A/N: Woo! More Champloo fic. I seem to be in a rut.
Disclaimer: Samurai Champloo belongs to its creators. I am using the characters and setting without permission and for no profit.
That said, N-joi!
The mud had been worth it. Mugen suffers worse on a daily basis, blood continually caking his joints and sticking around the hairs on his legs and arms, splintering into his sandals. Mud is nothing.
He'd gotten two good armfuls of apples out of that tree before he was spotted, too.
Mugen emerges from his conquest with mud streaking every available surface from his face to his calves, his sandals plastered to his feet. Apple juice drips from his chin as an overlarge bite makes his cheek bulge. He swallows and grins obscenely as the muscles in his neck stretch to accommodate.
Jin shoves him in the river, catching the few apples left and setting them on the bank to be washed as well.
Mugen surfaces some yards away and growls, scrambling onto the bank. Mud runs off of him in rivulets, and at this rate it will dry in thinner streaks. Already his skin itches. Mugen's growl intensifies as he rolls back into the water, stripping down and rubbing his skin with sword-callused hands. He revels in the snap-sharp cold that pulls the heat of the day out through his skin so the hairs raise with the force of it.
Throwing his head out of the water, Mugen lets fly an arc of thinned sludge and shakes himself like a dog. He dives back under, bending almost double in shallow cold, stretching and scrubbing until he can feel his scalp through the dirt.
Some yards away, Jin is bent like a willow branch, white against the day's oversaturated blue and green, clad only in pants and washing the rest against the river stones. For once, his glasses are off, resting by his swords, in arm's reach but in no danger of being swept away by the river.
Mugen slides through the water, using his hands against the river bottom, until one finds the fabric in Jin's hands. He surfaces and his hair drips into his eyes.
"Modest?" he slurs, an eyebrow cocked. Jin pulls his clothing out of Mugen's hands, efficiently wrings it out, and lays it to dry on a rock in the sun. Mugen can feel the heat evaporating water from his shoulders even as he idles.
"They can go a while longer," Jin responds, dusting off one of his pant legs.
"You sure?" Mugen grins, advancing with legs stretched and toes splayed, serpentine. "The knees have a fuckload of grass stains on 'em."
Jin looks down his nose at Mugen, unreadable. When one hand undoes the sash at his waist and pulls it free, Mugen's grin intensifies.
With great skill and speed, Jin dips his sash into the river, twists it, and snaps Mugen's forehead.
Mugen reels backward, one hand clutching his face and the other in a fist. He snarls wordlessly and lunges for Jin, pinning him with hands on his shoulders and almost surprised to have caught him so easily.
Jin wraps the sash around Mugen's wrist and slams the side of his hand into the inside of his elbow. Mugen buckles and rolls to the side, scrambling on the mud and rocks to catch a hold. Jin lands a knee between his thighs.
There is a tinge of amusement to Jin's voice, not condescending but genuine. The distinction is hard to make but Jin's glasses have been off for some time, out of arm's reach but closer than Mugen's clothes. "You speak as if you'd made them."
Mugen scowls. "Didn't I?"
Without the sash, Jin's pants hang open and low, sliding slowly away. Jin pays it no mind. It is all Mugen can focus on.
"No," Jin murmurs. "I, for one, am able to maintain my balance."
Mugen sneers. "Only 'cause you were holding on to the wall." He spreads his own legs against Jin's knees and pulls them apart, dragging them through the grass and forcing Jin's balance off. Jin's calm does not falter but he is taken by enough surprise that Mugen can get a knee up and slide it down Jin's thigh, taking his pants with it. Mugen's eyes follow, his grin quirking with an aggressive little growl.
Jin takes a moment to sigh, utterly put-upon, squeezing Mugen's wrists a bit harder, digging in his nails. "Note I allow you the luxury of reclining."
Mugen grunts, curling as far as he can get to try to reach Jin. The other man hovers just out of range, dry expression blurring when Mugen gets close but not enough. He writhes but Jin holds on. "Y'callin' me clumsy?"
A low chuckle precedes Jin bending his head to teasingly lick Mugen's lips. "And lazy and incompetent, yes."
Mugen bucks hard, almost throwing Jin into the river. "Say that again, rat bastard!" he snarls, snapping at Jin's lips. Jin leans back, out of range, but overbalances enough for Mugen to roll, his toes slipping in the mud, and lay Jin flat. Mugen growls in his face, twisting his wrists out of Jin's hands and rearing a hand back. "I'll beat you into next week!"
Jin raises one eyebrow, his hair coming out of its ponytail and tangling in the grass. "You couldn't even fuck me that hard."
For an instant, Mugen's fist hovers, wavering in the air over his shoulder. Stunned silence stretches, broken only by the increasing rate of Mugen's breath as real, heady color taints his cheeks. Jin waits, relaxed, as if he has all the time in the world. The slow grin that creeps over Mugen's lips belies the low growling purr rumbling in his throat. Unable to hold it in any longer, Mugen bends his head and his shoulders begin to shake.
Laughter, incredulous and open, curves the line of Mugen's spine. The side of Jin's mouth quirks upward and he reaches out to pull the hand Mugen still holds high down to him. Idly, he checks Mugen's fingernails before swiping his tongue over Mugen's palm. Mugen is still laughing, even as Jin takes two of his fingers into his mouth.
"Never say that again." Mugen's tone softens as Jin's lips darken. "Sounds fuckin' silly."
Jin shrugs a shoulder, tracing Mugen's knuckles with his teeth.
"Fuckin'…" Mugen's voice falters, his body jerking forward of its own accord, and any subsequent speech is drowned by a long, low moan. Jin nips at Mugen's wrist and lets him have his hand back.
Mugen hits the water with a loud splash, his limbs flailing heavily and his balance gone. He surfaces as fast as he can, mouth open and ready to start another fight when Jin slides down the bank and under the water. Jin surfaces, muddy rivers twining down his back, and kneels in the river to wash out his hair.
Mugen, downstream, watches and counts the red marks on Jin's skin when he tips his head.