, more calm than anything else. Her arms tighten around Mash, and after a couple of seconds, she leans in again to press their foreheads together. ]

I'm doing okay. I promise. Things got pretty rough for a while there, but I pulled through. And you were there for me where it really mattered.

[ She'd stayed by Ritsuka even when Goetia had made his case, offering her a place by his side. Her shield had protected Ritsuka first from the blast of his anger, and when she'd been forced to stand alone. And when the ground had literally crumbled away from under her feet, and she'd known, absolutely known, that she was done for -- there'd been Mash's hand, reaching out to her.

In all the ways that mattered, Mash has always been there for her. ]

[shieldher]

. . . You really are stronger than I am. You don't give yourself enough credit.

[But neither does Mash say it with too much self deprecation. It's a fact she's coming to realize, and only feels strained about when it really matters—when she can feel herself falling to pieces in battle, which happens less and less these days, but doesn't happen never. She'll probably never hit never. That's how she knows. She knows because she still has moments every single day where she's briefly crushed under the weight of everything that's come before and everything yet to come. She thinks of the Doctor, and she hates that she can't think of him anymore without sadness and regret, when she knows he wouldn't want that, and it feels selfish besides. All of this . . .

Still, with her head pressed to Ritsuka's and her eyes fluttering closed, she feels the certainty within herself that she's strong enough to make it through.

Ritsuka gave her that.]

I'll do my best.

[fujimaru]

We both will.

[ She squeezes Mash again as she says that, her hands pressing firmly to her back. It's a gentle gesture, meant again to be reassuring.

And honestly, it's comforting for her, as well, to make this gesture. ]

No matter what... we'll get through things together.

[ That's such a cheesy line. Out of Mash's sight, Ritsuka makes a brief face at herself. How ridiculous, saying things like that -- like she's an actual hero out of a story -- but at the same time... it's not wrong, is it? As long as Mash is by her side, she's not afraid of anything that fate might throw her way (ha ha). ]

[shieldher]

[Cheesy, or exactly what they need to hear? Could be both. Mash smiles at it, anyway, taking it for the comfort it is, which she does appreciate. They can stay like this for a bit. As long as Ritsuka wants, really. They may not be looking at the stars anymore, but the night still feels serene, like a blanket wrapped around the two of them here together.]

I know. As long as you're with me, I really believe that. Senpai . . . just let me help however I can. Even if it's just listening to your thoughts. I feel like I'm the one always making you listen to mine.

[fujimaru]

I like listening to your thoughts.

[ That's just another way to say I like you, which is true, and will always be true, even if Ritsuka isn't as smooth as she sometimes likes to pretend. She tilts her head enough just enough to bump their noses together, then pulls back to adjust, leaning more comfortably up against Mash's side. ]

That's the thing... listening to what you think, and how you feel about things, that helps me figure those things out for me, too. I'm pretty big on doing things on instinct, but I know it's not always going to work for me.

So you help give me that, even if you think it's just you unloading on me. Got it?

[shieldher]

Just remember that I feel the same way.

[Like Ritsuka ever unloads on anyone. But that's the point, isn't it? Mash gets so easily caught up these days in unloading the fact that Ritsuka doesn't unload on her, and it's a mess. But if even that can help some . . . that might be the way forward after all. Ritsuka just isn't the type to deal with things in the same way. It's hard to navigate, but they're learning; Mash wants to learn. Even if it takes the rest of their lives.

That's a nicely romantic thought to have as they lean together, faces close, staring out at the pleasantly cool and starry night.]

I want you to feel like you can tell me anything. But . . . I can wait.

[fujimaru]

Thanks. For being patient.

[ Ritsuka knows herself: she's nowhere near the level of closed-off wariness that plagues a lot of people she knows, but she's also not the most forthcoming. Some of that is just not thinking of her experiences as worth bringing up, some of that is not being aware of her own troubles until they've percolated too dark and deep, and some of it is just... flat-out not being the best at speaking her feelings all the time.

But if Mash says she can wait, then Ritsuka trusts that. ]

I promise I'll tell you, when I can.

[shieldher]

. . . Thank you.

[It means a lot. Mash may not know everything, or even close to everything, about Ritsuka yet, but she does know this about her: that this is a thing that's hard for her for whatever reason. It's hard for Mash sometimes, too. But no matter what, she trusts Ritsuka isn't just putting her off on this, either. It's a process for both of them.

She leans harder, less shy in it than she was.]