deercountry | ( wow this sand is so quick!! )

Then you make all the navigational decisions and I'll sit back and enjoy the view.

[ and while they might not be in a car, katherine does take a big step back so that she can bring up the rear and admire stefan's. there's a fifty percent chance stefan's going to get them more lost than she would and she honestly cannot wait. ]

Yeah right, you would never let me have that much power. You get mad when I drive a certain way. You're not going to let me navigate and make all those decisions.

( stefan scoffs and shakes his head. he knows you, katherine. )

You don't like not having some control.

[ while he may be right, he's overlooked one thing: katherine's been letting stefan take control of some things over the course of the last year and a half. it's the small things: making decisions about dinner, driving, picking her shoes even if they don't go with her outfit, and trusting him to walk aleksander. she's been letting go. ]

I'm in control of my view right now and...

[ katherine lets out a low appreciative whistle. ]

Are you wearing the jeans I bought you? Snug in all the right places.

What? I don't know. All my jeans look the same to me. They're denim pants.

( so, maybe they are? maybe they're not? he's not sure. he looks down at them and then shakes his head. )

It doesn't really matter right now, does it?

It does since it's what I'll be looking at while you make the decisions for our course.

[ she even reaches forward and gives his undercarriage a little gentle slap. yep, those are definitely the jeans she bought for him. it makes her feel all warm and fuzzy on the inside that he's wearing them.

she feels a little domesticated. ]

Yep, those are it.

( stefan shoots her a look for that smack and then shakes his head. )

Would you stop that? You don't need to go smacking my ass to figure out if I'm wearing something you bought me?

( you're just trying to take advantage, katherine. )

I'm very old, Stefan. It helps me remember.

[ she'd poise her hand for another smack, but she holds her palms up in mock surrender and smiles at him sweetly. ]

Best keep your gaze forward. Wouldn't want to walk us into a tree, would you?

You're only very old when you wanna be.

( but he does as she asks, turning back to keep an eye on the path. he ducks underneath a low hanging branch and comes to what looks like a patch of mossy grass. )

Keep up, old woman.

I'm right behind you, Stefan.

[ right on his heels, even if there's a little bit of a respectful gap between them. no, it's not so she doesn't feel tempted to smack his ass. it's so she doesn't end up stepping on his heels.

she mutters, ] Not even enjoying the nice view of your ass.

( stefan starts walking and though the ground feels soft, it's not...terrible. he keeps going, one foot after another and then when he feels his shoe sink, he frowns. )

Stop, Katherine, stop.

( maybe the ground's just yet or something. )

[ katherine almost walks into him. while she had definitely been paying attention, she'd been a little distracted by the way his hair was shining and how there seemed to be a very small leaf in it.

she sighs, aggravated. ]

Why?

[ they were making so much effort! ]

Because there's something wrong.

( he doesn't know why but this just feels off. he frowns and takes a few more steps when his foot sinks quickly up to his ankle. he curses and tries to pull it free but it doesn't budge. )

Katherine, don't take another step. I mean it. Stop right now.

[ katherine does as he requests and stands behind him at a small distance. she peers down at his feet and can't help but chuckle. leave it to stefan to walk them straight into a small pool of quicksand. ]

You shouldn't have worn those shoes, Stef.

[ they were so nice and now they were filling with gross quicksand. ]

Be slow and pull your foot out.

Yeah, I just tried that. It's not working.

( he does it again but his foot only sinks in deeper. he frowns and keeps trying. )

I'd appreciate if you didn't laugh at this, Katherine. It's not like I meant it to happen.

I'm sorry.

[ she makes a show of clearing her throat loudly. while he can't see her, she even masks her face so that her smile is barely there. it threatens to beam, though. ]

I sometimes laugh at very dire and drastic situations.

[ only situations where stefan's a little huffy and puffy. ]

How about I pull you out?

How about you stay there?

( he doesn't want her getting any closer. he turns a bit and grimaces when his leg goes in deeper and deeper, quicker this time.

crap. )

Can you reach me from there?

[ she hums and eyes his feet for a moment. she needs to step closer to him to be able to reach him. long arms she does not have... but what he doesn't see, he doesn't need to know. ]

I can try. Can you stop moving? You'll be a stepping stone before I can grab you.

[ and she does make a reach for him, looping her hands under his armpits. ]

I'm not exactly trying to move, Katherine. I'm just sinking.

( she grabs him and he grunts a bit. )

Just don't step forward.

That's a little tough to do, love.

[ she grunts as she does her best to abide by what he asks, which is tough to begin with. she digs her heels into the damp ground and tries to pull him back, but it's hard to get a good grip on his underarm. ]

Can you just—Ugh!

[ her hands slip and she stumbles backward, almost breaking her heel. ]

How about you just let me try and figure this out, then?

( his leg's sunk up to his knee now and he grunts a bit, trying to find a handhold so he doesn't end up sinking completely into it. )

We both don't need to deal with this.

You're going to sink before you figure a way out of this one, Stef.

[ katherine's behind him again, mindful of where she places her feet. her heels sink a little, but it's the damp earth not doing its part, that's all. she slides her hands beneath his arms again and ensures to grip him strongly.

added as an afterthought: ] No offence.

Katherine, this isn't going to work. What about...is there something like a rope around here? I can tie it to myself.

( because this feels unwieldy and like she's going to end up in there with him. )

Or a branch that I can grab onto and you can pull?

[ she huffs in annoyance. reluctantly letting him go, she stumbles back and is quick to right herself. looking around, all she sees is branches, but all of them seem as skinny as him.

she turns, and that's when she sees it. he'll hear the cracking of a tree branch as she tugs one straight off the body of a tree. pulling as many of the unnecessary leaves off, she comes back to him and nudges him in the shoulder. ]

Come on.

[ she does her best to try and get the branch around him. ]

I can't believe you just broke that tree to get the branch.

( but it's probably the best bet since all the fallen branches are thin and would probably break. he leans forward as best as he can with his leg stuck and grabs onto it, gripping it hard. )

You have a good grip?

No.

[ she adjusts her hands, gripping and letting go and moving them. she's a little nervous given that it's him. stefan has this uncanny ability to make her hands sweat.

then she focuses, grips the branch tightly, and lets out a breath. ]

I am. Come on.

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