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In the mountains where fog clouds their vision, the warmth calms, steam and hot water surrounds their pale body — The Abundance is taking a relaxing bath in a hot spring. Their mind wanders off to the other side of the world, where thoughts and dreams roam freely.
But of course, even when they're high in the skies, away from everyone, they cannot catch a break from the Aeon of Hunt, who’s after their throat and blood.
"Can't you see I'm busy?" The Abundance sharply sighs, hearing hoof footsteps approaching from behind. For once, they seem annoyed, which takes Lan by surprise. Then again… they had it coming. What were they expecting Yaoshi to be doing in mountains full of hot springs? Drinking water?
"I don't care." Lan huffs as they stare down at Yaoshi. The Abundance’s golden locks are gathered in a bun, revealing their shoulders, which have turned rosy red from the heat.
"Surely you don't have in mind to kill me while I'm bathing." Yaoshi glances back, making eye contact with the Hunt. And as soon as they finish that sentence, a smile forms on their face, and Lan knows what’s coming next...
Teasing. One of Yaoshi’s ways to get a reaction from Lan for pure fun. Lan has questioned themselves many times, whether Yaoshi has been secretly meeting up with Aha, because they do not remember the Abundance being this annoying.
“...Or perhaps you came for something else?” Yaoshi tilts their head to the side, their tone suddenly being playful.
"Do not drag me into your ridiculous ideas." Lan sighs.
"Hehe, embarrassed?"
"No."
"You're turning red, I can see under your mask."
"Stop it," Lan looks away to hide their face. Yaoshi simply giggles and turns around to face them, their head resting on their arms.
"It's just hot here." Lan says, which isn't a complete lie. The steam coming from the hot springs is making the Hunt sweat under their heavy armor.
"I believe I can help with that." Yaoshi playfully hums, their eyes suddenly fill with, what Lan assumes, lust. These jokes… they’re either a good sign or bad sign, no inbetween. Though Lan is curious — how the heck does Yaoshi want to help them? Is Fuli going to pop up from behind the mountains to cool them down with ice or what?
“Really?” Lan crosses their arms, despite knowing what Yaoshi is implying.
“...”
“...”
“...No,”
What were they even expecting. Of course they can’t! Not with their temperature at least.
“But you could join me,” Yaoshi sinks deeper into the water, until it reaches their chin. “You’re always roaming around the universe — why not take a break?”
At first, Lan hesitates. Their enemy can’t be trusted, or that’s what they’ve always told themselves, only to end up staying by their side, doing typical ‘enemies and lovers’ things. Further details don’t need to be mentioned. But a relaxing bath does sound nice, it could help them get rid of those dark eye bags that aren’t even visible through their mask, yet Nanook still somehow saw them, pointed them out and compared Lan to a sloth. What happened after… we don’t talk about it.
After a while, Lan makes up their mind and begins stripping off their armor.
“Come here,” The Hunt leans in close and Yaoshi gathers their hair in a bun. For someone so bloodthirsty, they’ve got beautiful hair. The colors fading with each other and the shiny glitter, it looks gorgeous. Too bad Lan doesn't use their time to take care of themselves. Their hair would look even more magical.
When Lan makes themselves comfortable in the water, there are no exchanges of words, just the sounds of waterfalls from nearby. It feels odd, but not entirely awkward, it’s just unusual for them to be in the same room (or place) without saying a word or Lan going berserk. Always fighting, arguing, or Yaoshi teasing — but this time, we just have two Aeons, chilling in a hot spring, five feet apart, cause they’re–
“When was the last time you slept?” The Abundance notices Lan’s heavy eye bags. Lan shrugs, not being the one to care about time or count of something. Yaoshi scoots closer and Lan watches their movements closely, being wary of the Aeon. Pale hands slowly reach to their face, and Lan closes their eyes, in case Yaoshi wants to poke them out with their long nails.
Yaoshi’s thumbs press against Lan’s dark circles under the eyes, gently massaging them. There’s a weird, tingly feeling — Lan assumes it’s Yaoshi’s magic. They relax themselves against the touch, as Yaoshi begins to hum a song. The sensation, the angelic vocals echoing through the mountains — it's making Lan feel sleepy. The last time they had proper rest was decades, maybe even centuries ago. There was a time when Lan was about to fall asleep, but of course, Yaoshi decided to accompany them and… well, their visit was at least worth it, but Lan is still pissed about not getting their sleep.
“—an, Lan,” A voice calls out their name. Yaoshi giggles as Lan rubs their eyes, struggling to keep them open. “Don’t fall asleep on me yet.”
But Lan rests their head on Yaoshi’s shoulder anyway. The Abundance smells of flowers, the pleasant scent fills Lan’s nostrils. They wouldn’t mind staying like this and falling asleep on the spot, though, the current location isn’t very ideal. Not that the warm water would cause them skin problems, it doesn’t affect Aeons, there are just better spots for this.
But despite that, Lan closes their eyes, their mind drifting to the unknown. And when they wake up, they feel grass tickling their legs and their head laying on something soft. Yaoshi is humming a different melody, as their hand runs through Lan’s hair. The Hunt slowly opens their eyes and reaches out to feel their pillow, which turns out to be Yaoshi’s thighs. The Abundance has somehow pulled Lan out of the hot springs, dried and took care of them, brought them to a forest, and laid them on their lap. Lan doesn’t bother questioning how strong Yaoshi might be, that they managed to carry the centaur’s body all the way from high mountains — they’re just happy their eyes haven’t been gouged out (the possibility of that, however, isn’t low or zero).
“Yaoshi,” Lan softly murmurs, still being sleepy. They hold out their arm to caress the Abundance’s cheek. Yaoshi smiles, their head leans into Lan’s touch. The soft and silky fabric hanging on Yaoshi’s antlers, which have once been used to slap Lan in the face, lightly brushes against the Hunt’s hand.
“...You’re breath-taking,” Lan exhales, admiring the Abundance’s beauty.
“And you still look like a sloth.” Yaoshi makes a joke that has already been heard once.
Lan immediately sits up, almost hitting Yaoshi’s chin. They look at the Abundance with a very offended expression, and it takes all strength for Yaoshi not to burst out laughing. Without saying anything, Lan picks up their mask sitting next to the Abundance’s legs, stands up and leaves. Yaoshi watches as the Hunt disappears off into the distance, somewhat regretting for saying whatever they said, but also feeling proud of themselves. That face was definitely worth it.
Next time, when they make another intentional visit, they will prepare a different surprise.
——✮——
“Er… Nanook?” Nous passes by, noticing something… rather concerning about the Aeon of Destruction.
“Yes?” Nanook looks up from their newspapers.
“There’s an arrow stabbed in your chest.”
“I’m aware.”
“...”
“...”
“...Are you not going to remove it?”
“I would, but it won’t come off easily.” Nanook sighs, flipping onto the next page. “This arrow was specifically made to break when you try to pull it out, so the arrowhead would still be stuck in my body.”
“Should I call for help?” Nous stares at the arrow, noticing it is actually very deep inside of Nanook’s golden cut and growing even more worried.
“No need, Lan should be here by any minute.”
“Lan? Why not Yaoshi?”
“...”
“What did you two do this time.”