Garden Of The Abyss

Finally taking his sable cloak off and removing his thick, warm coat, he sat down with only the light tunic woven of black fabric resting on his tired torso, finally lying flat on his back as he spread his arms as if making a snow angel.

"...I'm on a bed," he smiled.

It had become such a foreign concept to him within the bowels of the hellish realm; just feeling the soft, cushiony feeling of the bed pressed against his taut and tired back almost made him want to cry.

"Fight, fight, fight," those are the words that embedded themselves into his mind--the words that represented Purgatory most.

It's fine if I rest, right? Nothing bad will happen?...Is it really okay? I suppose...I can, he thought.

Settling himself into the comfort of the cushiony bed, he placed his head gently against the softness of the pillow, allowing his eyelids to shut slowly.

It's so soft...It reminds me of home, he thought.

Running his palm against the smooth, silky comforters laid on the bed, it didn't take long for him to guide himself to slumber.

Leaving the comfort of the steamy water present in the ivory bath, Iris found a fresh change of clothing already prepared on the marble counter within the bath section; a delightful, light night gown holding a cobalt tinge.

"Was this here before…?"

Iris muttered, but she gladly slid the light, minimalistic, but beautiful dress over her body, accompanying it with a matching pair of knee-high socks that were set beside the dress.

Holding a blush at the thought of showing the young man this new outfit, she ran her hands through her moist, azure locks before taking in a breath--marching outside of the bath.

To her surprise, he was already fast asleep on the bed, curled up slightly with one hand kept close to his chin.

"...He's like a baby," Iris whispered.

She gently poked his cheek before smiling; slowly, she sat down on the bed beside him in an effort not to wake him.

Through his snowy tufts, she ran her lithe fingers through them delicately while watching his peaceful, slumbering expression.

"...Mgh…"

Shuffling in his sleep, he slowly parted his eyelids--being greeted by the unusually close image of the pale, blue-haired girl in front of him.

"...Iris?"

He asked sleepily, rubbing his eyes. Though he was half asleep, he could see the scarlet complexion that overtook not only her cheeks, but the bridge of her nose.

"Y-yes?"

"Did I fall asleep?" He yawned, sitting up on the bed.

By some miracle for her, his sleepy haze didn't lend to him asking any questions that would send her into a clear fluster.

Answering his groggy question, she nodded, "...Yeah, it wasn't that long though. I only came out of the bath a bit ago."

"Ah…" He replied, "A bath sounds nice right now...I think I'll go take one."

Ren got up from the bed as she watched him stretch his arms out, letting out a satisfied sigh as he shuffled to the bathing room without another word.

"Phew…" Iris breathed out.

The moment Ren closed the door behind him, the click of the lock helped lift him from his groggy, half asleep state as he blinked a few times while standing still.

"Was I...in bed with her just now?" He asked himself.

Just picturing it now made him quiver with feelings that he thought left during his time undergoing puberty.

...I hope I wasn't talking in my sleep, he thought.

Removing his clothes, it felt more like he was peeling them off from his skin as the mixture of old blood and sweat made for a rather persistent adhesive.

Gross, he thought.

Tossing them aside onto the smooth, wooden flooring that was still laden with a thin layer of water from the previous usage of the bath, he approached the rather sizable tub.

"Mm...I guess it's not too different from the one back home? I just press this and…"

Slowly allowing his index finger to approach the cobalt rune embedded in the wall behind the tub, a simple press caused it to glow with magical energy before hot water began to pour from the faucet attached to the tub.

A smile stretched across his lips at the sight of the steam that lingered above the tub, quickly sinking himself into the warm water of the bath.

"Ah...that's the stuff," he sighed with utmost relaxation.

By all means, to him, it was heaven. At last, his sore, overexerted muscles were allowed to rest as the heated water caressed his exhausted body.

Looking at his own body, he lifted his snowy eyebrows as he playfully flexed his own biceps, doing the same with his triceps before poking his abdominals.

Hold on, I'm pretty damn built, aren't I? I mean, I knew I got kind of buff before, but Purgatory has really packed on the heat, hasn't it? He thought.

Chuckling to himself, he returned to his relaxed state within the holds of the water.

Mm...is it alright if I sleep here? He thought.

He closed his eyes with a giddy smile as he was left in pure bliss.

Plop.

The sound of something falling against the water was a bit different, but he assumed it was the wonderful, last droplets of steaming water topping off the perfection that was this session with the bath.

No, no, it'd be much better to get into bed after a nice, warm bath, right? He thought.

Plop. Plop.

The noises continued, but he blissfully swam his legs through the utopian water as the size of the bath allowed for him to fully extend his feet.

...Even better, I'll be getting into bed with Iris after. Wait, is this place actually Heaven? He thought.

Plop. Plop. Plop.

This time as he moved his legs, something different was felt; something not completely liquid, but not fully solid either. It was squishy; definitely not something he expected to feel within the smooth, unbarred water.

"...Mm?"

Begrudgingly, he opened a single eye, peering down though it was impossible to see into the steam-coated bath that was filled with bubbles.

--Without warning, whatever it was existing in the bath latched onto his leg, prompting an immediate fight-or-flight reaction from him as he jumped out of the bath.

"What the--!"

He landed on his feet, instinctively kicking away whatever it was that attached itself to his leg--by some miracle, it released its grip.

Bouncing a few times before stopping at the other side of the wooden, personal bath chamber, the round, smooth creature that looked almost gelatin faced him.

"A...slime? The hell is it doing here?!" Ren asked himself.

As he squared off against the slime as large as a guard dog, a voice came from the other side of the door, "Is everything alright in there?...I heard a loud noise."

Iris?! He thought.

"I…" Just as he opened his mouth--he stopped himself.

Wait, this is bad! She might try and come in if I tell her what's going on…! I'm totally in the nude! Excalibur is unsheathed! He thought.

"I…I'm fine! I just slipped a bit!" He yelled out to her.

All the while, the slime crawled against the tile floor towards him slowly, forcing him to keep his guard up.

"Oh...be careful!"

"You got it!" He replied swiftly.

Listening to her footsteps distance from the door, he let out a relieved sigh before completely returning his focus to the slime. He extended his hand towards it, focusing his magical energy.

One piercer should do it--probably overkill, but it interrupted my precious bath time! He thought.

--But before such measures could be taken, another realization came to him--one that changed the entire tone of the situation.

Magic is prohibited, he remembered, I'd rather not break the rules and risk getting kicked out...if I lose this bath--no, if I lose this special one-on-one time with Iris…!

Realizing this, he gulped as he raised his fists, "Alright, buddy....we're doing this the old-fashioned way."