Poor Soh was flushed from the cold water, Tal could tell. Her cheeks were as red as if a Deepfrost wind had kissed them and he felt a pang of guilt for the protection his Cuff offered from the chilly river. He tried to focus on that as he waded in, instead of on the way the water rose about his knees and then his thighs and then his waist. He was on the verge of offering it to her when she mentioned floating and he caught his breath uncertainly.
Take his feet off the bottom? Willingly? He watched as she demonstrated and as she stood back up - looking particularly fetching with how her clothes clung--
He shook his head sharply to focus on the terrorlesson at hand, sternly reminding himself that she was quite a bit younger than he was. Though he was going to have to trust her, as she said, and hope that she was strong enough to drag him back to the surface if it came down to it.
But the water was shallow here, and he could still touch the bottom and Soh clearly knew what she was doing. "Right. Into the water. All the way." His echo held a great deal more uncertainty and Soh wasn't the only one whose voice was a little higher than usual. He took a deep breath and forced his knees to bend, feeling the water lap over his hard stomach and then across his chest while his body quivered, tense as strung wire. He drew in a sharp breath, his knees buckling at last and pitching him down the last few inches to kneel with his friend while the water swirled hungrily around his throat. "An' y'want me t'just... lay back?" he checked, voice somewhere between a manly quaver and a mousy squeak.
He bit his lip fiercely and summoned his courage - along with a big breath of air, just in case - and tried to emulate what Soh had done, though his own body was stiffly uncoordinated and his hips immediately started to sink in the saltless water.
Take his feet off the bottom? Willingly? He watched as she demonstrated and as she stood back up - looking particularly fetching with how her clothes clung--
He shook his head sharply to focus on the terrorlesson at hand, sternly reminding himself that she was quite a bit younger than he was. Though he was going to have to trust her, as she said, and hope that she was strong enough to drag him back to the surface if it came down to it.
But the water was shallow here, and he could still touch the bottom and Soh clearly knew what she was doing. "Right. Into the water. All the way." His echo held a great deal more uncertainty and Soh wasn't the only one whose voice was a little higher than usual. He took a deep breath and forced his knees to bend, feeling the water lap over his hard stomach and then across his chest while his body quivered, tense as strung wire. He drew in a sharp breath, his knees buckling at last and pitching him down the last few inches to kneel with his friend while the water swirled hungrily around his throat. "An' y'want me t'just... lay back?" he checked, voice somewhere between a manly quaver and a mousy squeak.
He bit his lip fiercely and summoned his courage - along with a big breath of air, just in case - and tried to emulate what Soh had done, though his own body was stiffly uncoordinated and his hips immediately started to sink in the saltless water.
