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 Posted: Thu Sep 22, 2011 9:44 pm
Malodore has been great with his investigating. He returned and provided Calder with all that was needed. It wasn't hard to piece it all together and create the perfect date for them. Colt's play! He had already scouted locations and found the place place. It was a nice cleaning, still secluded by lush trees, with the gentle noise of a nearby brook. It wasn't close to the trails, which meant students wouldn't happen by it easily or be able to spot any lights or eavesdrop on any voices they might hear. Privacy was key. Having any Tom, d**k, or Harry come waltzing in when they were trying to be intimate would be the biggest mood killer.
Once he found the place, he took a pair of chairs and a table from the monster dorm's storage closet. There were plenty to take that a set wouldn't go noticed. Calder borrowed some purple cushions and tied them with red ribbons to the chairs to provide cushioning and color, and then threw a slightly moth-eaten tablecloth over it. On the table laid some of the dried roses, provided by Malodore of course. Candlelight was out of the question and there was no way to put anything in the center without being a distraction to the undead. He wanted Malodore to look at Riley and not spend the entire time under the table whimpering.
To provide enough light, he grabbed mini bombs and hid them inside lanterns, these in purple, and let them hang from poles that circled around and casted the spot in soft light. He would have put them in heart-designed ones, but he paused and felt the night would wind up with Malodore complaining on how grossly inaccurate the heart shapes were, and decided on just a simple lantern. That done, he moved over to a crate that had a platter and checked on the candied brains and, closing the lid, looked under to the shelf below to the cage where a terrified squirrel squeaked at him. It had been a task, but he managed to get one for Malodore as his weird request. He didn't ask. He didn't want to know.
Done, he turned back to his accomplishment. Outdoors. Candied Brains. Live squirrel. Dried Roses. Purple as a favorite color with touches of red for Malodore. Calder felt rather proud of himself. Checking his eyephone, he noted the time and moved away. He hoped Malodore and Riley would be prompt, and that Malodore remembered to take the coat Calder insisted he bring alone.
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Posted: Thu Sep 22, 2011 10:05 pm
All was in readiness, and Malodore was... well, as close to giddy as a plague doctor could get without impending surgery/experiments/other scientific pursuits to look forward to. Everything was perfect. Calder was a demigod of pure Romance. Yes indeed.
The plague doctor had gotten dressed up, of course, or as much as it could. Its original fancy dress was not cut to allow for wings, so it had added its cravat to the nicest of its current coats and made sure it was extremely clean, smelling pleasantly of parchment with a hint of embalming fluid.
And it was walking backwards through the forest, coaxing Riley along with it. The illithid was under firm orders not to open her eyes or peek out from under her tentacles, under pain of... Malodore looking disappointed. But it trusted her with all its little undead heart. That would have to be enough.
"Almost there," it said, its voice trembling just a touch, with a blend of excitement and nervousness.
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Posted: Thu Sep 22, 2011 10:18 pm
What was even going on.
At first, Riley had been told to dress up. She never had a problem with this, because her closet had more fancy clothing than the regular outfits she'd been prone to wear during exercise and outdoor events. For one, she had just chosen a dress at random, and instantly regretted it - because the dress was short, and Riley did not like short, fluffy things. It certainly wasn't fluffing out in some awkwardly frilly manner, but the dress still had.. some fluff to it. At least it wasn't some terrible color like pink or yellow.
And even as they walked through the forest, she regretted it further. The night air was chilly, and her legs had goosebumps. It was tolerable, but really, she was just looking for things to internally complain about. It helped her keep her mind off of the insatiable curiosity that was growing inside of her. Why did Malodore want her to dress up? Why was she not allowed to look at where they were going? Why, why, why?
She had almost peeked a total of fourteen times since they left the dorms. Almost, because as soon as her tentacles had moved even an inch, she could feel just how trusting Malodore was being with her, and she relented. There was no reason to trust a demon like her to keep her own eyes covered - but it did. As it trusted her with all things.
It deserved that trust to be earned.
Can I look yet? She whined. She could be worth Malodore's trust if she tried, but she certainly wasn't going to be patient about it.
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Posted: Thu Sep 22, 2011 10:39 pm
"Not yet..." Malodore gently threaded them through some bushes, hoping it was remembering the correct pathway. Oh dear. Was it left at the beech or right? Uhhhhhhhhh....
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Posted: Thu Sep 22, 2011 10:50 pm
Calder was walking away from the path because he didn't want to run into Riley or Malodore during their date. Of course, is Malodore had been going the right way, Calder would have never seen them. When he walked and then stopped to see Malodore walking AWAY from the date location, the kelpie placed a hand over his face and tried not to sigh. Really, Malodore. All the intellegence to know the inner workings of a creature's body and yet he couldn't navigate three feet into the woods without getting lost.
It was a good thing that Calder cut it this close to make sure all the preparations were in order or else this entire date would be ruined with Malodore and Riley in the woods somewhere. Waiting for a search party was not a romantic way to spend the evening.
It was a good thing he knew how to walk quietly in the woods, and tiptoeing, Calder waved to the undead and pointed at the undead and then made some wild gestures that could be best described as WTF ARE YOU DOING HERE?? THE TABLE IS THIS WAY!!!
The Plague Doctor clearly needed an escort. Glancing, he made sure Riley had her eyes shut and also, checking a moment, made sure he was downwind.
Turning, he gestured to the undead and started to lead the way. Maybe he should stick around nearby in case something else went wrong?
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Posted: Thu Sep 22, 2011 10:52 pm
Malodore startled when Calder appeared, then made a little ah noise... all of which would doubtlessly seem very odd to Riley. It realized this a second later. "Ah, yes... this way! Come!" It tried to cover up its error by twirling her cutely to one side. Just missing a poison itch bush, actually...
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Posted: Thu Sep 22, 2011 10:59 pm
Riley's senses reached out to try and get a grip on where she was, or at least some kind of clue, when suddenly she was twirled, throwing off every sense she had been working up and barely clinging to Malodore's arm for support.
I'm.. worried. She admitted, tightening her closed eyes to keep herself from looking simply based on instinct. Are you sure you still need me to keep my eyes closed? If I fall..
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Posted: Thu Sep 22, 2011 11:04 pm
As quietly as he could, he walked ahead, moving through the woods and turning to make sure that Malodore and his blind date was moving along with him. The kelpie made sure to walk slowly, and was glad they were not to too far from the original path. Soon the purple glow of lantern light started to float up ahead, and Calder pointed and then pointed to the undead, and then to a path it pointed to that he hoped as visible. Calder then pointed straight out in that direction with his arm, making the arm straight to show to go STRAIGHT that way when they were done. One could only hope that, once her eyes were open, Riley might have a better sense of direction.
Still, he didn't want them both being lost if that was the case. So, for the sake of safety, Calder gestured for Malodore to move on ahead, and then moved to find a place to sit in the bushes further off just in case any bad new cropped up. If anying, if he noticed any wild animals or curious students stumbling their way, he could turn them in the other direction.
Finding a rather full bush, he crawled on all fours and moved inside. He would have changed into his natural form, but a white horse was easy to spot in the woods. Instead, he curled up and leaned against a tree. Too bad he didn't bring a ticker coat with him.
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Posted: Fri Sep 23, 2011 9:01 am
"You aren't going to fall," Malodore said quickly, steadying her. That said, if she actually did start tilting hard, it would be hard-pressed to catch her... it slowed down again, tracking Calder carefully.
Finally, it saw the faint glow between the trees. Malodore relaxed a bit. "Nearly there. A little further... few more steps..." it coaxed, backing up itself as it spoke. At last, its hooves hit the softer grass of the clearing.
"Va bene, you can open your eyes." It waited with... well, its breath was permanently bated, but. It waited with bated breath metaphorically.
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Posted: Fri Sep 23, 2011 1:36 pm
Riley's tentacles dropped like stones the moment it told her she could look. At first, her eyes rested only on Malodore. Her chest rose as she took a breath, ready to ask it what was going on..
..but that breath left her silently when her attention turned to the scene set before her.
She released its hands, and walked forward, tilting her head upward slowly as she walked underneath the lanterns. A slow twirl had her taking in the entire sight, with a widened gaze. She was suspiciously silent during all of this, but there was a great well of emotion speaking wordlessly in her eyes.
Had Malodore done all of this.. for her?
Her heart clenched painfully in her chest, and her hand rose to rest against it. She wanted to say something - she had a million questions - but she was stunned speechless. She couldn't even think straight. And this, of all things, was the rarest of reactions.
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Posted: Fri Sep 23, 2011 3:36 pm
"Do you like it?" Malodore asked, not entirely sure whether to be excited or nervous at this point. "I had help, but... Tutto ciò che è stato fatto, è stato fatto per voi."
It walked over to the table and picked up a single dead rose, holding it out to her shyly.
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Posted: Sat Sep 24, 2011 1:56 am
Her eyes widened just slightly as it asked the silliest of questions, and she let out a soft whimper of disbelief. Was there even a question? Well, yes, strictly speaking, there was a question - the one it had asked. It deserved an answer. She just.. needed to find her voice again. It was lost somewhere in the awe of the moment.
Come here. She reached out for Malodore, carefully gathering it up in her arms after plucking the rose out of its hand. She wrapped it in her embrace, curling her head under the long neck before her, and her mind seeped easily into Malodore's, to capture it in a long, lingering kiss.
She didn't want to let go. In fact, if it weren't for the storm of emotions waging war inside her, she would have probably stood there and kissed Malodore the entire night. But she eventually released him, if only because she needed to say something before she burst from the pain in her chest.
I love you.
There. The release was instant, and gratifying. And hopefully, it was enough of an answer for it.
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Posted: Sat Sep 24, 2011 2:55 pm
"Ti amo troppo," Malodore said quietly, gently brushing its beak against her cheek. "But, really, you must enjoy everything that has been prepared," it added, letting a bit of mischief creep into its voice. "You could kiss me anywhere, but there are certain delights only to be found in this place, here and now."
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Posted: Sun Sep 25, 2011 2:08 am
The mischief was noted, and Riley pulled away to give Malodore a careful glance. You fill me with curiosity. What have you plotted for me this night, Malodore? She took another glance, taking special note of certain details. They reminded her of a certain conversation..
And suddenly, the silliness of that day made a lot more sense.
She gave the plague doctor a quick squeeze and let it go, turning to reach up and touch one of the lanterns.
You know, this is all exceedingly romantic. One might think you were trying to woo me, if it was not already obvious you carry my heart with you already. She chuckled, twirling the rose in her fingers before sliding it behind her ear.
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Posted: Sun Sep 25, 2011 4:42 pm
"I may 'woo you' if I wish," Malodore said, stiffly, then opened its beak in a smile. "I wish to provide you with the proper experiences conducive to a healthy and meaningful relationship."
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