The beach, Isla San Pedro, Chile, Wednesday morning

[betterthanaplan]

Duke had promised Lucifer he'd build them a cabana on the beach. Duke had renovated the Cape Rouge on his own, and had no doubts of his ability to build something that didn't even have to float.

Duke was learning that boat interiors and land exteriors did not actually share all that much in common.

Currently, he was looking concerned at the pile of lumber he'd ordered. He had tools and hardware, he had wood, he just didn't have any idea how to put them together just yet.

"C'mon, YouTube," he said, staring at his phone. "Help me out here."

[for the two who are here with him, if they wanna]

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[my_own_advocate]

"Are you doing all right, darling?" Lucifer called.

He was standing on a rock, a bit higher up, a mug of spiced coffee in hand. He was not wearing much more than his bathrobe, which was more than he'd been wearing for most of the past few weeks.

[betterthanaplan]

Duke was fully dressed himself, though he was quite likely to ditch his shirt once the actual laboring began.

“All good, babe!” He called back with far more confidence than he actually had. “Just . . . figuring out where to start.”

The frame? That was how the Amish started their barns, wasn’t it?

[my_own_advocate]

"A foundation and a frame?" Lucifer called.

[betterthanaplan]

"Foundation," Duke muttered. "Yeah, that's --" He shook his head, then smiled up at Lucifer. "You gonna watch?"

[my_own_advocate]

"And offer moral support," Lucifer agreed. He reached down and lifted a cooler. "As well as provide beverages. But you know how much I do love watching you getting sweaty in the sun."

[betterthanaplan]

"That I do," Duke agreed. "And I should have somewhere nice for us to chill when I'm done being sweaty!"

It was entirely possible there would no longer be any sun by then. Unless he took a break and came back tomorrow to finish it.

[my_own_advocate]

"Excellent plan!" Lucifer called, giving him the thumbs up. "Do you have a soda preference?"

[betterthanaplan]

"Uhhhh," Duke said. Like a genius. "Something fruity?"

He didn't drink a whole lot of soda.

[my_own_advocate]

Look, even Lucifer knew that alcohol and toiling in the sun were bad match.

Lucifer reached around in the cooler, fishing around. "How do you feel about lychee juice?" he asked.

[betterthanaplan]

"I'm a fan!" Duke said. "You've got Ramune in there?"

What? Duke was not above the occasional weeaboo moment.

[my_own_advocate]

"If that is what you desire," Lucifer said, fishing around in the box.

[betterthanaplan]

"It is," Duke said, amused. "Among many other things, I would love to have a cold Ramune."

[my_own_advocate]

Lucifer chuckled. "Catch," he called, tossing the drink his way.

[okteiviakom]

"You need help, snogon?"

Octavia was not dressed to help. She was dressed to roam around the beach, and maybe to swim, if anything.

This wasn't going to keep her from offering.

[betterthanaplan]

Duke absolutely needed help.

He gave her a grin instead.

"I think I can work it out. Going for a swim?"

[okteiviakom]

"I'm thinking about it?" Octavia offered. "Haven't decided yet."

But she'd clearly thought about it enough that it looked like she was wearing a bathing suit under her very thin caftan-type thing.

(Skinny dipping was fun but there were times she felt like being less free.)

[betterthanaplan]

Swimsuits had their own kind of sexiness, so Duke wasn't at all adverse to seeing people in them. He just generally preferred not wearing one when he could get away with it, himself.

"Fair enough," he said idly, looking at the lumber again. Foundation, then the frame. Okay. He could do this. He needed to sink some posts into the sand to get a good solid foundation in.

Did he have a post-holer?

"Maybe I'll join you when I'm done."

Someday.

[okteiviakom]

Octavia eyed his gathered materials for a beat.

"You sure you don't want any help?"

[betterthanaplan]

"Nope!" Duke said cheerfully. "But I am stubborn enough that I'm going to insist on at least trying to get this done by myself first."

[okteiviakom]

Octavia snorted.

"Well, in that case..."

She was going to be peeling the caftan off, now.

[betterthanaplan]

Duke paused his work (well, staring at the wood pile) to watch her.

"Meizen," he said. "As usual."

[okteiviakom]

Octavia made her final movement of pulling the caftan over her shoulders just a little slower, as a treat.

And then it was off, and she was setting it aside to wait for her. If the process involved a nice bend of her body in her sporty swimsuit? So be it. "Mochof."

[betterthanaplan]

Duke hummed happily at the small amount of show. Then spotted the post-holer and let out a yell.

"There it is!"

Sorry, Octavia, it was hard to balance ogling with constructing what promised to be a location used almost entirely for sex.

[okteiviakom]

Octavia looked somewhere between unimpressed and amused. "Right," she drawled, "you habe have fun with that."

She'd be walking into the water, now.