The Pool, Thursday Morning

[endsthegame]

That morning Ender had received four phone calls from Peter.

Three had come from Fandom's Peter, and in all cases Peter had hung up before Ender managed to even answer the call. The third was from his own Peter, calling in to confirm he'd be showing up and he'd be taking Petra and Suriyawong with him.

Ender's opinion of these events was mixed - though he would hardly say no to a chance to see Petra and Surrey again, the rest was a little more complicated.

Luckily, his regular morning swim always allowed for a good opportunity to clear his head. He made it there early so that he'd have some more time today, quickly stripping down to his swim trunks and diving in.

If there was one thing he'd miss about Fandom in the near future, it would be the easy pool access.

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[momslilassassin]

It seemed only right to Ben that as they got ready to graduate in a few days, he'd run into Ender by the pool where they'd first met.

"Ho, kreetle," he said, smiling softly.

[endsthegame]

Ender kicked his feet out, crossing the last foot or so of distance between him and the edge of the pool. He dropped his arms on the edge, keeping his body still, and met Ben's smile with one of his own. "Ho," he said. "No jogging this morning?"

[momslilassassin]

"It's rainy," Ben said. "I figured if I was going to get wet, I might as well do it here instead."

[endsthegame]

"Now that's terribly sound logic," Ender teased gently. "Get in the pool, then."

[momslilassassin]

Ben yanked his shirt and shoes off (he was getting noticeably less twitchy about being shirtless where someone who wasn't Ender could see him), then dove into the water.

[endsthegame]

Ender brought up an arm to shield himself from the resulting splash, then turned around to see where Ben had wound up.

[momslilassassin]

Ben grinned from about a third of the way down the pool. "I haven't done laps in way too long. I bet I'm rusty."

[endsthegame]

"You'll do fine," Ender said, shaking his head and smiling back at him. "Just remember to paddle."

[momslilassassin]

"So the objective isn't to sink and die?" Ben teased. "I've been doing it all wrong..."

[endsthegame]

Ender laughed. "I can stick by your side and keep you afloat if you need me," he said.

[momslilassassin]

"That sounds much more manly than water wings," Ben declared.

[endsthegame]

"I promise you, if I ever gave you water wings, I'd claim they were something much more exciting," Ender said, pushing away from the wall.

[momslilassassin]

Ben started a set of laps, keeping his pace leisurely. "Like what?"

[endsthegame]

"Rancor puffs?" Ender proposed. "I don't know. Insert your own terribly dangerous wordplay here."

He, himself, started up again as well; he had absolutely no trouble matching Ben, though that made talking more difficult.

[momslilassassin]

Ben completed five laps of the pool before taking a break and offering, "Rancor puffs sounds like a really terrible children's cereal."

[endsthegame]

"Something for in your blue milk," Ender said, swimming towards him.

[momslilassassin]

"Does it come with a prize at the bottom of the box?" Ben asked.

[endsthegame]

"A nibble on your ankle and a hit upside the head," Ender reported, reaching out for the edge and coming to a stop again.

[momslilassassin]

"Sounds like a Dathomiri mating ritual," Ben replied.

[endsthegame]

"I won't dignify that with a 'want to give it a shot'," Ender said, turning around so he could get a good bead on Ben's location again.

[momslilassassin]

Ben laughed at him. "Not in the pool, anyway," he said, swimming closer.

[endsthegame]

"No," Ender agreed.

He boosted himself up until he was sitting on the pool's edge.

"Feels familiar."

[momslilassassin]

Ben smiled and tugged playfully at Ender's ankle. "You've grown an inch or two since we were fourteen."

[endsthegame]

"And you... haven't," Ender teased, swatting a little water in his direction.

[momslilassassin]

Ben made a face at him. "Brat. Fortunately, I'm vastly more mature now."