"What do you even need the soup recipe for?" Nami asked, suspicion evident in her voice.

"What? You think I can't ask for it by myself?" Risa asked, leaning back on the counter with her eyebrows raised.

"No, I know you. You're much too lazy to cook your own food."

"Hey! I cook my own breakfast."

"Of basically bread." Nami pointed out.

"Point made." Risa rubbed the back of her neck with a sheepish grin. "I promised someone I'd give it to them, if you really wanna know."

"Who?" Nami asked, "And why didn't they just ask me for the recipe? You did tell them I was the one who made it right? You wouldn't take credit for making my soup, and whoever would've believed you obviously doesn't live here."

"I can cook!"

"Sure." Nami waved off the rebuttal, "So who is it? Someone from out of town?"

"No," Risa said, "He just hides a lot. I'm not sure where he lives. Probably somewhere in the woods."

Nami blinked, "Really? You couldn't have even made up a convincing lie?"

"It's not a lie."

"I know," Nami explained, "I just wasn't prepared for the truth; that you befriended a homeless guy who lives in the woods and sounds strangely suspicious."

Risa smiled and shrugged.

"I'll give you the damn recipe. As long as you don't tell me anything more about this."

"Deal."

After having Nami write down the recipe in very large handwriting, followed by, "Nami, he can read," Risa left the hotel. It was already late, Risa hadn't been able to ask Nami for the recipe all day she had been so busy helping Gotz add to her barn. The man insisted he could do it alone, and Risa told him time and time again that she knew he could, she was doing this because she wanted to. He had come to begrudgingly accept working beside her on a project she was fully paying for, but in the beginning it just didn't sit well with him. But they finished it early anyways.

Risa made her way up to the goddess pond and sat down cross legged, staring at the water, and then flopping onto her back with her arms stretched out to watch the stars. it was getting darker earlier these days, the stars coming out brighter as the foggy humidity of summer decreased and cleared the air. Risa yawned. She was tempted to go home, she would've if it weren't for the fact she promised the guy. He really wasn't even worth one yawn, and she felt a second coming on.

She heard some bushes rustle and turned her head to the side and grinned. He paused, his eyes widened in fear before he saw it was only Risa and his face eased into a smirk.

"Waiting for me?" He teased.

"I promised you a recipe about three eons ago." Rise replied.

"It's been maybe a week, beautiful."

"Eons, man. You know what can happen in a week?"

"I'm afraid not."

"You need to get out more."

Skye laughed sharply at her joke and Risa gave him a crooked grin, fishing out the crumpled paper from her pocket and chucking it at his feet half-heartedly.

"Duties paid."

Skye bent down to pick it up, then walked over to Risa and sat next to her on the edge of the pond. "A gift from a fair maiden? I shall treasure it forever."

She laughed and punched his arm lazily, he grinned down at her.

"So how you doin'?" She asked as she focused back on the stars.

"I'd much rather hear about how your day was." Skye replied.

"You trying to be domestic?" Risa raised her eyebrows at him, amused. "I think you're the one with the more interesting life."

"Anything involving you is interesting to me."

"Someone should write a romance novel based on your mouth alone. I love your pick-up lines."

Skye wiggled his eyebrows, "Like you love me, yes?"

Risa laughed loudly, the sound echoing in the night, "See? You're so funny." She sat up and scooted closer to the edge of the pond, running her fingers through the water.

"I brought you something." Skye said suddenly.

"You did not."

"I did, in fact." Skye insisted, pulling out a flower from behind his back and offering it to Risa. "For you. Though it's radiance is not comparable."

Risa looked at the flower. "You just picked that five seconds ago from that patch over there you stupid bastard." She laughed at his audacity.

Skye grinned, "I couldn't help it. You just looked so beautiful."

"Ah, man." Risa sighed with a smile, "You're not boring, that's for sure."

Skye shook the flower he still held out towards her as a reminder.

Risa shook her head, "I don't want it."

Skye pouted and held his hand over his heart in mock hurt, thought he did put the flower down. "You wound me."

Risa shrugged.

"Would you have taken it if I had actually thought ahead to bring you flowers?" Skye questioned.

"No. I don't like them. Too cheesy. Too romantic. I do like one type of flower though." Risa replied as she flicked water across the pond.

"Oh, I suppose I'm going to have to find out this mystery flower and present you with one." Skye noted.

"No that's okay I'll just tell you. It's sunflowers."

"Is that your way of asking me to bring you some?"

"No actually I don't think I'd like it if you did."

"Is that your way of passively-aggressively telling me you would like some sunflowers?"

Risa laughed at him, amused. "I'm not passive aggressive."

Her expression morphed into a smirk and she flicked the hand in the pond so that water splashed onto Skye. He jolted, then grinned. Cupping his hand into the pond as well and flinging water towards Risa. She laughed.

"That's not gonna work."

Skye scrunched his eyebrows, confused. "Why?"

"Because. What's that much water to a pond full?" And with that she kicked off her shoes and dove into the water.

Skye's eyes widened, and he laughed when she resurfaced, tilting her head back and spewing water from her mouth straight up into the air like a whale. She gave him one more grin before diving underwater only to resurface directly in front of him, her hair dripping wet and hanging in her eyes.

"Hey." She greeted him, eyes sparkling.

He smiled down at her. "Hello."

"Wanna come in?"

Skye looked conflicted. "No, I don't think I will."

Risa scoffed and waved her hand, water dripping off. "Please," she dismissed.

"Please what?" Skye questioned.

"Like you even had a choice." And with that Risa grabbed his feet, jerking him sharply into the water with a loud splash.

Skye fell in, arms flailing, before he even realized what had happened. He resurfaced a moment later looking much like a wet dog. Risa laughed.

"C'mon dude, it's not that bad."

"Yes, well, you could've given me the courtesy of allowing me to take off my shoes." Skye replied, holding onto the edge of the pond and reaching down to pry his shoes off his feet and sit them on the bank.

"That would've ruined the surprise though." Risa argued. "Here, I'll fix it." She swam over to where she had left her shoes, and if one motion dunked them underwater only to bring them out a few seconds later soaking wet. She set them on the dry ground and flashed Skye a smile. "There. Even."

Skye frowned, "I didn't mean for you to feel as if you had to inconvenience yourself at my expense. It is never my wish to trouble a beautiful woman."

"No I wanted to." Risa said, laying on her back and kicking herself around the pond, "It's fair." She swam up to him and stopped, a grin on her face. "See? It's not so bad now, right? Least it's not cold out." She backpedaled to him and stopped, looking up into his face. "Swim." She said, and gave him a grin. "It's fun, I promise. You worried you're gonna ruin your fancy shmancy clothes or somethin'?"

Skye frowned. "They are mildly expensive." He said with a hint of a whine.

Risa laughed, "So don't wear expensive clothes. Your fault."

"I wasn't aware I was going to be pulled into the water by a fair lady when I put on these clothes this morning."

"Psh." Risa waved her hand. "That's what you get for being unprepared. Expect the unexpected and all that jeez, you know." She took a gulp of air and sunk under the water.

Skye assumed he might as well follow her, he took a deep breath and plunged underwater. He felt much better once he did, and ventured to open his eyes.

It was dark, so he could barely see anything but the faint glow of the moon and those blue flowers. Risa was just a black blob underwater, but it was nice all the same. Very quiet. He pushed around and felt himself glide through the water. It was like everything was muted down here, he thought. When he resurfaced Risa was already leaning against the side of the pond, with her head leaning on the ground looking up at the sky. She shifted her eyes to look down at him and grinned.

Skye thought he should go. He waded over to the edge and pulled himself up with some effort. He didn't know wet clothes were that heavy.

"Where're you goin'?" He heard behind him and turned around to see Risa watching him from the pool.

He smiled, "Perhaps I have a house to pillage, you never know."

She laughed. "Oh, then by all means don't let me keep you. Later." She let go and allowed herself to fall underwater.

Skye shook his head and disappeared into the woods.