The Beach || Mild Aphro

[infinite_arcana]

Minako did her best to avoid running into people on the way back to her room. After all, she didn't want to try and explain the look of frustration and hurt that seemed to linger on her face since her run-in with a familiar stranger. It'd left her feeling oddly unsettled, and more than a little upset, not that she'd admit it to anyone. Still, it

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[shiro_megane]

"Arisato-san?"

A familiar voice drifted over to her from behind-- the door she had walked through was gone, in its place, a lifeguard tower, and, walking down from it, a familiar face. He looked a bit surprised-- albeit pleasantly-- though a bit nervous, as well.

"Hello. It's been a while."

[infinite_arcana]

It took her a moment to place the voice. Once she did, her feet came to a stop as she turned to offer him a small smile, followed by a minute bow of her head.

"It's good to see you again."

[shiro_megane]

"The hotel led you here, too, I suppose."

She didn't need to know that he had found himself here in a garish life-guard uniform. He had kept the red swim trunks, even if he might have preferred another color, but he couldn't abide the bright lemon-yellow shirt, and had managed to find a button-up short sleeved white shirt to wear in its place-- It would be less than optimal to have to swim in or to take off quickly, but, as Minako knew, he was somewhat self-conscious about the pentacle scar resting on the center of his chest.

"So far as I can tell, it's only the two of us here, for now," he went on as he gauged her reaction. He knew that though they liked one another, his own insecurities about his scars and the like had led to rough patches more than once.

[infinite_arcana]

"I guess. I was on my way back to my room, or so I thought. I just ended up here."

She hadn't missed the trunks and wondered if he'd ended up out here for a swim or something else, knowing how self-conscious he was. If that was the case, she wouldn't mind. After all, she knew about his scar and it didn't bother her at all. He wasn't he only one scarred, after all.

Once he mentioned it, her gaze traveled along the seemingly empty beach.

"I think that's good. I'm not really much for a lot of company right now."

Her hands slid down her rumpled skirt as she looked around a little.

".... do you think I could maybe find a swimsuit to change into? It's a little warm for my uniform..."

[shiro_megane]

"I think you should-- over in the direction you were facing, in the huts." He sounded like he'd already explored them for himself-- but then, without anyone else here, or anything with him to read, it wasn't as if he had a great deal else to do. "I can escort you, if you'd like-- though if you'd rather some time to yourself, I'd understand." It sounded as if something was troubling her, and Ishida couldn't quite hide the note of concern in his voice-- but he wasn't going to press her to talk about it if she didn't want to.

[infinite_arcana]

The offer made her smile a little more like her usual self. Humming, she offered his her hand in silent invitation to join her. She'd said a lot of company, not a little. Besides, she knew her power came from her bonds with friends. It wasn't something she could neglect, especially now.

[shiro_megane]

Surprised, but quietly pleased by the proffered hand, Ishida slipped his hand into hers. Despite the heat of the balmy weather, the soft warmth of her palm against his felt distinct, noticeable. "If nothing else, we can find some shade," he mused, though it sounded fairly obvious once he had said it. He walked side by side as they made their way-- it wasn't far, and soon enough, they had reached the first. "The doors weren't locked earlier, they shouldn't be now--" And, indeed, they weren't. They had the place-- indeed, the entire beach-- all to themselves.

[infinite_arcana]

For Minako, she was oddly quiet. A quiet Minako was a Minako prone to over-thinking things. That wasn't a good thing, most of the time. Usually, the thought of having an entire beach all to herself would hype her up.

For now, she slipped through the unlocked door, peering around a little before she spied a swimsuit that could work for her. Squeezing his hand a little, she let his fingers go before she slipped out of sight, the swimsuit in her hands.

A few minutes later, she reappeared, her uniform replaced by a small pink bikini. Her cheeks were pink enough to match and while it covered all the important parts, she still bared enough skin to show him that he wasn't the only one bearing scars.

[shiro_megane]

As Ishida's eyes fell on Minako, he blushed more than a little, too-- why was it no surprise the hotel didn't supply something more modest? His eyes did note what scars she had, though. Despite how self-conscious he feels about his own, he feels a slight twinge of curiosity-- and a greater twinge of concern. They didn't look fresh, though-- from her world, maybe? He could only hope it was nothing someone in the hotel had done to her. After a few heartbeats, he realized he was staring at her without saying anything, and, reaching up, he adjusted his glasses awkwardly.

"It, ah-- it looks flattering on you."

[infinite_arcana]

"Hmm. I was wondering. I thought your eyes were going to pop out of your head."

She did her best to sound chipper, even if the amount of skin showing was a it more than she was comfortable with. The scarring wasn't fresh, thankfully, but if he looked close enough, he'd see subtle scars marring her palms from where she'd been bound as the Seal back in her world.

Anything fresher would be the light bruises dotting the backs of her thighs and lower back, thanks to a recent run in with someone.

[shiro_megane]

He hadn't gotten a good look at her hands, yet-- and, though the swimsuit didn't cover much, as she faced him, he certainly couldn't notice the light bruising her earlier encounter had left.

"Ah-- No. They're secure. I-- I apologize. I shouldn't have stared like that..." It occurred to Ishida that now that she had a swimsuit, he had no idea what they were going to do next. They were both better outfitted for the weather, but to what end?

"Ah-- I... I suppose I should ask if there's something-- anything, really-- you'd like to do."

[infinite_arcana]

"Most girls like when a guy admires the way they look in a swimsuit."

Now that she was a little more comfortable, she glanced around, noting the relative luxury of their surroundings. Either they could stay in there in comfort or wander out to enjoy the beach in the heat.

"... well, we could stay here in the shade or we could actually go get in the water. Really, I'm up for either."

[shiro_megane]

Ishida paused a moment before answering. Water meant he'd need to take off his shirt-- and, even if he didn't, the white shirt wouldn't hide the blue scar very well. On the other hand... He had shown it to her before. It wasn't as if he would be risking anyone else seeing it.

"I don't really have a preference one way or another, but if we do go to the water, we should try to find some sunblock," he suggested. He only hoped whatever sunblock there wasn't laced with aphrodisiacs or sone other trick of the hotel's.

[infinite_arcana]

"Do you think it would matter? The sun isn't real, remember?"

Minako was still as careful as she could be about running across any accidental aphrodisiacs that the hotel seemed to enjoy providing, but she was pretty used to not being out in the sun on a beach without taking some sort of precaution against the sun.

[shiro_megane]

"It's hard to say to what degree everything here is real or isn't," Ishida admitted, "Though I cede it's possible it won't give us a sunburn, it's equally possible it might-- the heat and the sand and these clothes all seem real enough, as well-- they may be as false or as real as the sun may be as well." Going out into the water did seem like a bit of a gamble between a nasty sunburn or being dosed with aphrodisiacs.

[infinite_arcana]

He might be right, but the beach itself sounded like such fun... Still, she settled herself on the edge of a nearby couch, her gaze dropping once again.

"I suppose so."