Week 1 Mingle;

[omnivoracious]

❤ Week 1 Mingle

Welcome to a new week, lovebirds! Monday dawns gray and misty, and it's actually not long before a thunderstorm rolls in! You can, of course, kiss dramatically in the yard in the rain and risk getting struck by lightning-- or you can stay inside, cuddle in the conversation pit, USE THE GODDAMN BOOM BOOM ROOM or do anything else until the storm blows over by the evening! Don't worry, the rest of the week will be bright and sunny and beautiful!

There's also a new section of the house, weirdly enough! There's a bright turquoise door located near the bedroom and opening it leads to... a massive indoor pool. The water is a pleasant temperature, there's a hot tub, there's an assortment of flotation devices for those of you who might have trouble swimming (tubes, life vests, boogie boards, pool noodles that can also be used to wage Deadly Combat if you are Sara and Kasque or Jeritza or anyone else ready for Violence). And if you somehow didn't pack a swimsuit because why on earth would your canon let you have one--

Worry not!! There's a rack of swimsuits in every size you lot could need! The catch (or not): they're all sexy. Like. Barely there sexy. Impossibly adhering to you sexy. Shoelaces would maybe cover more sexy. Absolutely great to play Chicken Fight in sexy. You get the idea.

Anything having to do with being able to write is still also Not Present.

Enjoy!!!

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[corporative]

[The pool’s put him in a good mood, it would seem. Rufus isn’t shy about sporting nothing more than a pair of white swim trunks, having situated himself in the hot tub with a drink in-hand. He leans back and closes his eyes.]

I spent so long in Junon that I forgot what an actual beach getaway would be like.

[Junon, the once little fishing town turned military installation. It’s no Costa del Sol. Rufus chuckles.]

Not that this is exactly beachside, but the effort counts, right?

[Or later, in the pool properly, wielding a single pool noodle:]

My perfect match would be able to fend for themselves. So en garde.

[He’s hitting you. With a pool noodle. The Shinra bloodline is a respectable one, indeed.]

pool

[aldaft]

[Cyrus has opted to dip into the pool with his usual shirt and breeches, because everything else is far too revealing. Taken by surprise, he jerks mildly when the pool noodle makes contact with his arm.]

Beg pardon, Rufus, but are you trying to challenge me to a duel?

[corporative]

[Rufus looks zero percent ashamed, and one-hundred percent smug. He withdraws his pool noodle to rest on his shoulder for now.]

I am. Come on — you’re not just all intellect are you, Cyrus? Show me there’s a little bit of brawn, too.

[aldaft]

[He is, and Cyrus is not ashamed to admit it as he straightens.]

I am a scholar, if you recall. While I've wielded my share of weapons in the past, my proficiency lies in my spells.

[corporative]

[He just looks amused, gesturing at the other man.]

All right, so you’re a magic-user. I don’t see how that negates a duel.

[A POOL DUEL.]

So a guy comes up to you and strikes you with a pool noodle. Your pride is under attack, you have to retaliate. What do you do?

[He swings again with said pool noodle, attempting to strike the top of Cyrus’ head. It’s all fun and games, but Rufus doesn’t mind stirring the pot just a little to get a reaction.]

[aldaft]

[Pool noodle. Pool noodle.

Cyrus lifts his hand. The pool noodle bounces off his head and palm both.]

Well, if I must . . .

[Lowering his hand to chest level, he murmurs softly to himself. A spike of ice shoots out from the floor of the pool, missing Rufus and aiming to pierce the pool noodle with its fine point.]

. . . the safest course of action would be to disarm my opponent.

[corporative]

[The reaction time’s impressive on its own, but when the spear of ice comes flying and practically spears the pool noodle, the momentum flings it upward and it goes wheeling away. It lands harmlessly by the poolside.

Surprised, Rufus actually looks it for a moment — then laughs a little.]

See? I knew you had it in you. [In fact:] It’s almost like someone’s tried to hit you with something a little more worrisome than a pool noodle before.

[aldaft]

[Cyrus smiles as he lowers his hand to his side in the water.]

Oh, they have. Not long ago, I was on a journey where I encountered many a monster and adversary. Were it not for my companions, I surely would've died before I could complete my task.

[corporative]

[Rufus will have to go fetch his pool noodle soon to assail a few others, his own little test of their might — and just because he can. But that’s put aside mentally for now.]

Oh? What kind of task were you on? [He holds up a hand, interrupting his own request for information.] Wait, let me guess. Something about expanding your knowledge?

pool noodle;

[darkinstructor]

[ Most of Adrestria (even before the war) has quite a number of territories that seem to border the water. This includes Hrym territory, so even if Jeritza scowls at the revealing swimsuit wear, he does dress down a little.

Currently, he is in just pants, though he has had them rolled up so that he can stick his feet and legs into the water.

...Then, he gets hit with a pool noodle. It isn't like it's impossible from where he's sitting. ]

Hmm? What a way to entice someone into a fight. Very well, I can't be held responsible for any injury that may result.

[ Jeritza will snag another pool noodle nearby with ease before leaping into the water, and striking at Rufus with gusto. ]

[corporative]

[What can he say? The man’s an easy target, and Rufus hasn’t forgotten his conversation with him prior; about power, about wielding that power with efficacy.

Well, consider this a little test, harmless and in pool noodle form. And he finds that the man’s assault is very much full of gusto, Rufus having to hold up a forearm to block the torrent of polyethylene attacks.

He scoffs! Amongst the splashing!]

All right, then—

[He’s just going to grab Jeritza’s “weapon” as it strikes again, and yank it forward with all he’s got.]

[darkinstructor]

[ Two adult men splashing around with pool noodles in a pool. What has the world come to?? ]

Oh? Trying to disarm me, are you?

Not many have dared to try and the few that have do not live to tell the tale.

[ He is an unstoppable force in battle. He makes people shiver in terror when he appears on horeseback, swinging a weapon of unforgiving death and dealing bloodshed on the battlefield.

He holds on tight when Rufus attempts to pull it from his hand. But with his other hand, Jeritza splashes water straight towards his face. Apparently he is not afraid to play dirty! How will Rufus handle it? ]

[corporative]

[The splash connects, hitting him right in the face, wetting his bangs and making them stick to his temples. He actually laughs at that, nigh disbelieving, but a part of him is not at all surprised.]

"A few" means some have.

[Rufus backs up, letting lose of Jeritza's pool noodle, but he retaliates with a very wide sweep of his arm, one of those big splashes incoming.]

Have lost a battle before, Jeritza?

[darkinstructor]

[ Hah, out of all things he did not quite expect to make Rufus laugh. But Jeritza doesn't think it a bad thing at all, a brief smile on his face that lasts as short as it comes. ]

Hmph!

[ He gets splashed in return indeed, but he strikes forward and relentlessly with his pool noodle soon after. ]

I may be a force to reckon with in battle, but I am not invincible—however, I cannot remember the last time I have lost in recent memory. What about yourself, Rufus? Do you think it also means that you have a chance at victory against me?

[corporative]

[The pool noodle hits again, and Rufus backs up with just enough distance to guarantee he's out of range. Jeritiza will have to make the next move, and he'll be ready to counter with a splash.]

Last battle I had was on a rooftop. It was about as dramatic as you'd imagine. [Thanks for that, Cloud.] But seeing as you're not invincible, that means there's even a small chance of victory in my favor. I'm not much of a gambling man, but I'll take those odds.

[darkinstructor]

A rooftop battle? I can only wonder about the circumstances behind those...

[ With a description of an event like that, it is probably hardly surprising Jeritza does not bother hiding his curiosity. ]

...At the very least you have given yourself a stronger attempt than most might.

[ And Jeritza advances, unafraid of the consequences! Even if that be a countered splash lying in wait. ]

[corporative]

[He splashes as he approaches, but he'll sate that curiosity a little. Jeritza's earned it at this point.]

A few... trespassers had broken into my company. I just happened to catch them on the roof on my way in from another city.

[Maybe he needs a water gun, he considers idly; now that'd be interesting.]

They came at me with a sword just as big as him. And me? I just had my guns, and my dog. But you would've enjoyed seeing it.

Pool Noodle

[renanssanceman]

[ Do you know what a pool noodle is not like. ]

[ It is not like a proper staff whatsoever. ]

[ That does not in the least stop Dohalim from treating it as such, attempting to whirl the bright green tube in a parry that is far too floppy looking to be any sort of respectable. ]

[ We're all grown men in this house. ]

Very well, but I shall accept only your full efforts.

[corporative]

[Oh... well. Rufus can't decide if that's humorous or a touch impressive, but it's very mesmerizing in its own way.]

You know your way around a pool noodle.

[He's employing his usual tinge of sarcasm, but it seems warranted in this case. Rufus may be in over his head, but he's never backed down from a challenge. The last man who swung a weapon at him did so with an actual weapon, an oversized sword nearly as big as him -- he isn't so much as fazed by a whirling pool toy.]

I wouldn't say this is my weapon of choice, but I'd hate to disappoint by putting in only half the effort.

[And so, he steps forward about as fast as anyone can in a pool, and swings again.]

[renanssanceman]

It is familiar in a few ways, admittedly. But I shall put in my best efforts to make this a fight worth having.

[ Long and stick-ish shaped are pretty much the only familiarity to it, everything else about the toy completely foreign to Dohalim, but this is a time of boasting to keep up the playful tension, so he'll go with that answer. ]

[ And he'll do his best to... do his best, in spite of all the unfamiliar and hindering conditions, attempting a parry on that swing that, were they not playing with foam toys at the moment, would absolutely have skimmed the skin off the back of his fingers. While normally he would have gone for the dodge, the water makes it difficult to do his usual movements and instead he has to fight in a much more offensive way than he's used to. Which means swinging around the toy after a parry to try for a side swipe at Rufus' shoulder. ]

[corporative]

[Not his first time fighting or sparring against someone who prefers the close-range combat of "melee" weapons. Rufus knows what to look for, what to avoid, and he's usually fast on his feet when not bogged down by the weight of water all around him.

But, well. He's no fighter technically, and he is in the pool, so Dohalim's sideswipe hits with a wet slap, stinging only slightly.]

Tch.

[Rufus, then, simply splashes at the man, following up with an attempted bop on the head with the noodle.]

Not your first fight, then?

[renanssanceman]

My first partially submerged in water like this, and using this particular kind of toy as a weapon, but otherwise you're correct.

[ He was perhaps more used to combat than most, given how Lords were originally determined in his homeworld, but that is neither here nor now. At the moment, the only concern of Dohalim's is raising an arm to block the incoming wave of water, which leaves him vulnerable to the bonk on his head that leaves only some of his pride wounded without his normal dodging abilities due to water drag. ]

... It would seem I cannot afford to allow myself to be distracted for even a moment.

[corporative]

[Rufus is satisfied he managed that much. A cartoon-esque battle only ensures that a man's pride is bruised more than their body -- and that's nearly as fun.]

Oh, are you saying I'm distracting? How flattering of you.

[renanssanceman]

[ He gives a low chuckle at the words, hardly able to deny them, nor is there any particular desire to. ]

It would seem so. Perhaps I should take the rest of this fight with my eyes closed to better concentrate, but then again your voice is just as problematic.

[ Even as he slips those unsubtle flirts into his words, he's trying for another swipe of his noodle at Rufus. ]

[corporative]

[He swipes his own noodle, clashing them together. Instead of ringing out proudly like steel, they simply thump together with a thud.]

Close your eyes and you just don't know what I'd do. You sure you want to take that chance? Even if it might even the odds... just a little.