Divine Guidance

[BlackAkuma]

‘The poison story’.

Divine’s brow furrowed as Aroha gave her own unique interpretation of the ending to Romeo and Juliet. It took her a moment to process what she was saying, but when she did, she broke out in a full laugh, one that took a few moments to melt into giggles. ”Well, she was unconscious at the time, because she took a poison that made it look like she was dead, but he didn’t know that because there was a plague, and then he took a poison that actually killed him, and she woke up, and it’s a whole thing.” She waved it off. ”I’ll take you to see it, sometime. Or watch the movie. Movies, it’s been adapted about a hundred times.”

She filed that though away for later as she used Aroha’s leg as a headrest, very much enjoying the warmth and softness it provided. The hands running through her hair were a welcome addition, scratching at her scalp in all the right places.

It made for a pleasant backdrop as Aroha explained her own philosophy, making an interesting comparison that would never have occurred to Divine. She understood the general concept of migratory birds - she had watched some Discovery Channel show on the subject - but the way the islander described it was so mystical. Two birds, flying through the skies, seemingly aimless. But they knew where to go, where to be. They probably couldn't explain how they knew, even if birds knew how to explain anything. Instincts. Fate.

”Mm. I like the sound of that, Aroha. I don’t know if it’s true, but I hope it is.” She lazily looked up at Aroha, catching her gleaming eyes in the pale lights of the room. ”I’d like to think this is the beach I’m supposed to be on. I hope it is. I rather like it.”

For a moment - a few moments - Divine stared up at Aroha, growing quiet as she contemplated her next step. Two young, beautiful women, alone in an apartment, surrounded by the foliage. It painted a vivid picture, and it did not take much imagination to see where this could go. If she pushed it in the right direction. If she said the right words. The scene was romantic enough. She could lean in, steal a single kiss, then go from there…

No.

A tiny voice warned her, and she listened to it for once. If this could, or should develop into something, this wasn’t the time to make that call. She wasn’t sure when the right time would be, but she felt she would know it when saw it. If she saw it.

Divine gave Aroha’s leg a final rub with her cheek, savoring the sensation, and then began to push up to her feet. ”You’re a lovely host, Aroha. But I think it’s time for me to go for the night.”

[HotWheels]

Oh. Oh. As Divine laughed, Aroha had almost started to laugh with her because she found laughter contagious, but recognition slowly swept across her face when she explained.

"Oh! She was pretending to be dead!?"

Aroha didn't fully follow what made that situation so funny, but she supposed it seemed funnier than being actually dead, come to think of it. "That makes more sense! Still very confusing, though." She tried to follow the explanation - plague, poison, waking up - but it all sounded like a series of unfortunate miscommunications that could have been avoided with a simple conversation, and having understood it in the wrong way in the first place, Arohad had no chance of catching up to the explanation. But the idea of seeing it again- "Yes, please! I would like to. The movie one, I think. I am not sure I would understand all the words if people are acting it out on a stage."

The idea of Divine taking her to see something offered as much of a flutter in her chest as the other plans they had made. She would need to write all these down later.

When Divine looked up at her, Aroha met her gaze without flinching or looking away. She'd never been good at reading the complicated things people didn't say out loud, but she could sense the woman thought about something. She didn't understand what it was, but she didn't get her thoughts together quickly enough to ask before Divine ruminated more. "I hope it is too," Aroha said softly, her hand never pausing in Divine's hair. The words about beaches and belonging settled warm in her chest. "And I am glad you are here. On this beach, I mean. How else would I have met you?"

With Divine continuing to peer back at her, the Maori woman nearly paused her own staring back long enough to ask if she had anything on her mind, but Divine interrupted and sat up first - for a terrible reason!

"Oh! You are leaving?" Aroha asked, unable to stop sounding quite like a somewhat saddened puppy. She sat up and stared up at the woman with similarly saddened eyes. "But it is so late now! And you came all this way." She swung her legs off the couch and stood, closing the small distance between them.

"You should stay!" Aroha said, reaching out to catch Divine's hand and briefly squeeze it. Her fingers laced with the other woman's naturally, like they'd done it a hundred times before. "It seems silly for you to go all the way home in the dark when you are already comfortable here. Plus, I make very good breakfast. Nothing fancy, but filling. Eggs and toast and fruit." Her smile widened, hopeful and entirely unaware of how the invitation might sound.

"And then in the morning, you can go home in the light! Much better."

[BlackAkuma]

There was a time, not too long ago, when Divine would’ve jumped at the chance to spend the night with a woman like Aroha. Or a woman not like Aroha. Most women, in general, if she were being honest. Back with the Valkyries, she had enjoyed a fairly open relationship with most of her sisters, with casual sex being the norm. It had worked out well for them, at the time, though every once in a while it did create friction with those who took her affections to be the start of something serious.

She didn’t regret those times, or that way of living. But she knew that wasn’t for everyone, and she was hesitant to even come close to it with someone like Aroha. The woman gave off the impression of an open book, like Divine could take her words at face value without much worry, but…

She was unsure how to proceed, and in the face of such uncertainty, the best idea was to retreat. Aroha, on the other hand, had different ideas.

Divine had made a good distance towards the door when Aroha came after, closing in with those soft, padding feet. She expected that much, but not the hand grasping her own and pulling her back. That was enough to bring her march to a standstill, as surely as if the woman had chained her down.

It wasn’t a strong grip, there was hardly any force to it, and that was the whole problem. Aroha’s touch was light and trusting, grasping Divine with the familiarity of a lover. It wasn’t greedy or lustful, there was none of the lascivious hunger that she’d come to expect in these situations.

Aroha was pure. Everything about this woman was so pure.

”Oh, Lord. That look. Those eyes.” Divine could only stand looking at Aroha’s face for a few moments before she turned away with a defeated sigh and a low laugh. Her shoulders slumped, and she squeezed the woman’s hand, strong and tender. ”You win, I’ll stay the night. For the eggs.” She actually could go for some eggs, too. It had been a while since she’d had a home-cooked breakfast. ”But don’t think those puppy-dog eyes will work on me forever. I’ll grow immune to your adorableness, sooner or later.”

Probably not.

[HotWheels]

Aroha's entire face lit up like someone had just told her Christmas came early. The victory was so complete, so immediate, that she actually bounced on her toes a little bit, unable to contain the joy that surged through her at Divine's capitulation.

"Yesssss!" She squeezed Divine's hand harder, her grin threatening to split her face. "And the eggs are very good, you will see. I learned from my aunty, and she makes the best eggs in the whole village. Well, she says the second-best, but I think she is being humble."

The comment about puppy-dog eyes, though... that made her pause, her brow crinkling in genuine confusion. Puppy dog eyes? Had she made them look small and beady like a hound's? Or sharp and piercing like a husky? Or big and rather silly looking like a kuri? She touched her own face briefly, as if checking what expression she'd been making before deciding it didn't matter.

What struck her a moment longer, however, was Divine's other choice of word. Adorableness. People back home called her many thing - strong, enthusiastic, too loud sometimes - but adorable wasn't usually one of them. She wasn't sure how to feel about it, but Divine said it fondly, so she supposed it was good. In fact, a touch of warmth crept into her cheeks because it sounded so positive, even when Aroha was making demands... light demands, but demands nonetheless!

And speaking of... she tugged Divine's hand gently, leading her away from the door and back toward the interior of the apartment. "Come, come! Let me show you where you can sleep." Aroha pulled her through the small space, past the couch and the scattered plants, until they reached the bedroom. She pushed the door open with her free hand, revealing a surprisingly large bed that dominated the modest room. It was neatly made with simple white sheets and a colorful woven blanket folded at the foot - something she'd brought from home.

"So, you can sleep anywhere you like," Aroha said, gesturing broadly at the bed. "But I never had a bed this big before. Back home, I had a sleeping mat, very thin, on the floor. But this?" She patted the mattress enthusiastically until the springs squeaked. "This is for two people, they told me when I got it. I did not understand why I would need a bed for two people when I am only one person, but they said it was the normal size here."

She looked at Divine earnestly, still holding her hand. "So you can sleep on one side, and I can sleep on the other side, and we both have so much space! Or if you want the whole bed if it is normal for you, I really do not mind the couch. It is very comfortable, and I have fallen asleep there many times by accident anyway."

She tilted her head, suddenly remembering something. "Oh! Do you need something to sleep in? I have extra clothes, but..." She glanced down at Divine's frame, then at her own build. They weren't total opposites, but Divine was taller and Aroha longer in the torso, meaning very different length legs. Hmmm. "They might be a bit short on you. But they are clean!"

The practical concerns of hosting were starting to occur to her now, things she should have thought of before but hadn't because she'd been too focused on convincing Divine to stay. "And I have a spare toothbrush! Still in the package. And towels if you want to shower in the morning before breakfast."

[BlackAkuma]

This was probably a bad idea, and Divine knew it was a bad idea, and yet she was doing it, anyway. Her mind raced to come up with excuses, reasons for ducking out. She didn’t want to give Aroha the wrong idea, didn’t want to feel like she was taking advantage of someone so sweet and naive and innocent. They’d just met. It wasn’t proper, even though Divine had done far more improper things with women she’d known for even less time than Aroha.

She was making excuses, and she forced herself to stop. As Aroha tugged her through the apartment, Divine only put up the smallest amount of resistance, enough to be playful but not enough to outright stop the tour.

After a few stumbling steps, Divine found herself overlooking Aroha’s bedroom space. ‘Spartan’ was the first word that came to mind, but she wouldn’t dare speak that out loud, and not just because her host likely wouldn’t know what it meant. But it was also quaint and cozy, simplistic and practical, much like the woman who owned it. It was certainly a far cry from the lumpy nightmare she had waiting back home.

She idly strolled along the side, running her hands along the covers as Aroha went on, though she perked up and gave the woman an incredulous gaze when she mentioned the idea of taking the bed for herself while the islander took the couch. ”Aroha, I am not coming into your apartment, sleeping on your bed, and putting you on your couch. That’s out of the question.”

She totally believed the woman when she said she had a habit of falling asleep on the couch before, though. She could even picture it. It made for a cute mental image.

The next topic brought up a potential issue, though, and she folded her arms as she mulled it over. ”I can sleep in my underwear. If you don’t mind.” Seemed reasonable enough, since they’d likely be wearing less when they met for their mud and oil matches, anyway. She typically slept nude, actually, but she wasn’t even going to risk bringing that up.

Divine began to take off her clothes, sliding out of the boots, then peeling her tight pants off and setting them neatly to the side of the bed. Her lower body was fully revealed in all its tight, tanned glory, with her lacey underwear clinging to her skin. She had started on her top when Divine made the final offer. ”I will take you up on the brush and the shower. Fair warning, though, I’m a heavy sleeper, and I’ve been told I snore.”

[HotWheels]

Aroha watched Divine's hands run along her bedcovers with something warm blooming in her chest. The gesture felt nice somehow, like Divine was getting comfortable in her space. When Divine gave her that incredulous look and declared she wouldn't take the bed for herself, Aroha's smile softened into something smaller but no less genuine.

"Okay, okay," she conceded, holding up her hands in mock surrender. "We share the bed then. But if you change your mind in the night and want more space, just push me off. I am a heavy sleeper too, so you will have to push hard."

The mention of sleeping in underwear didn't faze Aroha in the slightest. Back home, clothing had always been minimal and practical - the heat and humidity demanded it. She'd grown up sleeping in even less, packed into the whare with cousins and siblings where bodies were just bodies and modesty was something you learned about later when missionaries came through. "Of course I don't mind! Whatever is comfortable for you."

Then Divine started undressing, and Aroha busied herself gathering supplies from the dresser, glancing over occasionally to make sure Divine had enough space to move around. The boots came off first with soft thumps, then the tight pants. Aroha noted absently that Divine took good care of her clothes, folding them neatly instead of tossing them in a heap like Aroha sometimes did. She much more intently noticed that the less Divine wore, the better she looked, however, really doing everything to earn her name. A lot of people didn't have that type of body - the more clothes they took off the more they seemed to want to hide. Aroha liked all types of bodies, really, but she could see everything right with Divine's.

The woman's words tore her out of those thoughts, mostly because they made her laugh at the trigger of a memory. "Snoring is fine! One of my cousins snored so loud we thought a taniwha lived in the whare with us. You probably can't be worse than that."

She pulled open drawers, hunting for the spare toothbrush she'd gotten from the front desk. "The bathroom is just through that door-" she pointed without looking up from her search, "-and there are clean towels in the cabinet under the sink. And so you don't get shocked when you're sleepy in the morning - the shower is a bit... temper- tempermental? You have to turn the handle all the way to the right first, then back to the left halfway, or it only makes cold water. I learned that the hard way. We don't really do cold water back home."

She finally located the toothbrush still in its packaging and set it on the dresser with a triumphant sound, then grabbed one of the towels she kept folded in the bottom drawer. "Here! Everything you need."

Aroha turned back and held out the towel and toothbrush toward Divine, who stood in just her underwear now. The lacy fabric was pretty - Aroha made a mental note to ask where Divine got such nice things later. Her own underwear mostly came in practical cotton packs from the store down the street. She glanced down at her own tank top and shorts. "I basically already sleep in this. But I should brush my teeth so I don't stink you up while we're sleeping."

She carried her toothbrush to the kitchen sink. She brushed her teeth while looking out the small window at the city lights, thinking about how nice it was to have company. The apartment always felt too big at night, too quiet, after being in such a big, loud place for all her life. Having Divine here made it feel more like home, like the nights when all her cousins would pile into one space and talk until they fell asleep mid-sentence.

She rinsed her mouth, washed her face with the simple soap she kept by the sink, and then padded back toward the bedroom.

[BlackAkuma]

Sharing a bed with a beautiful woman. What a terrible fate. Surely, Divine’s trepidation was warranted.

She did her best to banish the worrying thoughts that threatened to overwhelm her as Aroha presented herself as the most amenable host imaginable. Her reaction to the proposal was honestly shocking, though maybe it shouldn’t be - as with everything else this woman did, it was wholesome and pure. Maybe Divine was simply too accustomed to being lusted over, of people dying for the chance to share a bed with her. Having someone act like it was the most innocent of things was refreshing. Having it be with someone she had only met was a surprise. But a welcome one.

”I’m sure we’ll have all the space we’ll need. But I might give you a push, anyway.” She winked. ”For fun.”

After setting her things to the side in a neat pile - a habit she’d formed after too many awkward mornings spent trying to find her clothing - she enjoyed a chuckle at the mention of her cousin, who snored like a… ”Taniwhatnow? I do not know what that is. But I’ll take your word for it.”

After a little instruction, Aroha had everything she needed for the night. Divine, who was used to looking for eyes when they were checking her out, didn’t miss her host’s occasional appreciative look. While she didn’t typically care about such things, she liked that the woman’s gaze was less hungry than most. Less like someone who was creating sexual fantasies in their head and more like a friend who was just knew what they liked.

”Thank you kindly.” She accepted the offerings with a nod. She watched the woman walk away - a lovely sight, by itself, then made her way into the bathroom to freshen up for the night.

Aroha’s bathroom was no setup in a five-star hotel, but for tonight, it was more than sufficient to meet Divine’s meager needs. She would fight the show for hot water in the morning, she decided, and a quick washup would suffice until then. She thoroughly wiped herself all over, getting out the grime, the decay, the smell of the strip club that was permeating her skin and occasionally slipping its way into her nostrils.

After a little brushing of her own teeth, Divine emerged a moment later as a refreshed woman. She peered out the window as she passed, noting that a light rain was dripping against it. A slight annoyance, since the cover for her motorcycle was at home, but she could dry the seat off tomorrow.

She put that thought out of her mind and made her way over to the bed, where she promptly slipped under the covers and settled into the mattress, getting comfortable as Aroha returned. She closed her eyes and rested against the pillow, enjoying the bed’s feel more than she expected. It still had some newness.

”Not bad, this.” She hummed and rolled over to her side, facing Aroha’s way. ”How do you go to sleep? I usually drift off with the sound of rain on my phone, but it looks like that’s already covered.”

Indeed, the rain was starting to pick up outside, hitting with enough force for them to hear the tapping.

[HotWheels]

"You can try!" Aroha shot back with a mischievous grin, straightening up and flexing her arms in an exaggerated show of strength. Her biceps bunched under her brown skin, and she patted one with obvious pride. "I am very hard to move. Like a big rock. You will need all your strength."

The playful challenge hung in the air for a moment before Aroha remembered Divine's question. "Oh! So, taniwha..." She bounced a little on her toes, animated by the chance to explain. "It is a... hmm, a water creature from our stories. Sometimes like a dragon, sometimes like a giant lizard or a sea monster. They live in deep water or caves and make very loud, scary sounds. My cousin - when he snored - it sounded exactly like what the elders described. Deep and rumbling and making the whole room shake. We used to tease him that he was part taniwha."

After they separated to freshen up, Aroha returned to find Divine by the window, commenting on the rain. She moved to the bed and started fussing with the covers, smoothing out wrinkles that didn't really exist, fluffing pillows that were already perfectly fluffed - she just had to make it perfect, after all, to encourage more of this sleeping-over in the future.

"I never had to play rain sounds or anything like that back home," she said, tucking in one corner of the sheet with more care than necessary. "It was always so noisy - rain on the roof, ocean waves, wind through the trees, people talking and laughing. Here, though..." She gestured vaguely at the apartment. "It is so quiet at night. Too quiet. Makes my brain too loud, you know? So I usually leave the TV on in the other room with music or something, just so there is noise. Something steady and... mon-o-ton-ous." She sounded out the word carefully, proud she'd remembered it. "But rain sounds on the phone? That sounds much better. I should try that."

Watching Divine settle into the mattress with that contented hum made something warm bloom in Aroha's chest. Her father had warned her that people in the rest of the world wouldn't be as comfortable "bunking in" as they were back home, that they needed more space and privacy and fancy things. But Divine looked perfectly happy, curled up on her side like she belonged there. Taking it as a sign to get cozy herself, she finally climbed into her side of the bed. She flopped down perhaps less gracefully than Divine had, the mattress bouncing slightly under her weight, and wiggled under the covers with a satisfied sound.

The moment her head hit the pillow, a massive yawn overtook her, jaw cracking wide enough that her eyes watered. She didn't bother covering it, just let it happen with an un-self-conscious completeness.

"Ohhhh," she sighed, the sound long and heavy as she sank deeper into the mattress. "I guess I am more tired than I thought."

She turned her head on the pillow to look at Divine, blinking slowly like her eyelids were already getting heavy. Even though she buzzed with excitement about having someone over, her body was telling her that it appreciated the chance to lie down. But first... "Do you need anything before we sleep? Water? Extra blanket? I have another one in the closet if you get cold."

[BlackAkuma]

Divine had fantasized about something like this when she was a little girl. Not the part where she met a woman from a place she knew nothing about, drove her back to her apartment, and wound up adopting a plant from her, nothing that specific. But she had always wanted to have a sleepover. A slumber part. Whatever kids call it these days. Just spend the night chatting and going to sleep with a friend at her side.

Of course, that could never have happened when she was young. Too busy. Too much practicing. Not enough friends. Not enough real ones, anyway.

That was another life, though, and another time. Divine did her best to push those niggling thoughts away as she settled into the bed, finding surprising comfort in Aroha’s sheets. The woman kept them clean, far more so than she did her own set.

”It just helps me zone out.” Divine drew her legs in, reflexively covering up under the sheets to bask in her body warmth. ”My mind tends to wander easily, especially when I have a lot to digest from the day. I don’t turn off well.”

That was an understatement. It wasn’t uncommon for her to go to sleep an hour after she hit the sheets, wasting time just consumed by her thoughts, her schedules, her problems. There had even been particularly bad days when she hadn't had any sleep at all, lying about until the sun rose.

Divine had a small laugh, a rumbling chuckle against the sheets, as Aroha let out the cutest yawn, one that was far more boisterous than she would’ve expected from that body. She had already begun to close her eyes when the woman spoke again, getting a small shake of the head from her in response. ”Thanks. But I think I’ve got about everything I need.”

Divine reached out and brought a gentle hand down Aroha’s cheek, lightly stroking her, before she pulled back and closed her eyes. She directed her focus to the pounding rain and steadied her breath, as she hunkered down for the night. ”Sweet dreams, lovely.”

[HotWheels]

Aroha wiggled deeper under the covers, getting all cozy and settled, her body doing that little shimmy-shake thing it did when she found the perfect position. Even through the yawn, even through the growing heaviness in her limbs, excitement bubbled in her chest. Just having someone else here, breathing in the same space, sharing the same bed - it made everything feel right in a way she hadn't realized she'd been missing. As much as she was happy to represent her people here, to make waves in LAW and show everyone what a girl from her village could do, the not-having-her-people-around part was the hardest thing about all this. The quietness. The aloneness. The way the apartment echoed when she talked to herself because there was no one else to talk to.

But as she peered over at Divine, watching the other woman settle in with her eyes closed and her breathing already starting to even out... suddenly that didn't feel so bad anymore.

Divine's words about not turning off well, about her mind wandering, made Aroha's brow furrow slightly in thought. She admittedly didn't have the best advice for that. She had always fallen asleep very readily - her days always proved tiring. The only time she had ever had any trouble was the first few days here, and that was just because of the strange environment, the sounds outside, and the unfamiliar bed.

But she pondered, then spoke up, with a mischievous glint in her eye, "Well... I suppose with the wrestling career, someone could just knock you out? That would help you fall asleep very fast."

She pulled one arm out from under the covers to flex it dramatically, bicep bunching, before dissolving into giggles at her own joke and tucking her arm back under the warmth.

Then Divine's hand touched her cheek, and any further words died in Aroha's throat. The touch was so gentle, it made something in Aroha's chest go warm and soft like melted butter. A sound almost like a purr rumbled in her throat - she didn't even know she could make that sound - and she leaned into the touch just slightly, her whole body relaxing even further into the mattress. Her eyes went half-lidded, that pleased, contented expression settling over her features like Divine's fingers had just given her the best gift in the world.

"Goodnight, Divine Rosa," she murmured, the words barely more than a whisper. "Sweet dreams."

____________________________

She slept great.

Better than she had in weeks, maybe months. The kind of deep, dreamless sleep where her body just completely let go, trusting that everything was safe and good and exactly as it should be. She wasn't sure how Divine had slept - Aroha was a heavy enough sleeper that a taniwha really could have moved into the apartment and she wouldn't have noticed - but having someone else there had done something to her that she hadn't expected.

When she got up in the middle of the night to pee, shuffling half-asleep to the bathroom, she didn't look suspiciously over her shoulder at the shadows in the corners like she usually did. Didn't wonder if someone was waiting there in the dark because it was too quiet. The apartment just felt... occupied. Warm. Home.

But Aroha had always been an early riser - the sun came up, so she came up with it - and this morning was no different. Moving with the careful precision of someone who'd perfected the art of not waking sleeping cousins, Aroha slipped out from under the covers. The cool air hit her skin, making her shiver slightly, but she padded quietly toward the kitchen, her bare feet silent on the floor.

Time to cook. Cooking was one of the things that made her feel most close to home here, the familiar rhythm of preparation and heat and watching food transform.

Aroha didn't understand the strange humming box above the stove that someone had called a "microwave," and she was frankly too afraid to experiment with the blocky thing on the counter that another person had insisted she needed called an "air fryer." Those were mysteries for another day. But the stovetop? The stovetop she understood. Fire and pan and food - simple, reliable, exactly like back home.

Because the morning felt too good to contain, while she worked, Aroha started to dance. Having finished the eggs and started on the toast, her feet did a small shuffling step as she pushed it around in the pan, making sure it browned evenly. She even tried a bit of the hip wiggle she didn't think she was too good at, just to see how easy it was to adjust.