Forging the path

It really looked like Rosemary knew her good share of the methods meant to honor the spirits. Estelle wasn’t particularly spiritual, she wasn’t a believer at all, but she found some peace in properly adapting to some of the traditions of the place that was her home at that time. Japanese folklore seemed interesting enough for her and those small things she could do to fit in weren’t a bother at all. In any case, Rosemary had very insightful knowledge on all the offerings and how to properly make the offerings and pay respects, so the Swiss decided not to make a fool of herself and let her partner show her what to do and when. It was flagrant obvious how limited her knowledge of the topic was, and she could only thank Rosemary for guiding her without any judgement.

Making an offering of good luck reassured Estelle: she wanted more than luck that day, and that was why someone who wasn’t into spiritual stuff like her took some of her time to clap her hands, give a quiet prayer and then bow in front of the spirit that, who knows, might have guided her through the woods to that very spot. Both women spent some time honoring tradition, making the offerings and saying some prayer in respect in the best way possible despite of Rosemary’s doubts. “You say that but you really know how to do this. You should trust your skills more.”, she said when the British openly expressed her doubts about her knowledge.

When all the respects were paid, both women turned her backs on the shrine. It was only natural because that way they would be able to enjoy one of the most impressive views any person could have. That viewpoint offered a beautiful scene of all the city of Tokyo while also showing the majesty of Mt. Fuji. For some minutes it just felt right to remain there, it was as if they also had to pay respect to that wonderful view and that tall and old mountain. But for Estelle the best part out of all that day was knowing that Rosemary was happy with all the hike and her company. “I’m glad you like it. I don’t know what to do if you ended up here and disliked all this...”, she talked honestly. “Buuuuuuut the day isn’t over yet and I have some more surprises for you… Let us start by walking down that path for fifteen more minutes.”, the playful tone had returned to her as she spoke while signaling a small path downwards. They would start their descent while also getting closer to their next stop.


It didn’t take them much time to reach their secret destination. Resting as if it was its rightful place was a small but cozy looking inn. Estelle looked really excited to arrive, even more than in the top of the mountain. “Okay, here is our destination and my surprise to you: I made some reservations in one of the most difficult to find inns in all of Japan. We can have the complete course: onsen, tea ceremony and some snack. So what do you say? May I tempt you?”, Estelle said with a sultry smile. That was her wild card, and she really hoped it worked.

"Heh… I just happened to have a knowledgeable teacher." Rosemary admitted with a nervous chuckle, thinking back to one of her early visits to a Shinto shrine in Tokyo. At the time she was wholly unaware of the intricacies of prayer at one of these shrines, just a simple tourist. It had been a rather agitated older gentleman who had scolded her for not honoring the kami correctly with her "sloppy bow" and lack of respect. He had more or less talked her ear off about the proper etiquette for far longer than she had intended to stay there but she had gotten a decent lesson in culture from the exchange. Afterward, she did her own research and found the method she taught Estelle here was the usual means of prayer when one wasn't honoring a particular kami… who would have their own order of bows and claps. It was all very complicated, but not enough she couldn't retain the basics at least. Hopefully, that old man could be proud of the form she displayed tonight.

"I think it would have worked out well enough, even without the view," Rosemary remarked quietly, thinking back on all the little stories and charming back and forth they had along the way. She hadn't always been this patient, but hitting walls in her life had hardened her up and made her value the climb to get over those obstacles rather than just focusing on the destination. Once she had learned to accept that, her life had been filled with so much more clarity, it was a freeing mentality to embrace. The brunette perked slightly at the mention of their being more. She had assumed from here they would make another trek back down the hiking trail, perhaps along another quicker path to reach the station again… but fifteen minutes wasn't nearly enough time to cover all that ground. Rather than question it, she decided to bottle up her curiosity and let Estelle lead her to this supposed surprise.

The faint mist of steam filtered up past the trees the closer the two got, but Rosemary seemed unaware of what it meant. Her brow furrowed in a look of cute intensity as her brain tried to make sense of what it could mean. Then the man-made wooden structure came into view, more and more revealing itself as they moved along the path. It's beautiful." She admitted out loud taking in the sight of the lush greenery and the dark stained woodwork. Nestled up here in seclusion with only the sounds of nature around them, this was a far cry different than the onsens in the city she had seen advertised.

A place to rest sounded nice, tea sounded even better. She admittedly only given giving Estelle half her attention until she heard the tone of her voice. Rosemary straightened up a bit, turning to look Estelle's way. This hadn't been the first time this woman had spoken to her like that and she hoped it wasn't the last… as nervous as it made her, it was so inviting she couldn't help but want to follow whatever was being said. The meaning behind the words hadn't been entirely lost on her like earlier flirtation though, leaving her cheeks a bright red and lips parted slightly as she seemed unable to respond. After a long moment of being unable to speak, she instead just gave a slow nod in agreement along with a simple "S-sure!" That lacked her normal elegant tone.

Estelle’s face lighted with enthusiasm when she noticed how Rosemary timidly broke her more formal way of speaking to show some more excited eagerness in how she agreed on staying for some time at the inn and onsen. It could be seen as something minor, but for Estelle to have a look at that side of Rosemary who couldn’t even think in maintaining appearances meant the world to her at that moment. “Okay, let’s go then!”, the Swiss said in a surprisingly excited tone while grabbing Rosemary by the arm and getting inside the inn.

The lodge couldn’t be more traditional-looking in the inside. All the interiors were made on thoroughly polished wood to the point it was almost brilliant. There were some mats on the reception area to alleviate the effect of their trekking boots on the floors as well. The place seemed welcoming and comfortable from the very reception, a very solid promise of a really pleasant afternoon. The only remainder of them being in the 21st century was a computer on the desk, but it was well-hidden behind some bamboo divider so it wouldn’t clash against the decoration. The place was managed by an old couple. They looked like they had been running that business for a long time, hiding from plain view in their hideout in the mountains.

The man behind the counter graciously greeted them, and that was when Estelle announced that she was the woman who made a reservation for two some days ago. At first Estelle tried talking in her very limited Japanese, but even if the man commended her efforts, in the end they had to switch to English, which the man pronounced with great proficiency for someone that old. The owner of the place checked them in and with a smile and invited them to get rid of their boots and get some slippers from a small shelf in front of them before entering the complex. “You must be weary after such a long hike, but nothing like our thermal waters to recover strength!”, said the man in an inviting and proud tone, signalling both women the way towards the thermal waters area. Much conveniently, he also commented how they were the only clients appointed for that day, such good luck.

The gentle man bid them farewell and wished them a really pleasant stay at the line where the private area started, pointing them in the general direction of the bath and the thermal pools. First of all both women needed to get rid of all the dust and dirt of the road. That meant both women would have to go inside the bathing rooms and get themselves clean, fully naked, in the same room. Estelle gulped. It was so ironic having a woman like her who had sex wrestling as a job cowering at the idea of being naked in front of Rosemary, but maybe that meant that the British was much more for her than any woman before. “So… how should we do this?”, she said while getting inside the lockers room and start sorting her backpack as she got some towels. “We turn our back on each other?” The question was honest, Estelle heavy blushing for the first time that day.

Rosemary couldn't quite place the feeling swelling up inside of her. There was a giddiness about the whole situation that made her feel as if she was back in high school all over again. There was no denying she had something of an infatuation with Estelle. She thought about her regularly and wanted to be around her in the spare moments she had. She was insightful, intelligent, beautiful and made her feel things she never really did about women, not since one had kissed her in the ring. It had flipped a switch inside her to the possibility of something like that being okay for her to venture into so she had taken a chance with the Swiss… now here they were. Someplace secluded on another… date? It was hard to tell by the other woman's tone just what she was after up here but Rosemary found it hard to refuse over her pounding heart screaming at her to give Estelle whatever she wanted.

Taken by the hand, she fumbled behind, still in a bit of a stupor. It was hard to believe this was happening still. This woman she was crushing on so hard actually liked her too. Her above...anyone else? They had never really talked about things like that, probably because it would have mortified the British girl to delve into something too intimate out of the blue. Face red with blush, she was smiling from ear to ear but nervous all the same. It was as if the two were doing something scandalous and at any moment, they could be caught. They weren't though, were they? Both women were adults, they could do whatever they wanted.

Aside from a small polite bow, she exchanged very little with the kind elderly man at the counter, instead softly giggling at some of Estelle's attempts at speaking Japanese and keeping her eyes averted. Part of her was a bit nervous about what the owner thought of the two of them showing up here, even if reservations had been made. She found herself nibbling on her lower lip and swaying from heel to toe on her sneakers, just trying to keep herself busy while looking over the room with the other two conducting their business. When they were done, she would give him another polite bow and a small mousey thank you murmured under her breath.

She followed along with a bit more spring in her step as they reached the locker room, small and quaint like the lobby, not really built for a large gathering of people. Out of habit, she moved to one of the wooden lockers, finding a small bamboo key card slipped inside that allowed it to on to anyone. Without thinking she unslung her back, setting it inside. She hadn't realized what this all meant until Estelle spoke up. A curious look from Rosemary at the initial question as the British girl glanced around. There were some small simple showers on the far wall in a communal area. No curtains. No diviners. No privacy. It didn't strike her as that odd, after all, she had been wrestling for most of her youth in varying promotions, things like this weren't uncommon… but the context here was a bit different and that dawned on her as Estelle continued.

Looking back to Estelle and finding her flushed red cheeks made Rosemary turn red as well. Her eyes drifted off to the corner of the room as she started to speak, but words caught in her throat and made her pause. With a soft cough she continued, cautiously, trying to sound as mature as possible. "I can take the one on the far right and you van have the left, and we can just… keep our backs to one another." More or less putting more words to Estelle's own suggestion. While it was true they could just take turns and wait for one another to be finished, she was unaware of the arrangements of their stay. They might have a limited amount of time here, so she didn't question what was put forth in front of her.

Rosemary stepped up to Estelle, gently attempting to take one of the towels she had fetched, presumably for the two of them. Finding the courage to meet the other girl's eyes, she smiled and spoke softly despite them being alone. "I won't peek, promise." The Sky Captain gave her word, something she strived to always keep. It felt strange to see Estelle so flustered. The woman was normally so confident and cool… the red on her cheeks looked so cute she couldn't help but admire it.

All that situation had some surreal angle to itself. There were two grown-up women acting all flustered like they were some high-school teenagers, getting blushy and butterfies on their stomach the moment their hands grazed. Each singular situation they had in which they could have achieved some intimacy got spoiled when one or the two of them froze in place unable to act like a proper adult. And yet there was some fun to it. None of the women were making anyone else participant on that weird exchange, so keeping their dates in private spaces and fooling around like scared lovebirds hurt no one so it was fine.

Right at the moment they were in one of those almost puerile situations. Estelle had realized that they would need to get in the showers and that meant getting naked in front of each other. That looked like a level of intimacy they didn’t share for the moment or at least they were so flustered about it to be able to make it, which was comically ironic since Estelle’s job implied her getting naked not only in front of a total stranger of a rival but in front of thousands of people acting as crowd. But that time, the thought of getting exposed like that in front of Rosemary was too much for her to handle, and that could be a pretty good clue of what she could be feeling towards the woman.

In the end, both women reached some kind of contract: each one of them would go to one side of the room and get over with the shower so they could move on and get to the thermal pools. “Okay, I promise not to peek either.”, she said when Rosemary got the towel she was offering her. “Back against back it is then!” The Swiss turned around and waited until she got a signal of Rosemary doing the same, and then started getting naked. Once she was ready she stepped on the shower in the corner of the room and turned it on. Fresh water coursed her sweaty body, which was in dire need of some cleaning after a full day of hiking. The showed made enough noise so she wasn’t capable of listening accross the room, so talking wasn’t an option there. Estelle settled for some humming until she was done with the shower.

Since she didn’t want to prolong that situation for much longer, Estelle finished her showering and wrapped herself in a towel. Without looking to the other corner of the room, she walked towards her locker and picked up her bikini. She knew that traditionally Japanese folk used the thermal waters in the nude, but in such a public environment like that she wasn’t willing to do so, she wasn’t even sure if that went against the rules of the place, so that was why she insisted on bringing her bikini and telling Rosemary to do so. As she heard the water coming out from Rosemary’s corner she got dry quickly and slipped inside her bikini, feeling protected by her thin clothing armor. With a cheerful hum she waited for Rosemary to join her.

Spoiler:

Rosemary gave a small affirmative nod at their verbal agreement to not spy on one another, a common curiosity given the situation. There was a faint thought though, in her mind, she wasn't sure if it was a worry or a bit of excitement at the idea Estelle might take a look. Part of her wanted to be offended by the idea of such a breach of trust between them but she could feel something down deeper that wanted that to happen, like the idea of this woman admiring her body. Delicately she took the towel, draping it over her forearm as she averted her gaze, somehow worried her slight daydream might somehow be seen by Estelle.

"Back to back." She repeated softly, drifting backward with small playful steps, watching Estelle the whole while the other woman remained dressed, having a bit of fun with this at the expense of looking silly. She carefully slipped out of her sneakers and kicked her legs back to tug off her socks, balling them up and tucking them in her shoes. "Alright." About face, she turned away from Estelle, taking in a deep breath. "We can… do the thing now." The brunette spoke up, perhaps with her voice raised a bit too high.

She was slow and hesitant, working her hair out of its ponytail, setting the scrunchie aside. From there, she carefully slipped off her top, letting her chest out to the open air of the locker room. It was quiet here, save for the soft sounds of fabric and shuffling. She could hear Estelle breathing, sighing… then the sudden sound of water as a shower was turned on. Rosemary was dawdling. Shimmying out of her bottoms, she folded both articles of clothing into a neat square and turned her shower on. The warm water felt good on her sore muscles, almost making her wish she was at home with a nice bath until she remembered a good soak was the whole point of the onsen. She turned her body into the spray of the water, closing her eyes as she rinsed her lithe form off. While she did turn towards Estelle once or twice, she had her eyes closed tight the whole time, only doing so to watch the water at a different angle. Her ears perked as the other show was turned off, the Swiss woman finishing before her.

She made sure to keep her back turned, just in case, spending extra time combing her fingers through her hair, fluffing it up a bit after being cramped up in a ponytail all day. Once she felt suitably clean, as much as a quick rinse could do at least, she turned the water off and blindly patted around until she found the towel. Patting her eyes first, she opened them up, wrapping the towel around her body as a simple covering, and secured it so it hung around her freely, obscuring her naked body. Rosemary crouched down to collect her things, listening for a moment.

"Are you decent?" She called out, loud enough her voice echoed off the walls, making her blush. She would wait before confirmation before turning, padding quietly towards her locker on wet tiptoes. She paused to take in the sight of Estelle with her back turned, still glistening a glow of water. She inched a bit closer…. Closer. "You aren't looking, right?" Rosemary asked with a knowing smirk, adjusting her towel to sit a bit tighter just in case the Swiss woman turned to face her. "You promised." She reminded, reaching out with a wiggling finger to give the other girl a gentle poke in the side. She would retreat to her locker before going any further, waiting to make sure Estelle kept her back turned.

When she was satisfied, Rosemary turned her back as well and retrieved her swimsuit. It had been a redesigned swimsuit from back in her Cutlass days when she was made to pose for some beach-related photoshoot, a cute little two-piece,  pink and white spotted with some frills. While it lacked her signature logo it boasted her style with a popped collar that looked right at home with her surcoat. It proved to be a tighter fit than she remembered, but it complemented her form nicely. Once she had dressed, Rosemary tucked her hiking clothes and sneakers in the locker and slipped the bamboo key out of the lock to take it with her along with the towel.  "All set."

Swimwear:

With more jitter than what she was willing to admit, Estelle got done with her shower and went back to the lockers, where she was tucking all her clothing and her boots. She took her time since she wanted to keep herself distracted from the fact that Rosemary was naked some meters behind her while taking her own shower. The Swiss took her time thoroughly getting her clothes in her backpack and then getting everything inside one of the bamboo lockers and getting her key. When she was finishing she could hear Rosemary asking her wether she was decent or not. “Oh I’m always decent hon...” she cackled a little at her own joke, more out of nervousness than anything else.

When she was approached by Rosemary, Estelle made her best effort to stay on her back, not facing that woman and respecting the deal they had struck. Despite that, Rosemary still had mischief inside her to not only make fun of her promise with some pouts, but also poke at Estelle’s side while she was facing backwards. After what it felt like an eternity, Rosemary gave her a signal and Estelle could turn at last. She was welcomed with a view that would leave her in awe. Rosemary had gone for a very unexpected piece of frilled bikini with some collar attached to it. Its colors and frills made it looks like something that highly contrasted with the woman’s composed demeanor and gave her a more playful look. “Wow...” For once Estelle was speechless, and that was why she just took Rosemary by the arm and led the way outside.

The inn was a pretty modest place, which contrasted with how the thermal pool had a scene out of some heavenly place. Steam filled the air with a warm temperature and the pool seemed inviting enough with several spots to take a seat. The best part of all was that both women had all the place to themselves as no one else was booked for that day according to the old man. “Well, what are we waiting for? Come on!” Estelle pulled from Rosemary’s arm in excitement as she started getting inside the pool. When she found a good spot for sitting she finally dipped inside, leaving her shoulders upwards but everything else below the surface. The warm water embraced her and her strained muscles were thankful for the soothing effect of the thermal waters. “Oooh my god this is incredible...”, Estelle sighed in pleasure as she sat comfortably, a little less aware of the small room she had left Rosemary, both of their bodies rubbing sometimes from how mindlessly Estelle had sread out, or was it voluntarily? "Such a good way to end our little escapade. Don't you think?"

Rosemary waited with a nervous smile when Estelle turned around, trying her best to stand normally. She wasn't generally one to flaunt her body, her workout attire was more or less the most skin people tended to see of her these days. So when she saw the swiss woman's face light up, she couldn't help but blush a bit. Her date was… Well, gorgeous no matter what she seemed to inhabit, be it a dress or their hiking gear, it was all equally stunning. So when she seemed to like what she saw, it was almost too much. Just as she was about to say something to break the awkward silence she found herself taken by the arm, practically dragged away froM the locker room. She couldn't help but give a small laugh at Estelle's sudden enthusiasm, it was infectious.

When the two reached the steaming pools, the hard here almost had a glow about it. A pleasant heat to compliment the encroaching late-day air. Estelle seemed to have no issues simply making herself at home, making Rosemary wonder how often she came to places like this. Without much hesitation herself, she followed after though and took her time settling into the water, slipping to sit near her date but not directly up against her. While the swiss woman spread herself out, Rosemary kept to a small personal box, hands in her lap below the water, nudged every so often by Estelle's hogging of the seating area. She didn't mind though, reclining back to sink up to her chin in the water, letting her bob just above the surface with a relaxed sigh. The waters felt good on the dull ache of her body after the long hike, she almost felt as though she could drift to sleep in her if she wanted to.

"I think you win the date wars… I like my noodle shop but this was a whole adventure." Rose remarked quietly. She felt a bump again beneath the water as Estelle shifted, glancing sidelong at her date with a quirked brow. She raised a hand to the surface of the water, flicking a finger to send a few water droplets at Estelle.

Estelle sighed letting the nice warm water to ease every little knot in her muscles, all the tension from the hike disappearing. The day had developed in curious and sometimes unexpected ways, with highs and low in excitement and sensual tension between those women, yet Estelle hadn’t found her place in there yet. It was as if every single time she wanted to make a move there was something that prevented her from doing that, either an environmental thing or hesitation coming from each one of them. The Swiss was resolved not to let that happen again.

That was the reason why Estelle was pressing forwards with her positioning, leaning towards Rosemary in a way that forced some slight contact in between them. The British woman looked a little apalled by this and that was why the Swiss still had some doubts. What if she was rejected in the middle of that? It would be a disastrous way of finishing the date, killing the mood and the single thought of that terrified Estelle, but at that point she had clear that Rosemary harbored some feelings towards her, maybe she just was afraid of showing it so Estelle would help her.

Slightly resting against Rosemary to force some contact out of her, Estelle hummed when the British commented on how superior this was to their previous date. "I thought date wars would last more than two dates... This was just date battle.", she said in a calm tone implying the existence of future dates between them. Then, unexpectedly, Rosemary flicked one of her fingers at her so some droplets of water got on her nose and brow. "Mischief!", she said in a playful chirp. Estelle's finger darted towards Rosemary and trapped it, then the rest digits came as reinforcements as she interlocked all her fingers with the British in a tender move, then she finally gathered her courage and looked at Rosemary in silence, finally closing her eyes and leaning in.

Estelle clenched to Rosemary's hand as her lips locked with the British's in a soft, tender kiss. The Swiss breathed deep in their kiss as she didn't want to let go, she just wanted that moment to last forever. Rosemary's lips were sweet and soft as a pillow, and Estelle took her time exploring them with her own and small pecks of her tongue. After what felt like a blissful eternity Estelle released the kiss and her eyes fluttered open, looking at Rosemary and letting her be the first one to speak or give a reaction, so happy but also nervous, a silli smile on her face.

Rosemary couldn't help but smile, a small giggle escaping her lips at Estelle's joke about the great date wars. If this trip was any indication, she was almost positive any form of competitive date night planning would probably end in a similar way to this. While thoughtful, The Sky Captain wasn't exactly the most well-versed woman in what made for a romantic day out on the town. It didn't bother her too much, but she might just leave most plans for dates to the Swiss woman from now on. She seemed to have more of a knack for it than she ever could. The question of if there would be more dates never crossed her mind, she could think of no reason to ever turn down another offer to be in the other brunette's company.

The call of mischief was met with another small flick of water, a silent challenge for Estelle to do something about it. She perhaps hadn't been ready to actually respond though when Estelle slipped closer and grasped her hand. She had already been laughing, about to say something when Estelle leaned in and brought their lips together. Her eyes went wide, blinking with surprise as her cheeks already rosy from the heat of the onsen darkened to a more prominent shade of red. Her eyelids fluttered as her tension from the surprise melted away until they finally shut fully leaving her to simply enjoy the moment, nudging closer to delicately kissing Estelle back, her inexperience showing in her timidness.

When Estelle finally drew back, Rosemary was still, lips parted slightly and eyes closed, letting out a soft pleasant sigh. There was silence for a long moment before Rosemary sheepishly opened her eyes to peek at the swiss woman as if trying to decide if the Swiss woman had meant to kiss her like that or if it had been some sort of mistake. Even now as both women spent an entire day together and now sat alone in the onsen, she had trouble believing someone as beautiful as Estelle would choose to spend time with her of all people. When she finally said something, the normally well-spoken British woman found herself just whispering. "You're a very good kisser…"

There were so many other things she could say. Romantic things. Compliment how radiant Estelle looks right now, how happy she was to be here with her, how tender their brief exchange had been but words failed her at the moment and came out as a silly little admission out of the mind of someone who had no real idea how to express these things out loud. The Sky Captain gave their entwined hands a light squeeze and subtle tug, inviting Estelle closer again, too modest a woman to just ask for another kiss or take one herself.