731/All washed up

All washed up
Date of Scene:	08 November 2023
Location:	Sports Pavilion
Synopsis:	Hinoiri nearly drowns, apparently it's dangerous to swim alone. Who knew? Fortunately, there's someone there to save her. Another classmate. With the help of Michiru, can Hinoiri not make a fool of herself? Or at least not die when she goes into the water? YES!
Cast of Characters:	Hinoiri Kirara, Michiru Kaiou

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Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara was amazing... if you asked her. After all, she rode a motorcycle, wore a leather jacket, missed school sometimes and still got really good grades, obviously came from somewhere foreign. Yup. Totally cool. If you asked her.

It was because of this 'coolness' that she was doing something that was... frankly... rather stupid. She.... didn't know how to swim as a human. She'd managed to avoid classes up til now due to some luck and other things, but she knew she needed to eventually learn.

But if she tried to learn in front of people, then everyone would know she was an idiot who couldn't even swim and... and that idea filled her with dread. The thoughts of them pointing and laughing and...

Seriously, how hard could swimming be? The monkeys were WAY lighter and their limbs worked better for such things, so...

And, all in all, she'd done it carefully. She'd gotten a lot of water up her nose, which hurt. But while she was doing it after hours, she was also sticking to the areas that weren't over her head. She could walk, so it was safe, right? Besides, she had this. She definitely had this.

Until she'd gone just a bit out, her wild, feeble flailing splashing a lot... but ummm... the fact she kept bobbing under and up again and was being drawn by her panicked flailing to deeper water was a uhhhh... clear sign that something was *wrong.*

Michiru Kaiou has posed:
Michiru Kaiou swims every day. Usually she's at the pool early in the morning, before classes, but today she slept in. She hasn't been sleeping well. Truth be told, she never sleeps well. Today she just decided to get the extra sleep and snoozed her alarm, shifting everything around to swim after classes.

It's a good thing, too, because as she steps out of the locker room, her hair up under a swim cap, and her goggles in hand, she sees Hinoiri flailing in the water that's just slightly too deep. She tosses her goggles aside and steps right to the edge of the water, doing a perfect dive into the water, jetting underneath the surface all the way over to where Hinoiri is struggling.

She emerges from the water just behind Hinoiri. Without saying a word, her arms come up under Hinoiri's armpits and hook up and she kicks powerfully, trying to drag the flailing firecracker back to shallower water where her feet can touch the ground.

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara was flailing for a few seconds after she was grabbed, until... she realized someone had her. She then went still. Once they were in shallower water she pulled away, coughing and hacking.

She then pulled back, turning and glaring at her. "I can swim!" she snapped viciously. For a moment, she looked angry... then... it faded. And she wrapped her arms around her stomach.

"... Just... not well..." she muttered, looking ashamed now before sighing. "Thanks. For... that. Sorry I... yelled..." she muttered, befoure coughing a few more drops of water out. Ow. That... that hurt. A lot. And for a few seconds she really thought she was going to...

It didn't matter what she thought. She almost had. And the other girl had saved her. And she'd, in turn, lashed out at her. "Damn it..." she muttered.

Michiru Kaiou has posed:
The outburst is met with continued silence. It isn't until Michiru is sure that this girl is done muttering that she says anything. When she speaks, it's very polite sounding, and she has the slightest smile. "It's okay. Nobody is ever in their right mind after nearly drowning."

The way she says that, it's just so matter-of-fact. She doesn't call into question how well Hinoiri can swim while still stating the obvious facts.

"I'm Michiru Kaiou, Grade 10, and in the swimming club," she says, and then she looks at Hinoiri for a moment. Her day is already off script, why not take it further? "Would you like a lesson?"

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara hmped. "I don't need your pity!" she snapped. Then cringed. "Sorry. I just... it's..." She shook her head. "Hinoiri Kirara. Grade 9. We didn't really... have... swimming at my last school. And... it's... kind of a touchy subject," she muttered, her face red.

"... Can you just... not... tell anyone about this? Okay? I can come back after you're done. You're part of the club so you probably have a routine you need to finish anyway."

... Was she seriously considering coming back, again, alone, after almost drowning? There were definitely things wrong with her. On the other hand, she apparently wasn't the smartest when it came to that.

Michiru Kaiou has posed:
Michiru Kaiou arches her eyebrows just a little and then shrugs. "Of course. Nothing happened, Kirara-san. Just two girls swimming in the pool," she says with an easy sort of smile.

She pushes off the floor to swim back to the end of the pool where she entered from. When she reaches the edge, she calls out. "I was just going to swim laps, so you don't need to leave. I'll just stick to my lane over here. Safer for both of us if we're not alone," she explains.

She pushes up out of the water and walks over to retrieve her goggles, then walks over to the first lane next to the open swim area. It'll be easiest to go help Hinoiri if she's swimming her laps there, after all, and she sits down at the edge of the pool to adjust her goggles.

"Why are you swimming alone, anyway?"

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara nodded. Well, at least the other girl was... okay with not telling anyone about her screw up. So long as that was the basis, she was cool with it. Within a few moments she was... trying... to swim again. And if the other girl wasn't going to tell anyone...

And it was obvious she had no idea what she was doing. She was.... trying to doggy paddle. Possibly? But it was the most awkward, weird doggy paddle ever. And she was almost working, but obviously uncomfortable with it and expending way, way more energy than she needed to.

When questioned, though, she stopped and stood up again. "I'm not very good at it yet," Hinoiri said. "Like I said, we didn't really do swimming back home. So it's not something I ever really learned. And I know I'm pretty old to be learning it now, so I didn't... I just don't want anyone to know, okay? It's bad enough I can't do it yet, without everyone else realizing how pathetic I am." ... Over an inability to swim. "I should have figured this out weeks ago."

Michiru Kaiou has posed:
"Being bad at something is the first step toward being good at it," Michiru says, her head held high as she sits on the edge of the pool. It's clearly a mantra she's repeated many times before. She hates being bad at anything.

She slips her goggles on, and then slips back down into the water, kicking off the wall and streamlining nearly a third of the distance across the pool. Her smooth freestyle strokes look like the epitome of grace in the water. Every movement of her body essential. No effort wasted as she glides along the surface.

She reaches the shallow end of her lane and then rights herself. "There's a lot more to swimming than you'd think, Kirara-san, especially if you come from somewhere it's not commonly done. There's no shame in taking instruction."

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara gave a soft sigh. Being good at something is about being good at it. "Maybe that's how it works where you're from, but..." She then lifted a hand to her head, shaking it. She was getting a headache. Worse... the girl was right. She wasn't home. What did it matter if she couldn't swim? She didn't need to be here. And if nobody else saw...

"... Okay. Maybe... you're right," she mumbled softly. "Would... you help me... figure this out? It's not home, I don't need to be perfect on my first try. Just... don't... mention it to anyone, okay? I... just... I'm not stupid. I don't want to get a reputation for this."

Oh, if only she understood just how good Michiru was. She might feel as silly as she had that time she challenged Haruka to a dirt bike race.

Michiru Kaiou has posed:
If Michiru has any thoughts at all about how Hinoiri conducts herself, well she stays quiet about them and doesn't let on at all. She's all polite smiles as she talks. "Don't want to get a reputation for what? Learning?" She laughs lightly. "Certainly can't have students at the school learning."

She lifts her goggles up to rest on her forehead, and then says, "Okay, so the first thing you need to learn is how to be comfortable in the water. Can you float on your back like this?" She pushes off and arches her middle up just a little until she's looking at Hinoiri upside down.

"Did you see how I do that? Now you try. Roll your shoulders back so that your middle is a little higher on the water."

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara answered almost instantly. "Failing." It was pretty clear by just how quickly she said that how big a deal she saw it as. And frankly how ridiculous she was being about it. Here Michiru was offering her help and she was being a childish brat about it.

"So... uhhh... f-float on my back? That's... that's a thing?" she asked. Of course it was a thing. She imagined doing it as a unicorn and that was a mental thought she didn't like at all.

"Can... can you show me again?" she asked, obviously nervous. But, after that, there was no more delaying. No more avoiding it. She gave the softest little whimper before taking a deep breath, holding her breath and, slowly, leaning back.

She failed.

She came up a moment later, sputtering water everywhere, before getting her bearings again. "I-I got it!" she said quickly, face burning with shame. What was wrong with her? She was BETTER than this! At least, she told herself that.

Slowly, she leaned back again. And again. And...

It took her nearly five tries before she managed to, a little bit, kind of float there on her back. Face juuuuust above the water, tense as a gopher being stared at by a pack of hungry wolves.

Michiru Kaiou has posed:
Michiru Kaiou does not just remain floating the whole time Hinoiri's struggling. She arches her back and extends her arms and does a flip right there in the water, moving her feet in a dolphin kick to propel herself to the other side of the struggling girl.

With another student, she'd intervene, put her arms under their back and give them support. Help them find the right posture by moving their bodies. Hinoiri would not learn from that kind of instruction, so Michiru just watches her struggle. But the way that she smiles. She likes it just a little too much.

When the other girl finally manages to stay afloat, Michiru approaches. "You're still so tense, Kirara-san," she says. "Here, let me help," she says, and she slides her hands across Hinoiri's back, one arm at her shoulders, the other at her waist.

Standing right there, looking down at Hinoiri from above, she smiles. "Relax. Have a little faith in the natural bouancy of your body," she says, her voice soothing. "Just relax and let the water hold you up." But Michiru is holding her up.

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara would have likely been furious if she'd seen it. If she'd known. Fortunately for her, she hadn't noticed. Good for both her ego and for the notion of having someone help her. Because as much as she had snapped at Michiru, the truth was she didn't know what she was doing and the other girl was far, far better at this. She'd already almost drowned once, best to not try it again.

She still didn't like it, though. Failing this much.

AND THEN SHE WAS GRABBED! Michiru would *feel* that elbow. It wouldn't hurt. But she'd likely realize that Hinoiri had instinctively started to elbow the girl... but managed to pull it back just in time to not actually hit, so much as elbow touch.

So she kind of laid there. And the heavy breathing... it was pretty clear how nervous Hinoiri was. Almost panicked. She'd never be able to swim well if she kept doing it like this. However, when Michiru didn't drop her, the heavy breathing and panic began to subside.

Then, slowly, she even began to relax. Her breathing calming and just laying there in the other girl's arms, gently bobbing. And... "Okay... I... guess... this isn't so hard."

Yeah, with help.

Michiru Kaiou has posed:
Hinoiri might not notice, being too focused on her panick, but that elbow touch leads Michiru to break through her mask just a little. She smirks. She likes it when girls have some fight in them, after all, and she just can't help but be a little amused. But it's just momentary, and easy to miss before she gets her perfect smile back in place. It really depends on how closely Hinoiri's paying attention to that sort of thing.

"That's right," she says, her voice soft and reassuring. She turns in the water, very gently moving Hinoiri in an arc around her. "Relax and feel the water move around you. Doesn't it feel nice along your skin, when you're not struggling to breathe?"

As she moves Hinoiri slowly through the water, she adjusts her arms. One hand pulling the other girl's shoulders down just a little, the other raising her hips just a touch. She gets the posture just right, and then slowly lets her arms drop away and lets Hinoiri continue gliding along the surface of the water. "Just stay relaxed and let your body float. Trust in the buoyant force."

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara didn't see anything. Mostly because she was focused more on not drowning. As she was slowly guided around the water, she began to gently relax. The other girl was watching her and wasn't going to let her drown. She seemed... nice. Ish. Even. Hadn't mocked her or anything. Sure, maybe some light teasing about 'learning', but all in all? She seemed... nice.

And so Hinoiri wasn't going to drown. Nope. Instead, she was just gently guided through the water. Eventually even let go, once her position was secure. She tensed up and her breathing got quick, shallow. But, after a few moments, she began to relax again. Okay. Yeah. This wasn't so bad. Way, way easier than as a unicorn.

She still didn't like it. "I... don't think it's really that nice. But it's okay," Hinoiri said. "really not much of a water girl." It always got up her nose.

Michiru Kaiou has posed:
Michiru Kaiou glides across the water to where Hinoiri ends up and places a hand on Hinoiri's shoulder, halting her motion. "Okay, now we're going to work on treading water. Turn your head to the side and watch me for a moment," she says.

If Hinoiri looks, she'll see Michiru bobbing in the water right next to her, her shoulders just below the surface. Her one hand is making broad strokes back and forth in the water. She's, of course, also kicking underneath, but Hinoiri can't really see that. "I want you to let your feet sink down. We're in the deep end, so they won't touch, but all you need to do is kick them back and forth like a scissors. And move your arms in broad strokes. Remember, stay relaxed."

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara watched, carefully keeping herself afloat, but honestly a lot tense. It wasn't so bad, she told herself. She--

SHE WAS IN THE DEEP END?! There was a moment of panic and she jerked! But... didn't full panic this time. She, instead, quickly calmed herself and then did as she said, rapidly kicking while she was there, going up and down a bit more than she should of, but didn't go under! And then, after a few panicked swimming moments... she calmed again and was treading water. Sure, she was breathing heavier than was necessary and was obviously a little panicked and uncomfortable, but she was getting better at it.

"Y-yeah, that's not so hard," she said, playing it off. Which, admittedly, it wasn't so hard.... but welllll... she was taking it a lot harder than it was.

Michiru Kaiou has posed:
The way Michiru treads water looks almost effortless. Her limbs all moving in the water in a graceful dance that keeps her afloat. Her breathing is barely even noticeable.

"I know what it's like. I know what it's like to be good at everything you do, and then find something you're not immediately good at," Michiru says, gently. "I hate being bad at things, but that's how we learn. We make mistakes, and then do things differently the next time. Failure is what makes us better, Kirara-san. There's no shame in failing at something, only failing to learn from it."

She falls silent for a couple of strokes, and then grins. "Remember. The first step to being good at something is being bad at it, even for prodigies like us," she says. Then she arches her back, and does a dolphin kick away from Hinoiri. "Now try and come get me, just have fun, and relax!"

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara was doing pretty good, all things considered. For her first hour. "Yeah, I'm sure you do," Hinoiri muttered. Good at everything. How could--

Oh. Ohhhh. Her eyes went wider when she realized exactly what the girl had picked up on. Then again, she was hardly subtle so it wasn't as if it was hard to pick up on.

Admittedly, she didn't realize just how easy she made it. If she did, she might try to stop. Then where would she be? Who knew. Probably doing something dumb. Like almost drowning.

"Still don't like being terrible at something," Hinoiri muttered. But then her right eye twitched. GET HER?! Was she CHALLENGING HER?! Oh. It. Was. ON! Michiru found the 'get Hinoiri to work her butt off' button and it was shaped like 'egg her on in literally any way'. She took off after Michiru!

...

Okay, she feebly swam after her at full pelt... which wasn't very fast, especially compared to Michiru's speed. But it was leagues beyond what she HAD been doing a bit ago!

Michiru Kaiou has posed:
Michiru doesn't even have to try hard to stay out of Hinoiri's reach. She doesn't even have to go all that fast. It's okay, the goal isn't for Hinoiri to catch her, it's for her to swim back to the shallow water.

When she gets to the 3ft water, Michiru stops, and lets her feet hit the bottom, rising up out of the water as it cuts across her midriff. She faces Hinoiri, if the girl was hot in pursuit, and just grins. "See? Swimming back to the shallow end is as easy as that. Now you're not bad at it."

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara fell for it. Hook line and sinker. She finally skidded to a stop, a few inches from her, looking up in confuion and wondering why she had stopped... then the reason clicked. And her eyes went wide. And she could *see* the annoyance on her face, the moment she was about to lash out. Then the moment of calming, slow, deep breath, stands up... "You're right, you know? That was easier. Thanks... And I think you were right about something else."

"Just having fun is the best way to make sure it's fun." Then she tried to tackle her. LITTLE BRAT! Not hard, water and all.

Michiru Kaiou has posed:
That moment fuels Michiru. Seeing that story play out on Hinoiri's face gives her such pure delight that she can't help but giggle just a little. It always feels so good when people acknowledge that she's right.

And then her reluctant pupil launches at her. They're very close, and they're both standing on the ground, but Michiru's reflexes are quite good. She has a few moments to decide, and elects to just let the younger girl take her down, splashing back into the water.

As she plunges beneath the surface she exhales sharply to keep the water out of her nose, and at the same time wraps her arms around Hinoiri and kicks her feet powerfully, taking the momentum of Hinoiri's tackle and sending them gliding through the water together.

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara had a split second where she felt pretty smug. She had grabbed the other girl. HA! That showed her! Tackled her and--

That smugness faded reallllll quick when she realized the other girl both had her AND was swimming out. She clutched the other girl tight, holding her breath, letting the other girl lead because, well. Hinoiri was still just a barely passable swimmer to begin with.

And they were going out to deeper water. Oh, she held on a LOT tighter then. Oh, she regretted this SO MUCH! SORAAAAA!

Still, at least the other girl probably wasn't going to drown them both...

And, thanks to Michiru's instructions, if she let her go... the younger girl would actually manage to keep herself afloat, treading water and coughing a bit. Well. If she didn't get messed with too much. She was, unfortunately, at the water senshi's mercy.

Michiru Kaiou has posed:
Unicorns are lucky, right? Well this one is. This time at least. It seems Michiru is feeling merciful, and just takes them all the way across the pool to the wall at the deep end. She hardly has to kick at all to do it, either. Just a few kicks with each foot and they glide thru the water.

She lets go of Hinoiri just as they get to the wall, and reaches out to grab hold of the wall with one of her free hands. Then she laughs and smiles. "I'm glad you're having fun Kirara-san. It's always better when the water is fun."

Hinoiri Kirara has posed:
Hinoiri Kirara was gonna die was gonna die was gonna die was gonna--

But finally, they stopped. She flailed for a moment before grabbing the wall, holding herself up, gasping a bit and then chuckling. "Y-yeah. F-fun. Note to self. Don't tackle the much better swimmer in the water unless I'm confident I can swim okay at all depths," she said, before giving a light chuckle.

"Thanks. Really. That was... terrifying. Utterly terrifying for a moment. but fun. And thanks for the help. I.... still think I need to practice a bunch. But at least now I won't make a total fool of myself when others see. It was... Kaiou-san, right?" she asked, reaching up to wipe some hair from her brow.

Michiru Kaiou has posed:
There's a twinkle in Michiru's eyes and she giggles again. "Yes, that's me," she says. "You'll always need to practice. I've been swimming all my life and I still practice. Our bodies need that kind of repetition to stay in shape," she explains.

"Speaking of practice, I really do need to get my laps in," she says. She pulls her goggles down over her eyes--they were up on her forehead this whole time--and pushes off from the wall. "I'll see you around Kirara-san. Maybe next time with less nearly drowning."

Then she's off to do her laps.