Duty First! But... It's Also Nice to Relax

Rin gave a slight chuckle as he entered the cab after her, the driver beginning their trip soon after he shut the door and put on his seat belt.

He wondered slightly if he should tell her a bit about his home before they arrived, though he couldn't really think of anything to say. To him it was just a normal home, then again he'd never really indulged himself much when it came to their well off financial state.

"Ruka and I are the only two that really live at home. After I moved back in we split the chores, she handles cooking while I handle cleaning." That wasn't really explaining the house, but it did give Aoi a little insight on him and Ruka, kinda...hardly.


Soon, they were in a less populated area, not as many people walking around and more houses rather than stores or apartment complexes. The cab came to a stop near a branching road, covered in shade by trees.

Thanking the driver, Rin paid their fee and stepped out of the cab, holding the door open for Aoi like he had before.

"It's just up this road." He informed Aoi with a small smile.

Aoi wasn't used to riding in a car, so when it started up she fell back against the seat. When the car turned a corner, she slid against Rin. When it turned again, she slid to the door. Aoi giggled uncontrollably as she kept moving, enjoying the ride so much. She spoke through her giggles though, or tried. "That sounds fun! I live at the barracks, its too hard for me to live elsewhere... I'm not very good at household chores. You and Ruka are so amazing!"

She stepped out of the cab, grinning like a silly person as she did. "I feel like a princess, getting doors held open and all Rin Rin. Where... is your house? All I see is a gate."

"My home is past the gate, a little ways up the road." He replied.

She'd mentioned living in the barracks before, and also something about squads, so he was curious about where she was from and how things worked there, but she was enjoying her time in the world of the living at the moment, he could ask her another time as this was, as he'd said before, her day.

Once Aoi was past the gate, he closed it back up and began walking, thankful for the shade of the trees as it felt nice to him.

It wasn't long before they were in front of the place he called home. Rin reached in his pocket and pulled out some keys as they approached the door to the luxurious looking house. It wasn't exactly a mansion, perhaps people could classify it as a mini one but really it was just home to Rin.

The long building had two floors, and stretched back a ways showing that just by looking there was plenty of room inside.

"Well, this is it." He said while unlocking the front door before opening it.

"Oh, that sounds really nice." She liked the idea of having a gate to keep others out, and Aoi followed Rin through it. The young woman didn't wait for him to close back up, she took off into the shade of the trees laughing. Still she came back after a few seconds, not quite running or even jogging. She sort of bounced on her feet before jumping and flipping in midair to land on a tree branch. It groaned under her weight and she dropped to her butt and slide backwards while her legs gripped the branch. Aoi hung upside down above Rin, making a goofy face.

"Hahahaha! This is so fun! Freeedom!"

She dropped to the ground with an almost silent landing, before getting up and jogging after Rin again. It was then she stopped to stare in shock as the sight of the house came into view. "Its so big and beautiful..." He was at the door unlocking so she went up and looked around nervously.

"Is it okay for someone like me to be in such a nice place?" She peeked around him though, her curiosity so strong she almost walked past him into his own house.

"Hmm, oh it's fine. It's just a house." Rin said with a slight chuckle as Aoi took in the building. "Feel free to look around, down here on the first floor is the lounging room, kitchen, bathroom, bar, and dining room mainly, there's other rooms as well like a guest room, a small library or reading room, and some for storage, one room has a pool table in it and darts and the like. Out back is the where the pool and hot tub are. Upstairs is where Ruka and my room's are, there's also bathrooms up there but they're connected to the bedrooms." Rin thought for a moment, trying to think if he was forgetting anything, "Ah, there's also a room upstairs that's like a lounging room but a bit comfier for watching movies and such."

There, that...seemed like that was it, the important stuff anyway. "I think that's everything..." He muttered, tapping his chin in thought but quickly shook the thoughts from his mind.

"Okay I wi-......" Aoi looked at Rin like he was an alien for several seconds as he listed off the rooms, her body slowly but surely starting to vibrate faster and faster and faster. SO MANY ROOMS SO LITTLE TIME. SHE WANTED TO SEE IT ALL.

So the girl did the only thing she could do. She took off around the house as full speed, loosing her shoes (though they did end up very carefully placed at the entrance somehow) and her snackies on a flat surface. Her bare feet still making no sound on the floors as she ran around the house like a whirlwind giggling and smiling. She saw all the rooms on the first floor in probably under a minute before the shine of the pool caught her eye from outside. She stopped suddenly, all her focus on it. "Oh... he said pool...Like a pool of water to be swam in."

Aoi stepped outside and started stripping, all her clothes coming off before she ran up, flipped head over heels before executing a perfect dive into the water. It was refreshingly cool and she surfaced, starting to swim on her back while smiling.

He was quite surprised at how fast she explored all the rooms, like she was crunched for time, which she likely was as far as he knew, it was then he saw her attention being turned towards the pool outside.

Before he had the chance to speak, Aoi had gone outside and the next thing he knew her clothes were coming off.

'!' Rin panicked for a short moment, diverting his gaze immediately before he heard the splash a moment later. 'Not good. Not good. Not good.' He said, red faced as he shuffled quickly to the nearest bathroom to grab a towel, being sure to use his hand as a blinder so he wouldn't see what was going on outside the glass doors.

Once he had the towel in hand he used his hand to cover his eyes entirely before walking outside.

"Ah, Aoi-san." Rin stuttered, "If, if you want to go swimming it's appropriate here in this world to wear a..um, swimsuit..." He explained, as he tried to find his way to one of the beach chairs seated near the pool to place the towel. "If...If you'd like I can get a shirt or something for you to swim in since I doubt anything Ruka has would fit you." He was sure Ruka wouldn't mind sharing a swimsuit had there not been...obvious figure differences between the two women.

Aoi was swimming along, diving and surfacing and in general being a humanoid dolphin. Her hair streamed out in a lovely dark color behind her as she swam near the bottom, holding her breath for a minute to see if she could. As she surfaced, Aoi only caught part of what Rin Rin was saying, so she swam near the edge near him and came out of the water partially. She held herself up with her arms near the crazy boy who was stumbling around with his eyes closed. Aoi had missed the swimsuit comment, and was utterly confused. "Well, she does have a larger chest... So yes I can't wear her things? But I don't understand why I have to have a shirt of hers or something? It'd just drag me down as I swim... See?"

Aoi pushed off the wall with her feet, flipping backwards and diving under like she was born to swim. "Whats wrong? You'll get hurt if you don't open your eyes Rin Rin, be careful."

Okay, the towel was safely on the chair, or at least he thought so anyway.

"Just...Uhm, people wear swimsuits or uhm, shirts, while swimming in this world because it's not exactly...appropriate to be without...ahh....clothes...uhm...ah..."

While trying to explain, Rin was also trying to venture himself back towards the door or at least near it, but now he was unsure which way was back and which was closer to the pool now that he'd had to move around to find the chair.

Aoi's warning sadly came a bit too late as Rin gave a startled yelp as his foot missed it's standing and he rather tried to put weight on the air right above the edge of the pool rather than the ground he'd been previously standing on.

Quickly he attempted to resurface after falling straight into the pool, but despite the shock his eyes stayed sealed shut. It was hard to stay surfaced thanks to his clothes and their weight easily played a role in making sure he kept sinking unless he fought back against the pull.

"Oh, I know others have those problems. But I really..." Aoi turned just in time to hear Rin's yelp and his fall into the water. She waited for him to surface but... from the movement under the water it seemed he couldn't! Aoi, calm on the outside even if her head was a kicked bees nest, dove to the bottom of the pool under Rin and braced her feet against it. Then, using her superior strength, pushed up and grabbed Rin in a bridal carry as she sped past him. She quickly surfaced, her push aimed to force her to the steps near one side. Aoi came out of the water holding Rin, before setting him down and quickly trying to get the soaking coat and scarf off of him and let him breath.

"Rin, its okay. I've got you!"

Rin coughed multiple times as he permanently resurfaced thanks to Aoi's assistance. He blinked several times, keeping his head down before wiping them and shutting them again, remembering Aoi's unclothed state at the last second.

"I'm fine, I'll be fine." He said, giving Aoi the okay as his coat and scarf came off.

As Rin reassured her of his okayness, Aoi's face grew grumpy and she pouted at him. Once the coat and scarf were off, Aoi dove forward and gave him a hug, burying her face in his neck as she held him close. "Don't do something so stupid again! Its just my body, its nothing worth almost getting hurt just to not see. Its not anything, you silly human!"

Her voice was muffled, but she didn't want to let go and hoped he heard her. Her instincts from years of fighting had kicked in, react first and breakdown later. Not that this was a breakdown. It was more a berating.

"Wha-!" Rin's body immediately went stiff at Aoi's embrace, and if possible his eyes clamped shut even tighter out of reflex while his face went red. 'She really...doesn't...get....doesn't...'

"Ahh...Uh...A-Aoi-san..." He stuttered, trying to get her to realize the situation that wasn't him nearly drowning, but he didn't know how to properly word it without sounding like a prude-ish dumb ass. "I...I uhm, left the towel over there...by one of the chairs for you to uhm....c-cover yourself with."

The last words came out faster than he'd intended, but hopefully she'd understand.

"I didn't even get a hug back. Hmph. And I was worried about you too." Aoi pulled away, her lips pressed together and her cheeks fluffed up from how miffed she was at this. She stood, turned on her heel and went to the towel. She wrapped it around her body and searched for her clothes... Which were laying under the soaking coat she had tossed away. She sighed, a long drawn out one before she spoke. "I have the towel on, but my clothes are soaking wet. Can I borrow some while I am here? Also I am covered, but its not like... Its not like its not just my body. Sheesh."

At the notice that she was covered, Rin finally opened his eyes. "I'm sorry it's just that...it wouldn't be appropriate of me to uhm...see you like that, whether it's your body or not. It would be impolite." He explained, hoping she'd understand as he brought himself to his feet.

He turned to her offering her an apologetic smile, "Again, sorry."

"As for clothes, yes I have some you can borrow." He added, picking up his scarf and coat. "Once we get into something drier I'll start on washing and drying your clothes for you if you'd like. You can relax in the upstairs lounging room since it's more comfier than the one downstairs or my room, whichever you'd prefer."

"Follow me, I'll show you to my room where we can get the clothes." She could wear one of his shirts or something, Rin felt it'd be easier than intruding into his sister's room for anything.

As she followed Rin inside, Aoi still grumped behind him with the towel wrapped around her body."I don't understand. Why wouldn't it be appropriate? Its not like... Well. I am not a person like that, my body is just a body and not in any way something that can be taken that way. Its... Not like that. Ummm... Its not desirable?"

Aoi grew frustrated as she tried to explain, hearing the sorry given but a little too grumpy to accept it. She would follow him upstairs, switching between thankful and grumpy. "Thank you for the help... But if you hadn't kept your eyes closed I wouldn't have this issue. Will your shirt fit Rin? What about underwear since you wish that too?"

She looked down at herself and then back to Rin. He was slender for a man, but she was somewhat small. A shirt of his would hang on her even with that, her hips chest and butt fitting her body nicely but also still on the smaller side of things.

"It's just...It would be rude of me regardless." Rin explained as they climbed the stairs to the second floor. "Ahh, don't say that about yourself, about not being desirable...You're plenty cute, I'm sure in the future you'll find someone that thinks you're plenty desirable." After a short pause, he realized that probably sounded...odd coming from him. "Ah um, well, sorry that sounded awkward, I apologize."

Did she just mention underwear? What...

"Ahh, I can lend you a shirt and some shorts, um, here." Rin said, stopping a door. "This is my room." He said, opening the door and heading inside, his feet moving straight to a walk in closet where he came out with a t-shirt and some shorts for Aoi. "Here, you can use these until your clothes are clean. Sorry if they're...not exactly to taste. If you prefer, my bathroom is through that door over there." He pointed towards a door on the right to the elegant, queen-sized bed, on the left being a simple bedside drawer for belongings. "I'll be right back, I'll change in the closet."

Having said that, Rin headed back into the closet and closed the door behind him, discarding his soaked clothes and replacing them with a simple black t-shirt and a pair of long black, cloth pants he normally slept in.

"Oh, so its some sort of weird honor code? I suppose I can understand that." She felt a bit better hearing that, the red head almost missed his next words. They were reassurance, but Aoi didn't ever need them.

Aoi was confused and tilted her head as they entered the upstairs, concentrating on conversation moreso than the surroundings. Besides, if she had seen the doors Aoi hadn't entered yet she might run off and do all the entering. "I... don't even understand why you would say that. There is no apology needed? Cute? Me?"

She shrugged, deciding to let it drop if he wanted to as well. Rin was confusing her and she didn't really understand what he was saying. Her eyes brightened at the room though, glancing from item to item and then to the bed and all the things as Rin brought back a t-shirt and some shorts. They looked comfy and she lifted them up to her cheek to feel. They were soft! Before responding to him, Aoi dropped the towel and put the shirt and short combo on as he turned around. The shorts were a tiny bit loose and the shirt hung on her with only a bit of a bump at the top to show her breasts. It felt so soft and wonderful and she turned to the bed, eyeing it with a bit of sneakiness.. "I'm ready, thank you these are perfect!

"It's not a problem." Rin said, a little louder than his usual manner so she'd hear him through the door before he turned the knob and walked out. "If you'd like you can stay in here or I can show you to the lounging room on this floor, it's mostly used for relaxing, watching movies or playing games while I wash your clothes."

"Lets go to the lounge, you seem uncomfy with situations that could be construed as intimate with any other person than me. Your bed looks so nice, I would rather not make you more upset than I have Rin-san." Aoi watched as Rin left the closet, smiling a bit.

"I think those suit you so much better than the other clothes. Lead the way please, and thank you for helping with my laundry... We could just hang them up to let them air out though."

He chose not to reply to her first comment, being unsure of how to explain to her more about why things that could be seen as intimate made him react the way he did.

"Oh, these are just what I normally sleep in, all of my outfits other than these have to be worked around my scarf since I can't just leave it at home." He explained, heading towards the door with a small basket containing his soaked clothes in tow so he could wash them after Aoi's.

Exiting the room, Rin led her further down the hall and to another door, "Here we are..." He stated upon opening the door, revealing a large room that, upon entering one would see a large, low stepping, thing that resembled a large mattress but had the feel of a comfy couch seat that was covered in pillows. A few folded blankets were off to the side for use. To the wall directly beside them, there was a lengthy spacial area for movie players and gaming counsels near the bottom of the wall while above was a large, flat screen television, which was used to watch channels, movies or games of the person's choosing.

"There's movies and games on that shelf over there if you'd like to watch one while your clothes are washed and dried." Rin explained, motioning towards a large, lengthy shelf with movies and games, organized neatly for easy access.

"Oh, that sounds annoying..." It was hard to imagine having to make sure your outfit matched one object all the time, but Aoi tried to so she could put herself in Rin's shoes. She was deep in that thought when he opened up the lounge room, making her gasp as she woke up from that and looking around. She ran past Rin, diving for the couch and landing on the pillows while laughing and stretching out. Seeing the blankets she pulled one to her and wrapped herself in it. It was easy to see she was extremely happy and excited, she had even forgotten her snackies downstairs in her fun.

"I am now Aoipillar. This shall be my nest!" She rolled around on the couch, before sticking one hand out of the cocoon to wave at Rin. "I shall be fine! Hurry back, you can join me! We can be caterpillars together, okay?"

Rin gave a slight laugh at her sudden burst of enthusiasm for the room as she wrapped herself up. "I'm glad you like it. Originally we weren't sure what to use this room for, it was bigger than other rooms and we didn't just want it to stay completely empty so we did this."

"Right, right, I"ll hurry back once I get them drying." He said, turning heel and exiting the room to head towards the laundry room, which was thankfully on this floor.

"Perfect use for it!" Aoi called to Rin as he left, popping her head out for a few seconds. "Shoo shoo!"

Waiting until she was sure he was gone, Aoi grinned a bit... too happily as she quickly gathered the pillows and blankets. While he was gone, she worked hard making a large blanket fort. Her curly hair was still a bit wet ad clung to her face, head and neck as she worked hard making it stable.

Whenever Rin came back he would see a fort but no sign of Aoi at all.

After some time, Rin set the clothes to dry, which would take some more time so he decided to head back to the lounging room. When he got back he was met with a newly built fort, which he was unable to suppress and amused smile at.

"I see you got to work while I was out." He said as he approached the blanket fort after having grabbed the remote control from the shelf before seating himself on a small area not taken up by the blanket fort, being careful not to disturb the structure.