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Lydia was, in fact, just sitting in a library poring over a book on evasive cryptids, when she received the text.

Not one to receive texts often, she nearly fell out of her chair at the chiming and buzzing that came from her pocket. A startled yelp of a sound escaped her, her hand going to her chest, and she blinked several times before she let out a soft near laugh, trying to remain quiet as several pairs of eyes glanced her way, giving her one of those looks.

She tried to ignore them, and busied herself with pulling out her phone to check the message. The sight of it who sent it alone made her grin, a wide smile that only widened as the message itself was read. Quickly, she tapped in a response.



She thought perhaps that this might have more to do with the promise of dinner, but she asked just to be sure, lest she make a fool out of herself.

Lydia had to stifle another giggle, but she couldn't hide the grin that spread from ear to ear as she read his return text. It wasn't just that he called her pretty, she had heard him say as much several times before, but it was the overall feel good vibe that she always got from Arorangi in person, sent to her through text form instead. It was impossible not to smile, or get excited about him asking her to go out for something to eat.



She was about ready to fall out of her chair in a fit of giggles that she desperately tried to hold in, her body shaking with the effort.

At some point Lydia had, actually fallen out of her chair. It was because of this that her reply took a little longer to come through, as she straightened herself out, drawing her knees up to her chest, sitting beneath the library table. Reaching for her accidentally dropped phone, she picked it back up and re-read the last message Arorangi had sent. A blush had creeped up onto her cheeks from her embarrassment at having ended up where she was, but she was back to goofy smiles anyways as she tapped in a reply.



Wait...was it a date??? She had already hit send and there was no taking it back now. Still, it was...just an expression right? Oh dear. Her smile had vanished, leaving in it's place a wide eyed look of pure horrified confusion. Quickly pocketing the phone and vowing not to look at it again, she scooted out from under the table and got herself back in her seat so that she could begin reading again.

She quickly found that, in her current (now nervous) excitemen, that was impossible, and soon was leaving the library anyways.

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Six o'clock came, and Lydia arrived right on schedule. Arorangi had told her to dress comfortably, and she had, in a long half sleeved brown sweater that fit her just a bit better then most of her others, and a grey skirt with orange polka dots. Her boots were of a soft, tan leather, half laced with the tops left open, and her socks were thick, warm, and matched her sweater.

Her hair was loose, but tamed down for once. Her face was touched up with just the smallest hints of makeup, lip gloss, a light, shimmery eye shadow, a little bronzer on her normally pale cheeks. It was subtle, but made a noticeable difference to her over all look. Slung over her shoulder was a small brown purse, which inside held her fake I.D., her debit card, and her lip gloss should she need to touch up. She thought that maybe she finally felt pretty in the way that Arorangi always said that she was, and that was what she was going for when she made her way to the lighthouse, a large, warm smile on her face. Her heart was racing inside of her chest, as it had been since pretty much the moment he had invited her out, and there was a definite excited spring to her step as she came to the lighthouse entrance and stopped, peering inside with a long.

"Helllooooooooooo?" And a grin to follow.

When she spotted Arorangi, when she turned towards him with a giant grin on her face, she had expected him to, like always, scoop her up in one of his massive, rib bruising hugs. In fact, she might have already begun to lift her arms, but when she heard him stutter slightly, they dropped, and wide eyes blinked at him in concern.

And he was staring at her. Oh dear had she smudged her make up? Had she put it on all wrong? Had she accidentally tucked her shirt into her underwear??

She craned her neck around to look at her backside as best as she could, not sure what to think at the moment, but then Aro approached, and she turned towards him, and what he had to do and say next sent a small thrill through her, her face warming up at that gentle contact of his lips against her cheek.

"Ohhhhh, thank you." She said, sounding rather...subdued for a change, as one hand reached up to press against her now hot and very pink cheek. "You look just...as handsome as always." She smiled, "Okay wait no, I take that back. More handsome then ever!" She grinned, and leaned into him for a moment, hand moving from her cheek to press against his chest as she let out a small laugh.

Oh god his chest felt so good under her hand, so muscular and firm.

She suddenly had a feeling she was in way over her head and was going to completely bumble this, no matter how good Cee's lessons had been.

Nervous, yes. That was quite accurate. In a way she wasn't sure she should even be doing this, trying, in any sense of the word, to behave seductively in front of this man who had become such a very good friend. She liked him, quite a lot, in fact, and was unsure if what she had planned might be considered wrong, and improper, and worried just slightly that he might just end up angry with her.

Though an angry Arorangi was just something that was impossible for her to picture. She wasn't sure it was even feasible.

But just because she had never seen it didn't mean it couldn't happen.

"Oh no, it's okay! I'm not really worried I'm just....." What to say, what to saaaaaay???

"I've just never been out with a guy before um...on a date or otherwise." She admitted, her gaze lowering as she bit down on her bottom lip, and then stopped herself as she realized she was going to ruin the gloss she had applied by doing so.

But at least what she said was the truth, even if it was not quite the reason for her nervous behavior. Peeking up at him again, she smiled when he squeezed her hand, and let it slide into the crook of his elbow before he began to lead her towards the portal. "I am sure we are going to have a fantastic time!" She gushed, her second hand coming up to rest on his bicep, which also felt very nice beneath her touch.

She stepped through the portal, and when they arrived on the other side, she let out a small gasp of delight.

Even though she had no idea where they were.

"Ohhhhhhh it's so wonderful!" She would have clapped her hands together but touching and physical contact, Cee had said that it was important, so Lydia's hand stayed just where it was.

It was surprising to hear that this was Arorangi's first time too, if she was indeed understanding him correctly. In a way, hearing so was actually quite comforting, and it managed to partially ease the nerves that had begun to build up, a couple of deep breaths doing wonders for clearing up more. She grinned up at him, and leaned her head against his arm, feeling much better already.

On the other side of the portal, there was so much to see and to hear even though it was obvious that their destination was the restaurant directly in front of them. There was music, laughter, bright lights, an atmosphere and ambiance so unlike Deus that it was almost overwhelming at first! She couldn't help but stare around with bright eyes, one of her hands slipping away from Aro's arm (though the other still remained in the crook of his elbow) while she straightened up and took a moment to just drink it all in.

"It's wonderful!" She said again, apparently at a loss for words, her hand going back to Aro's arm to squeeze it tight, absolutely delighted and not sure how else to show it. "And I'm sure it will be fantastic and...Ohhhhh!" Colorado City! She had never actually been there before, which almost seemed surprising considering her penchant for travel and exploration.

She let him lead her across the lawn, to her credit only stumbling once with a loud giggle. When he opened to door for her, she practically flounced her way through, excited, grinning, and enjoying herself immensely even though the evening had only just begun.

Wait, did he say...?

"I LOVE KARAOKE!" She squealed.

Incredibly loudly.

Lydia let her gaze wander around the restaurant as they made their way inside, taking it all in. She loved the lights that were strewn about, the atmosphere with all of it's positive energy and good cheer practically calling to her. She had eaten at a good many different places in many different parts of the world, but in each instance she was always able to find a unique sense of beauty, much as she found in just about everything, unkind people and mysterious monsters included. This place was, of course, no exception, though she was certain that present company only further enhanced the experience for her.

"Oh, oh! We could duet?" She asked him, beaming up at him in excitement. "Like Summer Nights!" Yes, that was what they should sing. Most definitely.

Noticing that Arorangi was getting them a table, she made her way towards him, and was only too happy to slip her hand into the crook of his arm again, letting out a small giggle as he swept her away to follow the hostess.

"So, did you live near here?" She asked, genuinely curious, as they made their way towards the table the hostess led them to. Obviously she remembered that he was from Nebraska, but that wasn't really all that far away.

"Oh my, such a gentlemen!" She was forced to release him as he moved to pull out her chair for her, and she made her way over to the chair, careful not to flounce around like she so desperately felt like doing, managing to restrain herself but only barely.

She totally plunked herself down into the chair while her fingers curled into the hem of her skirt, however, head tilting back to look up at Arorangi.

"But who'll hold out your chair for you?" She suddenly sprang back up and moved around the table to his side, and pulled out his chair, leaning her elbow against the back of it and placing her chin in her palm with a goofy sort of grin on her face.

So much for restraining herself.