RP:Hot Springs and Chill

Summary: Hudson and Josleen gossip, gossip, gossip. Gigi plays fetch with a 'stick'.

Hot Spring somewhere in Larket, why not

Hudson is seated alone with a bottle of half-drunk green sports drink and special cigarette. Why yes, he's smoking in the hot springs, and an attendant had tried to say something to him ten minutes ago but then had found herself in receipt of a generous tip. He's not smoking near that many other people, in theory he's bothering no one with second hand smoke, maybe just the smell and knowledge that he's got that good stuff and they don't. There are a handful of other people here. Some fat old guys over in a corner, they seem like they come here every few days after bridge as part of some old dude ritual that they have going on. Some teenagers passing around some very suspicious orange juice that they've diluted with 'water.' A couple that seem to be just embarking upon some elaborate hot springs courtship ritual. Right now they're just talking and gazing at one another with intensity in between pregnant pauses. It's awkward but also kinda great to behold.

Josleen enters the hot spring with two shadows: a royal guard and Gigi. Pets aren't allowed, but then again, most pets aren't the Prince. He trots dandishly in protest of the slick wet floor and blinks at Josleen to elicit pity. None is forthcoming. The guard stands sentry near the entrance. Josleen scans the area for a 'private' spot. The fat men see her first, and judging by how quickly they look away, puff their pudgy chests, and pretend to be engrossed in a conversation they just made up, they were entertaining untowards thought about the Queen as well. While her new title has dissuased men from acting on their baser impulses, it has also encouraged more men to entertain them (if only in their minds), for there's a large subset of men for whom taking King Macon's wife is the ultimate power fantasy. It isn't about her, it's about the King, like so many things in this town. She should know. Since her wedding, she's all about him too, and has become a notable absence from her usual social circles, including those that inersect with Alvina and Hudson. Gigi smells him first, and immediately bounds over to the man-dog. The poodle leaps into the spring right in front of Hudson, splashing the new dad who just wanted a break. Gigi rules: puddles are bad, but pools are great! Know who else apparently loves to swim? {Man-dog!} Another point for Hudson. Josleen grins at Gigi and Hudson, waving at the latter, and joins them. She's not in the slightest bit bothered by her dog's rude behavior. An attendant is bothered, however, and looks cross, but won't say anything to the Queen. "Hii Hudson. May I?" she says as she steps into the pool. She wears a conservative, but elegant, white one-piece. The intense couple sits at a distance to her three o-clock. The man begins to silently weep, which Josleen (and everyone else) immediately notices. How awkward. She grimaces to Hudson. "Reminds me of an ex."

Hudson, having nothing better to do than people watch, doesn't miss Josleen's entrance. He lifts an arm to wave. Hey, she brought the dog! Said dog is boldly making a break for it over the slippery walkway to meet Hudson, even. Huds' heart can't help but swell. Dogs are great, thinks Hudson, for the millionth time in his life. "Woooooooaahhh," he cries as Gigi splashes toward him. As if Gigi were accomplishing something tremendous and not disturbing the peace. "Gigiiiiiiiii, my man," intones Hudson, putting their faces close as he holds both sports drink and cigarette at a distance and greets the dog. Hudson is also not bothered by Gigi's rude behavior, the best part is that the couple across the way are pretending not to see it and are continuing to gaze earnestly at one another. The teenagers have (drunkenly) spilled their 'orange juice' into the springs in the excitement. Gigi commences paddling that way to investigate. "Over me already," comments Hudson, beckoning Josleen to join him. "Yeah get in, we can catch up and people watch." He follows her gaze to the weeping that seems to have now erupted across the way. He lifts his eyebrows in silent judgment, his attention reverting to his special cigarette. He shows it to Josleen. "I can put it out, Your Grace," he offers in the tone of someone disguising a question in politeness. Probably not very queenly to inhale in front of the masses, but one never knows. He pretends to feel around behind him for the bottle cap he's using as an ashtray. "How's being queen?" he asks. "After like maybe one second of dating a guy." A beat. "Sven." Said like someone would exhale 'Jesus.'

Josleen laughs away the title 'your grace', and politely refuses the offer by pretending not to understand it. Of course she understands, and she could use a smoke after the recent series of catastrophes, but not in public, especially not with a man who isn't the King (but even then, probably not). She watches Gigi wade towards the orange juice which will make his pristine fur sticky. "Gigi! Come!" Gigi pauses mid-paddle and looks over his shoulder to gauge how serious mom is about this juice prohibition. Surely not that serious, right? It's perfectly good juice! He continues paddling. "No! Gigi! Get back here!" Gigi freezes and with a whine returns to Josleen. He looks to Hudson for sympathy. Is he seeing this tyranny? Give mom one crown and she becomes a monster. Josleen smiles apologetically to Hudson for rudely stalling on his question to yell at the prince. "I can't complain." Well, she can, but it's unseemly when you're the queen. She chuckles into the back of her hand as Hudson mentions the brief courtship. Her eyes sparkle with that smitten light Hudson has seen before, twice, for Ansel and Kelovath. One would hope this is the last man for whom her eyes twinkle, but you'd be a fool to bet on that given her record. "After so much trial and error, I finally understood what works and what doesn't. I didn't need a long trial phase with him." It also certainly helps when the man proposing is a king. Few women can resist that, and Josleen is not among that rank. "How's fatherhood? And Alvina? I saw her at the ball on Sunday. She looked great. Motherhood suits her."

Hudson locates the "ash tray" and regretfully snuffs out his special cigarette. Those disappointed but understanding feels when your friend's promotion means you can't sneak a smoke together in the hot springs. Huds is already feeling pretty good though, really it's only Josleen who's missing out because she became Mom to Larket overnight. He tries to laugh overmuch at her failed attempt to coax Gigi away from the spilled screwdriver. The teenagers are talking to him now, gonna be hard to pry him away from the adulation that's about to be happening. To be clear Hudson is very invested in monitoring Gigi's life right now because 1) Gigi, shared interest and generally awesome pooch, and 2) it's awkward for so many reasons if he just the entire time looks intensely at Josleen, she's too hot for that and people might Get The Wrong Idea. He does look her way now and then, though, it's polite, in time to catch the gleam that women get. Alvina once had it about him but now he's become basically furniture, can be relied upon and useful but generally subject to some form of abuse and/or baby vomit. "Apparently," he agrees quite dryly to her executive summary of the courtship. (He's not buying it, but knows better.). He drinks from his lime green sports beverage and then, remembering his manners, offers it to her. "You and her friend Emily who just got engaged put a bee in Alvina's bonnet. She's fine," false, they hate each other right now, "super tired with all the kid stuff. It's great but man, we are still trying to figure it out." He sighs in a sort of bookend to that statement. It's not polite to say more. He turns his attention to the couple across the way. They have commenced what appears to be a sensual massage. It's embarrassing to behold. He feels compelled to continue talking like it's not happening. "She just went back to work actually," he says. "In Frostmaw... she tell you about this? Working with that military chap Lionel. He's like totally in love with her, it's kind of awkward." He looks into his sports drink, offsetting that remark quickly enough: "The perils of falling in love with a beautiful woman I guess... I wish she were working in Larket, I'm sure you've got some Queen legacy you're working on and the commute would be a lot better. We're still moving there once the house isn't so messed up."

Josleen gestures exasperatedly at Gigi as if to say to Hudson, 'Do you see what I am working with here?' The neon sports drink also fails to impress. It's foul and who drinks that for the joy of it? The sharp vodka beneath the orange juice raises Gigi's hackles. What is this? He bites the water as if chewing strange food for the first time. 'Bee in bonnet': "Well, why not get married?" You're welcome for the assist, Alvina. Talk of the girls, however brief, reminds Josleen of her own fertility problems and tints her smile in shades of despair. When can she have a child too? The sensual massage and talk of Alvina's employment distracts her away from her problems. "Frostmaw? That'll be quite the commute!" She shakes her head to indicate Alvina told her nothing about it. That may be Josleen's fault. She's been busy since meeting Macon, even before the wedding. "Lionel?" She wrinkles her nose in disbelief. "You sure? I heard he... plays for the other team. Well... military." She cants her head to the side as if conceding a point Hudson made, when in truth the point is hers: could be closeted. "Either way," closeted or straight, "it's Alvina we're talking about." Clearly it is impossible that she would ever cheat. "Gigi!" Gigi licks the screwdrive off the teen girl's side boob. She giggles, a little drunk, finding the encounter hilarious. The sensual massage has devolved into swapping stories per scar: dire wolf, nightmare, slaver, etc. Josleen eavesdrops and eyes Hudson to ask 'You hearing this?'

"I'm gonna ask her in the next few months, all you ladies can chill out, damn, everyone thinks I'm dropping the ball here," is all Hudson has to say on the subject of asking Alvina to marry him. He can't entrust the details to Josleen, for fear she'll leak good naturedly. He's oblivious to Josleen's inner baby-related turmoil. In his book, Josleen and Macon are obviously going to have a baby tomorrow, and then maybe they can organize play dates at the palace which amounts to free baby sitting. Brilliant. Get on it, people. Hudson is more than happy to let the subject stay on Lionel, Josleen is always good for intel. "Yeah, it's Alvina we're talking about, and she's told him she has a boyfriend and you know, she's the best." Any anecdotes on (in his view) shadier conduct are withheld because Josleen is just not the target audience, though in general he does trust Alvina just sometimes he also wants to waterboard her (in his mind only!) because she's being a pain in the ass and won't give him a straight answer. "And you know I thought that he might be gay too but if so this is some aggressive straight man performance," he adds. "Alvina believes it's got something to do with him fantasizing that she's his dead wife. That's not totally weird ..." The conversation withers because they're both distracted by Gigi's human-dog sexual experience and then the conversation happening between the couple. He drinks the last of his lime green sports drink, which Josleen under appreciated, his gaze remaining on the pair. "This guy has no game," is his appraisal of the situation. The volume of this exchange is at conspiratorial, sports-announcer levels. "She's looking at him like, Is this jamoke going to kiss me, why are we even here if he's not going to do that. Kiss her, man, she's all over you, gods dooooooo it, doooo it now." The woman has floated closer and 'inadvertently' brushed up against him. She course corrects, and the man makes no movement to bridge the distance again. They laugh it off. "Yeah, he's not that into her," says Hudson, sparing a look at Josleen. "This is depressing," he pronounces, switching gears, "so what's it like being queen? Do you even work anymore or are you like full time obsessing about when you're ovulating? What, I know about baby-making. I'm just thinking with a whole kingdom watching that probably feels a bit high pressure."

Josleen cringes when Hudson drops the bomb shell that Alvina believes Lionel one-way LARPs her as his dead wife. She isn't quite sure she believes it. Her experience with Lionel has always been positive, and her opinion of the knight high, rainbow rumors aside. In this day and age, that's fine, she tells herself in the tone of a well-intentioned woman forcing an embrace of progressivism. "Yikes. Maybe Alvina read that wrong..." She joins Hudson's conspiratorial live blogging of the over-heated, under-sexed pair. "Gods, this reminds me of Ansel." Ansel may be (or had been?) Hudson's friend, but Josleen always fancied herself closer to Hudson than Ansel had been, and she kept the lycan in the divorce via mutual association with Alvina. Mean-spirited gossip is surely permissible. Besides, she knows Hudson is a glutton for it. "One of our first dates, up in Frostmaw, I had to forage in the woods for an herb; the clinic was running low. He decided to join me. I already liked him, and I suspected he liked me. We need to climb out of a hole--long story--so Ansel offers to give me a leg up. Instead, I climb on his shoulders, because--Hudson, I know I am terrible," she cackles at the memory, quite pleased with herself, "I was wearing a dress! He still didn't make a move!" Josleen's eyes widen and hold Hudson's gaze in gossipy glee: can you believe that?! She was once in love with that joker! Maybe she wasn't, she tells herself. Maybe she was just rebounding after Ezekiel. Josleen's smile falters when Hudson asks about the heir-making project. She raises her brows appreciatively at Hudson's knowledge of baby-making, not because she gives a damn, but because he fished for that approval and she's happy to give it. "We're certainly trying. Macon's very excited; so am I. These things take time. My friend Delilah..." a frenemy, Hudson may have heard her name before, from Josleen or Alvina, when they dish about the 'friend' they hate. "...tried for a whole year before she got pregnant. Now she and her husband have four. Bam, bam, bam, one after the other. Catalian twins." Hollow's version of Irish twins which Josleen's player has made up, because Lionel is from Catal, and Josleen's player can't behave, ever. "And of course I work as a Queen, I just don't work on anything I don't want to." She winks then looks towards Gigi who is being fed hotdogs by the teens and has forgotten all about his Jocasta and best friend man-dog. "Please don't feed him strange food!"

This story about Ansel: Hudson eats a laugh in the base of his throat so it effectively comes out like a snort. "Woooooow. Not surprised, man he's dropped off the face of the world," he comments, still observing the awkwardly platonic touches ongoing ahead of them. He considers but decides firmly against ribbing Ansel for any weak quasi flirtation he may or may not have had with Alvina once upon a time. Not the right audience, again. "You're rather forward, can you teach Alvina your ways," he jokes with Josleen. Not that Alvina isn't the most perfect creature he's ever beheld, it's just that... sometimes one, with great affection, makes this sort of joke about one's significant other. The conversation moves onto the subject of children, which might have once immediately sent him running for the hills, but now he has them and it's revoltingly all he wants to talk about. The amazing athletic and poop-related feats of Harper and Luna. (They don't do much else.) He is familiar with the infamous Delilah. He's unclear why the women hang out with her, because he only seems to hear a series of stories about how Delilah is rude and self-centered and possibly The Worst, but then again pack behavior of women is not a subject he's mastered by any means. "Sounds familiar," he comments, nodding in the direction of the couple. The woman has apparently asked the man to tighten her bikini top. "... Don't mind me and my boobs over here," says Hudson, under his breath. Josleen is yelling at the flock of teens, who are feeding Gigi, new mascot of day drinking eighteen year olds everywhere. He reverts to the topic at hand: "I'm sure you know Alvina and I had struggled forever after that thing in Xalious. That was very hard on her. Then fertility charm, bam like you say. And behold twins. It's magic, literally." He glances at Josleen. "It's funny, you work so hard to have kids, and then after they arrive you're like totally overwhelmed and forget that birth control is even a thing and then you realize in a cold sweat like, OH GODS noooo I can't have another one right now! So..." He smiles genially. "I mean I love them, but they are demons. I feel bad you don't even get a chance to enjoy each other before you're going to be cleaning up little people's poops. Or your royal diaper changer will be, I guess."

Josleen chuckles at the loving ribbing at Alvina's expense; it's normal, fine, what couples do. Distracted by Gigi, Josleen hears Hudson's boob comment, but misses the bikini-seduction His boobs? Puzzled, she briefly glances at Hudson's chest expecting some terrible boob/chest malfunction. Following his gaze, she finally understands. "Ah!" She laughs distractedly, glance flickering over to Gigi. He is still eating hotdogs, unbelievable! (totally believable) She doesn't want to make a scene, but Gigi may force her hand. He's at the garbage bin now with his head in it. Yep! Josleen is about to rise and forcibly bring Gigi back to her side, but Hudson brings her up short with his reference to Alvina's miscarriage. She frowns, winces, her attention yanked back before the poodle. Gigi: saved by the pathos. "That was a tough time. I was heartbroken for both of you." She smiles sadly as Hudson talks about poop demons and the threat of a proliferation of poop demons in fertile wombs if left unchecked. She hasn't used any barrier method or special tea once with Macon. She wishes she could share in Hudson's fear of having too many. "I'm happy for you," she says with equal parts honesty and jealousy. She laughs dryly at the thought of Macon changing a diaper. "Macon would never. Royal diaper changer for sure. He would never," she reiterates with a laugh. "I said to him recently that we should get together with you and Alvina, dinner. I'd like him to get to know you, and vice versa, not as the King but as Macon, the man." Are the two separable? Sensual couple update: The woman is retying her hair, boobs lifting and straining against bikini somehow (???). The man blushes and looks down like a pre-pubescent boy. "Do you think he's a virgin? He looks almost 30," Josleen whispers as an aside.

For the record Hudson's chest has nothing of note about it save an in-poor-taste tattoo of Alvina's name to cover a scar and some hair, like you know just the right amount but not anywhere approaching the density of carpet. He is not presently aware of Gigi's dumpster diving but that changes as Josleen starts talking dinner. "Let's do it, that sounds great, we love doing things with adults," he says with genuinely enthusiasm, now trying to nod in the direction of her dog, who has now fished out something that looks alarmingly ... oh ... Gigi is that ... Hudson doesn't know how to say it to Josleen, and also doesn't want to be rude, so he turns his attention to the romantic couple. "Who's a virgin at 30," says Hudson, in the tone of LOL, like she's suggested something outlandish. "I mean, maybe. I don't know why he's not going for it, maybe you're right and he's precious about his v card. This is why it's crucial to lose it early in some formative casual relationship you'll think back on fondly in later years. Like, you know, the nice married lady from next door." Hard to tell if he's serious. Gigi is bounding back toward them, spraying water as he cuts through the springs. He doggie paddles up to Her Grace, and deposits before her a skin-colored ceramic object that's shaped suggestively phallic. Released from the jaws of Gigi, it floats slowly closer to them. Hudson instinctively moves away, allowing Josleen the space to also scoot away and likewise avoid encroachment by floating ceramic 'toy'. Josleen's royal guard now surges from the background of this scene, and exclaims, "Your majesty, do not move, allow me to retrieve it!" It's too much. Presumably Josleen has exited the water. Hudson for his part is a true patriot and remains in the springs to see this through, though he has commenced coughing aggressively to hide his amusement while splashing the thing closer to the water's edge so the guard can retrieve it. For the Queen, etc. Gigi whines. This wasn't the plan. "Not a stick, Gigi," says Hudson, climbing out now that the peril has been resolved. He gratuitously flexes a bicep at Josleen. "I got you."

Josleen now knows, with 100% certainty, how Hudson lost his v card. That story is too specific and boastful to be anything but the truth. She wasn't wondering or asking, but now she knows. Best case scenario: this will come up in pub trivia one day, and she'll win the 100 gold prize, and bragging rights. Worst case scenario: The older neighbor was her aunt Viola, who lived in Cenril in Hudson's neighborhood in his formative years. [Ok, that's canon now.] Josleen laughs, not bothered by the revelation. She can hear Gigi running back towards her and, still laughing, turns her attention to her surrogate child. "What have you got ther-OH MY GODS!!" Josleen shrieks as she near jumps out of the water once Gigi releases his loot. She high tails it out of there, red-cheeked and open-mouthed (Taylor Swift surprise expression). "Retrieve it! Why!" But she doesn't stop the guard from fetching the 'stick'. She's progressive! Men can forage for fetish toys! She stammers as she tries to find the right words to reprimand Gigi with, but there's nothing in the dog-training manual for this. Hudson flexes and drops a heroic line and it's just what she needs to laugh this whole thing off. "Careful, or I will knight you with that thing." More laughter. The Royal Drama attracts too much attention and Josleen decides it's time to go. "Well.. I think that's my cue..." She leans forward to air-cheek kiss Hudson. "Tell Alvina I said Hello. I should drop in to see her sometime. And I'll send word to arrange the dinner. I think you'll like Macon." ...Eh... He's a bit of a grump, which is only endearing to the woman he showers with attention and love, and rarely endearing to anyone else. Nonetheless, she wants them to meet. "Let me know if Alvina wants a job in Larket. I'll see if I can line up something nice for her."

Hudson is grinning and wrapping himself in a towel as he is leaking water everywhere, trunks have a way of retaining it. "Maybe then I'll be as impressive to the mother of my children as Lionel," he comments dryly, bending down to pet Gigi, who is in apparent need of validation right now. "Who's still a good doggo," says Hudson, rising in time to catch Josleen's announced departure. Makes sense. "Later bud," he palms the dog's head and partakes in the goodbye ritual. "Yep, will do. We have the nanny during the day so she's pretty freed up then. Definitely let's do the dinner." He of course also believes he'll like Macon, because in general Hudson is like a dog at a dog park in meeting Josleen's boyfriends and he assumes that past performance is indication of future results. "Thanks, I'll work on Alvina about staying local. You take care." He gives her a thumbs up as she and her entourage turn away. He's still got that half-finished cigarette, hey ...