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 Posted: Tue Oct 24, 2017 7:23 pm
Andariel sat, quietly, at the bench in front of the library in town. She'd agreed to meet the gentleman she'd been chatting with privately here, and was curious as to how he would be in person. Her bright eyes were looking around, as her tails twitched, some in time with each other, others out of sync.
She was eager, though, to meet him. He seemed nice online, if a little reserved, and she hoped to make friends, if not more. She was lonely here in Below.
Laszlo turned to verify that his tail had not suddenly become infested with burrs for the fourth or so time, doing his best to not panic at the prospect of meeting someone new. It was a meeting, right? Right. Not a date, just meeting up with someone nice. He had been surprised at first when she had messaged him; his profile on the dating site had become...dated after he started to dig into his studies more. She seemed nice, and their conversations didn’t set off any alarm bells, so of course he agreed to see her in person. He sort of regretted the spot he had picked though; he was probably distracted with books at the time. Who meets someone at a library anyway? Hopefully she didn’t mind.
Rounding the corner, he casually checked to make sure his tail was neat for the last time, before scanning around the entrance to the library. Well, there was only a few people seated on the benches scattered about, and only one that had more tails that he, so it seemed like she might be the right person? Trying not to stare, he made his way closer until he confirmed that it was indeed who he was meeting, putting on a soft smile as he approached.
“Hey, Andariel?”
Oh yeah, super smooth, she’s probably stunned by your grace already.
Andi looked up, a warm smile gracing her face as the grimm approached, and she stood, holding her hand out to him. "Yes, that's me. Laszlo, I presume?" She looked him over, curiously, her silver and gold bangs falling into her eyes for a moment as she tilted her head at him. "I'm glad you were able to make it. I know it can be hard to fit stuff like this in around one's studies, so I appreciate you making the time for me."
She glanced down, and frowned, brushing at her skirt with surprised displeasure. "Wha... WHAT. I think the bench had fresh paint on it! They didn't have signs!" Her skirt had gained, on the back side, stripes in the color of the bench, and the bench itself had marks from where she was sitting. Luckily it was backless, and neither her tails nor her legs had come in contact with it, just her skirt. "DANG IT, and there goes my good impression I was trying to make..." She looked a touch distressed.
He shook her outstretched hand, trying not to squeeze it too hard, ears perking up at how polite she seemed. Briefly taking in her features, he smirked as her hair got in the way of her eyes, rather familiar with that problem.
“Indeed, it’s nice to finally meet you. Lucky that our schedules seemed to match up like this.”
Quirking an eyebrow at her realization, he instinctively sniffed at the air for a moment; he hadn’t thought that the paint he’d smelled would have been here. Still, no time to worry about that, she didn’t seem very happy at this predicament.
“Ah geez, that’s terrible. Do you want to go get changed? I don’t mind meeting you later or rescheduling if you’d like. I’m not about to make you walk around like that for my sake.”
He had the thought to take a look himself to see how bad it was, but quickly thought better of it. He had just met her, she might think he just wanted to get a good view of her butt or something otherwise creepy.
"It's wonderful, honestly, to get a good moment to meet someone new. Which is why I absolutely refuse to allow this irritation to ruin our afternoon." She frowned some, eyeing it, then nodded, firmly. "If you would go with me inside, I'll pop into the lady's, use some towels to wipe the worst of it off and get it to the point of being dry. Then I'll cover it with an illusion."
She turned her face back to him, a nervous smile on her face. "I mean. If you don't mind that is...?" She wondered, maybe, if he'd just not want to be seen with her, looking so untidy. Sure, she would cover it, but the illusion COULD fail... But she wanted to get to know him, she really did, and this paint was pissing her off.
He tilted his head slightly to the side at her suggestion, ear flicking; she used magic? Interesting. Smiling back at her, he shook his head a little bit.
“Of course not, I don’t mind as long as you’re fine with it.”
He was a bit amused that they would be heading into the library, or perhaps it was just his luck that he would be back here so soon after leaving. It was his own fault that he had picked this place to begin with. The entrance was so familiar to him that he had forgotten about it’s fine architecture. Marble pillars framing the carefully carved wooden doors, the stone walls of the building itself rising up behind it.
Pausing for a moment, he wondered if he should wait for her to lead, but she seemed a little distressed by the paint. Shifting a bit, he offered his arm to her. That wasn’t too forward, right?
She smiled a little, up at him, grateful he was going to go along with her solution. "Thank you, I appreciate it." She said, warmth and honest gratitude in her words She looked up at the building, admiringly. She had not been to this library before, and it was a lovely edifice, well constructed and beautifully designed. Whoever the architect was, she hoped they got the chance to see this completed, and also many other buildings built with their designs.
She blinked, surprised, when she realized he was offering her his arm, and blushed, just a little, but willingly placed her arm on his, flattered he would be so gentlemanly when they'd just met, properly, for the first time. "Again, thank you." She murmured, so only he could hear. It made her feel less embarrassed to be going in looking like this. "I think... Before we go to where the restrooms are, however, perhaps I should mention this to the front desk so they can fix the issue for the future."
His cheeks warmed slightly when she accepted his offer, a little surprised but at the same time glad that it was the right choice. Leading her up the stairs at a casual pace, he made sure his tail didn’t accidentally bump into her, ears turning as she whispered to him.
“You’re very welcome.”
Glancing over at her as she suggested informing the library, he shrugged, lightly so as not to dislodge her arm from his.
“I can take care of that if you’d like, while you clean up. Then you could meet me by the front desk once you’re done?”
He wouldn’t be accompanying her into the lady’s room anyway, or at least he didn’t think he would be. Probably not, he thought as they ascended the stairs to the doors, a little hop in his step as he pulled one of the heavy wooden doors open for her.
She blinked, a little, at his suggestion, then nodded. It made sense. It would certainly be awkward if she brought him into the restroom with her. Someone might get the entirely wrong idea, for one thing, and she didn't want either of them in trouble with the staff, even if it would have been completely innocent. "That is an excellent plan, better than my original. You are a clever fellow, and I am glad you thought of it."
She found the hop in his step absolutely adorable, though she kept it behind a sweet smile at his opening the doors. A gentleman, and kind, it seemed, so far, and she was very pleased with the fact that she'd had the courage to send him a message. Despite the paint, this was going very well.
If he wasn’t blushing before, he certainly was now from her comment. He smiled and followed her through the doors, leading her onwards towards the restrooms without needing to find the signs, hoping his familiarity with the place didn’t betray how much time he spent here. Once there, he gently withdrew his arm from hers, pointing in the direction of the front desk for her.
“The front desk is back over there, just meet me when you’re done?”
Turning once he saw her off, he made his way back to the front desk and let the guy know that their painter had forgotten to put a sign on the benches afterwards. He knew the guy at the desk of course, but didn’t want to get caught up in conversation while he was waiting for Andariel. As his luck would have it, that still didn’t save him, his ears drooping a bit as one of his classmates called to him from the doors.
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Posted: Tue Oct 24, 2017 7:39 pm
She smiled as he guided her, glad to have someone with her who knew what was going on here, because she didn't want to risk blundering around. What if she got paint on one of the books? Obviously he'd been here before, which was cool.
"Thank you, Laszlo. I'll see you soon, promise." She gave him a warm smile, then slipped her way into the restroom. She ended up spending the next five minutes scrubbing, and was mildly pissed at whoever ******** up because she LIKED that skirt, but accepted it as what it was. She then turned her back to the mirror, and focused, until an illusion of how it SHOULD look covered it up
She grinned, pleased at her success, and almost danced out the door in pleasure. This was better than it had been. She headed towards the front desk, looking for Laszlo, or Laz as she had shortened it in her head, and saw him with someone else, chatting. He didn't seem to happy about it, though, his ears were down. She pondered for a minute, then walked over, gracefully, and gently laid her hand upon his forearm, and said "Thank you for waiting so patiently while I took care of that little disaster, but it's all fixed now." Her eyes were focused on his face as she said that, before politely, if a little distantly, saying to his classmate "I see you know Laszlo? I do hope you don't mind me stealing him away, we had plans for the afternoon, and they've already been disrupted enough, unfortunately."
Laszlo tried his best to keep the conversation about studies with Alphonse brief, but the damn Chimera didn’t know when to take a hint, or when to shut up. Maybe it was his own fault that he had taken on most of the work, but it wasn’t that Alph didn’t seem to be paying attention in or out of class. Some of these questions were in the book, for crying out loud…
As luck would have it, Andariel came back looking quite pleased with herself, giving him an easy out. Or, would have if she hadn’t taken the lead and told Alph in no uncertain terms that the two of them were leaving. He gave her a warm smile as she spoke to him, before turning to offer his arm to her again, giving a half-hearted farewell over his shoulder as they headed out. He waited until they were back outside on the large steps leading into the library before he said anything.
“Thank you for helping me out like that, I really didn’t want to get stuck talking while I’m out with you, but he didn’t seem to take any of my hints…”
He looked over at her with a grateful smile, allowing his tail one, maybe two wags. Sure they’d gotten off to a rough start, but things seemed to be working out so far, maybe this would turn out alright?
She was very glad he didn't react badly to her taking charge like that. Very glad, honestly. Some people responded so strangely to some one trying to help them in an awkward situation. She calmly took his arm, beaming at him. "I am glad to assist you. I could see, as I approached, that you looked uncomfortable." One of her ears went a little back, in a slight nervousness, not wanting him to think she was creepy. "The ears, you know... Ours do something similar when we're uncomfortable, or stressed, or what have you."
She nodded, her tails carefully lifted so that they didn't drag as she walked. She did her best to keep them under control, but he might, accidentally, occasionally find himself brushed by one. The downside to having so many tails, really. "And besides, I'm sure he has plenty of time with you. This is our afternoon to spend together and get to know the real you and I, rather than what is seen through a computer... And I have, despite the bench making things strange, found myself enjoying your company so far. I'm not in the mood to share." She teased him, lightly, trying not to come across heavy handed... Just showing a hint of interest. After all, it was a dating site she found him on, even if this wasn't a proper date.
Smiling and nodding at her explanation, his eyes flicking up to her ears for a moment as she mentioned them. He seemed to notice how large hers were for the first time, though he did his best not to stare. Grinning slightly at her comment, he was a little surprised at how forward she was being, but pleasantly so.
“I’m glad you think so, though I do wish there was something more that could be done for your skirt, it looks rather nice on you.”
He paused a moment as they reached the bottom of the library steps, back to the benches where they had met. Glancing around a bit, he tried to remember if there was anything of interest nearby, though he was coming up with a blank; he knew more about the interior of the library than anything around it. Not wanting to stand there looking lost, he turned to her, slightly embarrassed.
“I’m not actually familiar with this area, did you have someplace in mind to go to? Or perhaps we could simply pick a direction and walk for a while?”
She tilted her head, amused at how he was studying her ears. She knew they were large, and quite soft to boot, but that was not something for him to find out,at least as of yet. She considered his words, and nodded. "It is a nice skirt. Fortunately, it's likely to be still in stock, where I got it, as it's pretty recently released. I happened to be in the store the day they brought it out... Pure luck, I swear."
And it was. She didn't usually spend a huge amount of time shopping. She'd been there because she needed a couple new shirts she could wear for doing physical labor in, and just fell in love with the skirt.
She blinked, surprised at his comment about not being familiar, given he knew the library, but shrugged, and smiled. There was nothing wrong with coming to a place for the one thing you normally needed it for, after all. "Let's... go that way?" She suggested, pointing at a pretty looking street. It looked mostly residential, but there was a hint that there might be hidden gems along it, too.
He smiled and nodded as she explained her luck in finding the skirt, glad that she might be able to get another one if needed. Though it reminded him that perhaps he should have thought through his own outfit for the day, which was pretty much casual for him. Jeans rolled up above the fluff on his legs, and a dark polo. He probably could have done better...
Eyes following where she was pointing at, he nodded slightly, fairly sure that was a suitable direction to head down. It had the usual streetlights, which were pretty much always on in the twilight of Below. Not that he really had much trouble seeing in the low light, but there were plenty of other races that did. Either way, a well-lit residential area, which didn’t look too busy; perfect place for a stroll. As long as there were no burrs.
He was a bit lost on what to do next, though. Should he offer his arm to her again? Was that too much for their first meeting? Too little? Well, she seemed interested enough, so maybe it would be fine? Doing his best to be casual, he held out his arm for her again, smiling once his eyes met hers.
“Shall we, then?”
She smiled in a contented way, and looped her arm carefully through his, her hand resting gently on his wrist. "I believe that would be an excellent plan, yes." She turned towards the street she had selected, eyes focusing on the path they were about to head down.
She began walking, and calmly asked him "So... You're studying anthropology, yeah? Do you have a focus, yet? Preferred race you're studying, I mean?" Her question was innocent, and purely interested in him, and what he was planning to do with his education. It was always interesting to see the decisions people made, and find out why.
He smirked and nodded, easing into the same pace as hers, shifting his arm slightly to give hers a gentle squeeze. Glancing over at her for a moment, he pondered her question and looked forward again, tail swishing slowly behind him.
“I’m still figuring that out. Most of the classes are general level stuff, so I don’t really have to choose for another year or so. I was thinking about going with Grimm, because I would have a decent head start on that sort of thing, but on the other hand it might be more interesting to go with a race I don’t know much about.”
His ears perked up slightly as he looked over at her again, tail brushing against one of hers, giving her what he hoped was a sly grin.
“Are you hinting that I should study a particular race? Perhaps one with large fluffy tails like yours?”
She felt quite comfortable with him, and the gentle squeeze was a nice touch, if a small surprise after how nervous he'd seemed up to this point. She wondered at the switch, but found she liked this hint of confidence he was now displaying.
She listened, ears fully up in curiosity and attentive interest in his words. When his tail brushed hers, she blushed, just a little, because it tickled.
His question got a surprised start from her, and then she saw his grin. That earned him a gentle, playful swat on the wrist. "Goof!" She said, laughing. "Hardly. In fact, I'd say you should study whatever group INTERESTS you the most. Fluffy tails or not."
He laughed with her, relieved that she hadn’t taken that the wrong way, easing into a smile as he listened to her response. Was this flirting, or being friendly? Maybe it was too soon to be flirting?
“Well, to be honest most races have lost a lot of history prior to the wars, and a few like yours have been plain missing until recently. That would include how each race developed, so I’m sure I’ll find something interesting no matter what I choose.”
He frowned slightly, looking ahead along their path, feeling odd talking about his studies. It was a good place to stop, at least, so as not to bore her with talk of dusty tomes and long lost cultures.
“What about you? You’re studying illusion? Seems to have come in handy today.”
Not being familiar with magic in any sort, he didn’t want to assume there was a focus for that branch; better to not make a fool of himself, right?
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Posted: Tue Oct 24, 2017 7:45 pm
In her mind, it was definitely flirting. She definitely was finding Laszlo fascinating, and had no interest in keeping him from realizing it. He was sweet, he was smart, and he was kind, or at least so far, so her interest lay in getting him to be truly interested in her. Also, he had a nice laugh.
"That sounds fascinating, actually. I'm not the kind who could do that... I don't know how long I could spend reading dusty old books before I got the sneezes, and then got annoyed, but what you guys find out is fascinating! I hope that, once you pick your focus, it is as fully satisfying as you are hoping." She gave him a bright, warm smile of happiness.
"Yes... It doesn't have focuses, in the same way, but there's various ways and fields it can be used in. Me, I want to basically do temporary art installation type stuff, and similar. Like..." She paused, thinking thoughtfully. "Like say you were researching something, and found an AMAZING thing, and wanted to share it with people visually at a museum, but it's not something that can be transported. I'd instead go to see it, then bring the visuals back for people to see at the museum." Her fingers brushed along his wrist as she talked, eager and excited about her goal. "If that makes any sense?"
He smiled back as she explained her major, torn between watching where they were going and looking at her as she spoke, giving in to a careful mix that was hopefully not twitchy. Flicking his gaze ahead of them for a moment to make sure nothing had changed, before focusing on her again with interest, ears perked up and trying to be oblivious to the hair that hung in front of his eyes.
“Yeah, that makes sense. It sounds like it would be useful for archeology, with something that’s been uncovered and can’t be disturbed, but where pictures alone wouldn’t be enough. Pretty neat application of magic I’d say.”
He tensed slightly at the movement of her fingers, but relaxed after a few moments, moving his own fingers to ripple the fur along his wrist slightly, trying to return the gesture in some way.
“How do you study for that, if you don’t mind me asking? Can that be taught by books or does it have to be practiced instead?”
She nodded, happily, clearly very enthusiastic about her major and what she wanted to do with it. She didn't seem to notice the way he was looking back and forth from her and the street. She also seemed to be totally unaware of the hair in her face, as energetic as she was about this topic. It was obvious to anyone who saw that she loved her subject.
"Yes, exactly! Archeology... One of a kind objects owners want the world to be able to see but don't want to leave their possession... All kinds of reasons." Her eyes shined up into his in her happiness.
She blinked, realizing she had been moving her fingers. She hadn't even realized it, and so it was his motions that caught her attention. She considered it for a moment, then decided this was good. It felt nice, after all. Relaxing.
"MMm there's books, but you need to practice, and study, or you won't be able to make very realistic illusions, nor ones that last."
He smiled warmly at how excited she seemed to be talking about her major, happy to let her talk when it seemed so much more interesting than his own, even though he had chosen his willingly. All magic seemed interesting to him, but the way she lit up when she was talking made it even more so.
“Well it looks like you’re doing great, if that spot of magic over your skirt is any indication.”
It felt nice to have her hand on his, though he felt sort of awkward simply wiggling his fingers around to get the desired effect. He reached over with his other hand, a feather-like touch against hers. Swallowing nervously, he committed to the gesture, furry hand enveloping hers and gently squeezing it. This was surely too fast, and his face heated up as he tried to distract himself from the impending reaction that was certainly coming.
“So uh, what...do you like to do in your free time?”
"Thank you! I appreciate the compliment." She didn't comment on how he had to have looked at her behind to be sure, but she filed that thought away for later, not at all bothered by it. Indeed, it somewhat made her pleased. After all, he was handsome, so if he found her attractive, that was nothing but a bonus in her mind.
The way his hands shifted surprised her, but then the feeling of his hand closing around hers caused her eyes to widen. For a moment, she considered this, and finally made a decision. She squeezed his hand, in a warm, friendly way, then said "Perhaps your other hand would be less uncomfortable for you?" Her eyes were on his, and they only showed concern for his comfort. She seemed perfectly happy to be holding his hand.
"And... I like to make jewelry. It's just a hobby, but it's fun, and it's a nice balance to the illusions... Art that is temporary and art that will last, you know?"
He tensed up slightly as he waited for her reaction, almost certain that he had crossed some unspoken line. When she squeezed his hand in return, he looked up at her again, surprised but relieved at her expression and words. Even so, his cheeks were probably purple by now with how hot they felt.
“I...uh...maybe. If that’s alright?”
The way she had responded didn’t seem like she was opposed to the idea, and so he carefully untangled his hands from hers, before gently taking her closest hand in his. His fingers slowly laced through hers, until his claws were resting on the back of her hand; they were kept filed down and smoothed, like any respectable Grimm’s. The stress seemed to leave his body once he was actually holding her hand, and he took a deep breath to calm himself, taking in her scent and...also something familiar in the air.
“Would you like to get some coffee with me? ...I mean! Uh, actual coffee. I think I smell a shop ahead.”
She saw his blush, and it earned him a soft, sweet smile. It was adorable, how he flipped between seeming confident and suddenly being all shy and nervous again in five seconds flat. She waited while he processed what she had said, and then said "Of course... I wouldn't have suggested it, otherwise."
She smiled more, a bright warm smile up at him, as her fingers twined with his. The feeling of his smooth claws against her hand was a new one, but she found she kind of liked it. She considered the situation, and then inched just a little closer, as she listened to his suggestion.
"Ah? Ah yes, that would be lovely." She blinked at him, in confusion, at the part about 'actual' coffee, not understanding that there might ever be a euphemism involving that.
Well, things seemed to be alright, she hadn’t responded in any manner that would suggest she didn’t want him holding her hand, and she even moved a little closer to him to boot. Try as he might to contain his happiness at this, his tail wagged at least twice, bumping into one of hers again.
“Great! I mean uh, I’ll keep an eye out for it then.”
He was relieved that she hadn’t taken the coffee invitation the wrong way, and was liking having her this close to him. She was warm and soft, and it felt nice to have her smaller hand in his, even with the occasional meeting of their tails.
“I apologize though, you make jewelry? How long have you been doing that for?”
The tail his had bumped soon began wiggling some, in response. He might find it brushing the back of his legs. If asked, she would honestly say it was unintentional. She just was, at this point, comfortable enough to not be paying as much attention... And sometimes her tails acted... well... Her hindbrain might have ideas.
"Mmm good. I look forwards to a good cup of coffee. We drink more tea, back home. In fact, I don't think I ever HAD coffee back home. I've come to appreciate it."
Part of her wondered if it would be too forwards to tuck herself under his arm. Sure, this was their first meeting, but they'd been talking for a little bit before as she'd sounded him out, and convinced him to give her a chance. Now he was here, and she really was enjoying his presence, and she had decided that if she could, she'd make sure he didn't slip out of her fingers.
"Yes! It's been a hobby since I was a teen... 15 I think? I'm slowly getting better. It's not something I want to do as a living, though. I make presents and stuff."
He nodded at her reply, a little surprised by what he thought was a tail brushing against his-yep, there it was again. There was a part of him that worried he’d trip over the tail, but the touch was light and didn’t seem to be winding around that much.
“That makes sense, tea leaves are grown in Above, and coffee beans in Below. Even if the Kumiho had access to coffee at one point, they wouldn’t be able to grow more. So I suppose we’re both lucky the way things turned out.”
Cutting himself off from another long-winded discussion, he sniffed the air as they came to another intersection, looking at her for a moment before he gently tugged her towards where his nose was leading him.
“I can understand that, it sort of gives it a special touch as well, something you can’t find anywhere else. Are you...wearing anything that you’ve made?”
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Posted: Tue Oct 24, 2017 7:54 pm
She nodded, listening to his words, her eyes bright and focused on his face. She was paying him enough attention that it was pretty clear she was trusting him not to lead her astray. "Yes, that's entirely likely. I don't know for sure, but I do know I love coffee now. Tea is wonderful, but coffee is amazing."
She blinked as he cut himself off. Did he think he was boring her, or something? She liked how much he seemed to know, and was willing to share. It was utterly fascinating to learn things. If she found what he said boring, she'd distract him gently, but nothing so far had been BORING.
She followed along, still allowing him to guide her. "It does, yes. I've sent my parents at home gifts, a few times. They seem to appreciate it." She shook her head, causing those locks of hair that had been distracting him before to fall a little farther into her face. "No, not at the moment. But I can show you some later, maybe?" A tentative hint, perhaps, but there.
He smiled as she continued, glad that she was still in contact with her family. The second comment threw him off though; later? There would be a later? He tried to act casual as he felt his face heat up for probably the hundredth time since they’d met, not even sure if he could respond to the invitation.
“That’s very nice of you. Do they still live in Above?”
He knew that there was more than one village that had until recently been hidden away, but he didn’t want to assume that her family was still living in one of them. He had heard rumor that some Kumiho had spread out to relocate, after all.
His ears perked up when he heard familiar sounds of coffee brewing, sniffing at the air again to confirm that he wasn’t going crazy, and they were indeed headed in the right direction. Squeezing her hand gently, he looked over at her with an excited smile, starting to feel like this could be a date after all. He was a bit surprised to find that he was okay with that.
Andi noticed the blush and her brows rose, and a small smile crossed her lips. Good, he had noticed a bit of the implications, and it wouldn't come as a total surprise if she invited him in.
She was still not 100% sure on doing it, but it was definitely being contemplated.
"Yes, they are. They were initially reluctant to let me come down here, but I convinced them that emigration was my true desire, and they gave in. It's better, I think, for those of us who want to escape." She nodded, and sighed, thinking of how rigid life could be up there. "We communicate, and I'll visit occasionally." She frowned a little for a moment, remembering hints from her mother recently.
When he squeezed her hand, though, she looked up, and caught a whiff of the coffee herself. She gave him a bright smile that made up for the short frown, her fingers tight, though not painfully so, in his.
Las nudged her gently as she squeezed his hand in return, a little worried when she had seemed lost in thought.
“I will admit that I passed on the field trip where the Kumiho were uh…’found’, thinking that my studies were more important than some boring field trip. And I’ve only heard others talk of that event and your culture…”
He paused for a moment, glancing away as he tried to figure out what to say without making himself look too foolish. Looking back to her, his teal eyes focused on her gold ones, his tail bumping into one of hers, perhaps on purpose this time.
“I regret that I let that opportunity slip past, but I’m really glad you’re here, with me, right now.”
She blinked at his nudge, but gave him a soft smile for it, indicating she was fine.
She tilted her ears, listening carefully to his statement, her brows lifting curiously as he continued through his words.
When he got to the last part, her eyes widened, and she considered how to respond, her fingers tightening in his to let him know she heard, understood. Finally, she looked around for a moment, seeing what was going on in the area nearby, then turned back to him. She leaned up, carefully and slowly, her free hand going up to cup his face. "I'm glad too, Las.." She whispered, then gave him a soft kiss.
His ears went down for a moment; her reaction wasn’t really what he had expected, and he was certain that this date, meeting, was over. But then her hand touched his face, his ears perked up as she spoke, and his eyes went wide as her lips pressed against his. This was new territory for him, leaving him at a loss, the absence of her mouth after a few moments even more so.
Blinking for a moment, his thoughts went quiet, his body finally able to take control and do what came naturally. His free hand moving to rest on her side, the other slipping free from hers to mirror the light hold she had on his face, as he leaned in to return the gesture, though it might have been obvious that he hadn’t had much practice. His tail swayed slowly, but happily behind him.
She hadn't missed the drooping ears, and was glad that her response fixed that. She just had needed time to figure out the best way to handle it. And she was glad she had, she liked the feel of his lips against hers, they were soft and comfortable. She watched him quietly when the kiss ended, waiting to see his response.
It was everything she could have hoped for, and she gave a slow, happy sigh at this kiss he was giving her. She felt warm, comfortable, and like she was right where she belonged. Her free arm slipped around him, pulling him just a little closer. She didn't care that he was inexperienced, she cared that he wanted to do this. Her own tails had stilled, completely, as she focused on enjoying this soft, wonderful moment.
He relaxed against her, gently tugging her closer to him as well, savoring the warmth of where her body met his. Slowly pulling away from her lips after a while, he panted softly as he looked down at her, eyes half-lidded as he enjoyed the female in his arms. Until his mind woke up again.
His ears instantly drooped, the hand on her face quickly going through his own hair in embarrassment, creating a bit of a gap between the two of them.
“I'm so sorry, I was probably terrible at that, I didn't mean to...ah…”
He made a sound that might have been a whine as he tried to collect himself, his other hand dropping to his side, his appearance turning in on himself slightly. His eyes flicked back up to her for a moment as he slowly processed everything. She had kissed him first, and had pulled him closer, maybe it hadn't been that bad? His hand slid down to his neck as he tried to get words to work again.
“I… Can we do that again?”
She wasn't entirely ready for the kiss to end but she didn't fight him when he pulled away. Instead, she just watched him, eyes bright and shining as he panted. She found herself thinking that he looked good when he let go like that.
His sudden ear droop had her concerned. Had she somehow overstepped her bounds? Was she about to find out he was actually promised in marriage or something? A worry she kept at the back of her mind.
Then he spoke, and relief washed over her. He was just feeling self-conscious. And his question made it much easier for her to work with. "Of course. I was enjoying that." She murmured, eyes half closed. She leaned up, moving the hand that had been on his face to join her other arm in embracing him, and she kissed him again.
He focused on her as she spoke, blushing as she looked at him like that, the fears and noise in his thoughts silenced. You didn’t give someone that look when you weren’t happy with them. Even so, it took him by surprise when her arms wrapped around his waist, pressing against him for another kiss. Enough so that he stumbled back slightly, pulling her with him as he tried to regain his balance.
With some luck, he backed into a lightpost with a soft thud, his arms sliding around her as he carefully claimed her lips once more. His hands splayed across her back, eager to pull her against him as they embraced.
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Posted: Tue Oct 24, 2017 7:59 pm
She continued the kiss for a long time, then broke it once she was basically breathless, panting softly as she stared into his eyes, her pupils a little blown. "I think... We need to stop now, or this is going to be a very short afternoon, where we skip coffee and move straight to... tea." She said, an interesting inflection on the word tea.
"And while I would not mind you coming over for tea today, I thought you wanted some coffee." She shivered a little, however, because it felt so good to be this close to him.
His tail made soft ‘whump’ noises as it hit the post behind him. He opened his eyes in confusion as she pulled away from him, panting along with her as he tried to listen and remember what words were, his body feeling rather warm, and not just from how close she was to him. Even when he understood what she was saying, it still didn’t make any sense. Why would tea make the time pass quickly, unless she had some magic-imbued stuff from Above?
“Um, yeah, I guess I did want some coffee. I’m sure they have tea there too though?”
He held her for a bit longer, enjoying the sensation of her body pressed against his, before he eventually let his hands slide from her back. The suggestion of tea had him confused, but he didn’t put too much thought into it. Making out like that was exhilarating, although he was feeling a little drained now, and the worry of what she thought of him was starting to creep in again.
When his arms slid free, she didn't give him much time to worry, as she inserted herself under his arm so that he'd be holding her as they walked. She giggled some at his comment.
Clearly he hadn't caught the euphemism. She decided to continue with it anyways. In a voice that could be described as purring, she said "Not the way I'd want it prepared, sugar." She slipped her arm back around his waist, not worrying who saw them.
She'd made a decision and she was going for it.
Her motions caught him by surprise, though he quickly realized it was a sweet invitation. He smiled warmly, not really sure what was funny, but maybe it was some inside joke among tea drinkers. He vaguely remembered some jokes about elitist coffee drinkers.
Her response was even more surprising, though again, he dismissed it as being an Above thing. She must not approve of how they prepared tea around here or something. The arm around his waist diverted his attention anyway, and he smiled shyly at the position she had put him in. Not that he minded it, of course, something he tried to convey by squeezing her shoulder. Did these things normally move this fast?
Still, there were more important things to worry about right now, like getting coffee for this girl that he really liked. Gently tugging on her shoulder, he started walking with her to where the coffee shop should be.
She walked with him, moving in time, a bright smile on her face. This was what she had been looking for when she signed up for that site. Sure, friends were great but she had been missing something and she was quite sure she'd finally found it. Him. She didn't know how or why, but here he was.
She wondered when she should mention she was a battery, or if she should. Would he not like it if she went to clinics to help out? She was lost in thought, and didn't even notice when she rested her head on his shoulder, a comfortable spot for it while she was lost in the deep thoughts she was having.
She murmured, still lost in her thoughts, "Think we're close, Las?"
His heart was still pounding, and her seeming so calm while also slipping into a closer embrace while they walked was not quite helping. Not that he was complaining entirely, nothing seemed out of place compared to their chats online, perhaps it was simply that how he’d imagine things would go was not lining up with how things were playing out so far.
He looked over at her as she leaned her head against him, smiling a bit at how comfortable she seemed around him. It was certainly better than an awkward walk down the street, he supposed. His ears perked up at her seemingly innocuous question, at which point his face heated up again from being put on the spot.
“I...uh… Well, things haven’t quite gone as...um...I had thought. From our chats I didn’t think we’d be going this...ah...fast. But! I...have been enjoying meeting you in person, and...I...really like you…um...Andi...”
She blinked. She did it repeatedly as she processed his answer, noting with amusement his shy stammer. She was silent as she decided how to answer this. "I'm really glad to hear all that, Las, but. Um." She scratched her head, then continued. "I meant close to the coffee shop?"
He felt the blood rush from his face as he went pale for a change, becoming a bit stiff as they walked while he realized how much of a fool he had made of himself. At least she didn’t react negatively to anything he had said, that was a good sign, right? Nine, he really could use some coffee now. Sniffing at the air again, it seemed much closer, and the distinct sounds were getting easier to pick out.
“I...oh. Um...I think we’re almost there, maybe that’s it?”
He pointed down the sidewalk with his free hand to where there was a few tables set out, sparsely populated with people. There was an awning that almost covered the tables, but the forecast hadn’t called for any storms. They should be fine in or out, assuming they weren’t getting the coffee to go of course. He was curious to see what sort of tea they had here, if only to get a sense of how much better the tea that Andi was thinking of would be.
His clear embarrassment made her want to frown. Instead, she tucked herself just that bit closer to him, trying to make him feel better by showing him she didn't think less of him for his mistake. His words had been sweet, if clearly nervous and shy. She wondered vaguely if maybe moving to... tea... today was too fast for the poor boy.
That was not what she had hoped for, though she'd more then accept it if signs indicated he felt things were moving too fast.
Her ears went up at that, and her smile brightened. This was a good looking little place, and she could smell the coffee, filling her nostrils. "Oh! That does smell wonderful. I wonder if they have any pastries, too." She moved towards it, but made sure to keep him close. Tea or not, this afternoon was not going to end badly, she was sure of that.
He squeezed her shoulder gently with his arm in return, pulling her closer, taking her action as a sign that she wasn't upset or anything like that. Breathing a sigh of relief, he smirked as he let her pull him along in a way, sniffing at the air to see if he could figure out what type of pastries they had, if any.
The scent of coffee was getting a lot stronger, and he was having to keep himself under control so that he didn't dash away into the shop. He didn't think Andi would understand or approve, really. A warm scent caught his attention, and he managed to avoid yelling in his excitement as he looked over at her.
“I think I smell cream pies! I love those, especially when they're fresh and gooey. ...Do you like cream pies?”
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Posted: Tue Oct 24, 2017 8:05 pm
She watched him taking in the scents on the air, enjoying his reactions. It was adorable, and she rested against her date calmly, wondering if he thought of it that way himself. She eyed the entrance to the coffee shop, thinking it was a cute little place, perfect for a nice date like theirs. She memorized the name, privately, then slipped out from under his arm, taking his hand to gently pull him to, and through, the door.
She was getting very eager for some coffee. She hadn't actually had any today, and while she didn't need it the way some people did, she DID enjoy having it. His eager question, however, got him an amused smile. "I don't know, Las? I've never actually had one." She gently led him to the display case, to see what was on offer.
He grinned as she tugged him along into the shop, more than happy with letting this cute girl take the lead for a bit. Squeezing her hand gently once they were in the shop, he peered at the display case, frowning slightly when he didn’t see his favorite.
“Hmmm, I wonder if they just ran out. I guess I could always try making one with you later, the recipe doesn’t look too hard.”
A little miffed at this turn of events, he looked up at the board to see what sort of caffeine offerings they served. Finding nothing that really stood out to him, he ordered a large of whatever house blend they served, then glanced over at her with a smile as he waited for her to order as well.
She ordered a chocolate muffin, and then a latte, in the mood for some milky coffee goodness. Once the order was in, she led them to a cozy little table in a corner, with one double seat, perfect for cuddling in. She settled into the chair, and looked up at him.
"As for baking a cream pie later... I'll do all I can to help, but I'm a disaster at baking, I'm not going to lie. I can't figure out what it is, but something always goes horribly wrong for me when I'm baking and the last thing I would want is to ruin your cream pie."
She didn't notice a nearby old lady giving them both a shocked and offended look.
"Sit with me?" She added, however, patting the seat besides her, wanting him to cuddle against.
He nodded a bit, amused at her description of her cooking ability, certain that she couldn’t be that bad at it. Setting his coffee on the table, he slid into the seat next to her, not even hiding his desire to be close to her at this point.
“I’m sure it will be fine. What’s the worst that could happen, we try to make a cream pie and make a big mess instead?”
He let his coffee sit for the moment, pondering if he should have gotten it over ice, he was still feeling a little warm from earlier. Something about it was nice though, unfamiliar and yet something he instantly knew he wanted more of. Turning to look at her, he smiled happily, delicately running his claws through her hair.
She smiled warmly at him and cuddled up against him, her tails half wrapping him up in them. She took a sip of her latte, and a bite of her muffin, as she considered his question. The warmth of his body against hers was more than welcome, as was the feeling of just knowing she'd found a wonderful person.
"I guess... I'd hate to get the cream all over myself, though. I mean... Can you imagine trying to get it out of my fur?"
She continued to drink her latte, enjoying whatever espresso blend they were using. "I wonder if they sell their roasts to go..." She mused.
And then he did it. He ran his claws through her hair. She was able to set her cup down, but then she sort of collapsed against him, snuggling in close, eyes half closed. She'd always loved when other people handled her hair, it made her feel so nice.
He smirked a bit, about to point out that they would both have cream in their fur, though his thoughts didn’t get any further into the implications of cleanup before she flopped against him. His hand froze for a moment, until it became apparent that she was trying to snuggle up against him.
Not used to anyone doing this before, his tail wagged slightly as he pressed his luck, slowly letting his claws rake through her hair again. He was rather thankful he kept on top of his nail upkeep, as otherwise this would be a more delicate and dangerous act. He leaned into her as he continued his gentle strokes, murmuring with amusement.
“I think I found someone’s off button…”
She closed her eyes, making whatever sort of noises foxes make when happily being stroked. She nuzzled into his neck a bit, thoroughly lost in the scratches. His words earned a soft "Mmmmmmmmhm?" in response, as if she wasn't even processing what she was half agreeing too.
She was just so lost in it, she had no real way to break herself free of the spell someone doing this to her. She just curled into her date, her arms sliding around him in comfort.
To be honest, it was probably for the best that the Scandalized Old Lady decided to declare "HONESTLY." out loud, startling Andi out of her zoned out state.
He was enjoying having her melt against him like this; the cute sounds she was making, and how snuggly she became were such a stark contrast from how dominant and possessive she had been so far. Not that he necessarily disliked those traits in her.
Which is why he was more than happy to continue with his pettings, even if only for a minute, although he would have preferred the timer be in his control. He immediately froze as they were scolded, turning to look at the Scandalized Old Lady, ears flattening and eyes going wide as if he was under a spotlight. Suddenly feeling very vulnerable and exposed, his mouth pulled back to bare his teeth in fear, a cold shock running down his spine. If not for Andi being there, he probably would have been much worse.
Andi was frozen for a moment as her brain caught up to what was going on. Then she sat up, very straight, her ears all the way back, and her eyes narrowed as she took Las's free hand. "Last I checked, cuddling wasn't an inappropriate activity, you grumpy old bat! You're just jealous that you're sitting on your own, not getting cuddles from a handsome man like this one yourself. Now stop judging people for doing nothing wrong and leave us be!" She was a fireball in her temper at this Scandalized Old Lady, and clearly prepared to take her on. SOL opened her mouth to reply when a bunch of people just started laughing, and a few clapped. The SOL went Red in the face and snapped her jaw shut, blatantly turning her back to them.
Andi glowered some more, then finished her muffin and latte in record time. "Maybe we should come back here another time, Las? I like this place, could see myself meeting you here for coffee regularly?" She said, hoping to make him feel better. "Also, when you're done... Did you want to come to my place and see some of my jewelry I made? You seemed interested..."
He glanced over at her as she told off the Scandalized Old Lady, cheeks tinting a shade of red when they were finally left alone again. Not sure what to say, he watched silently as she finished off her muffin and latte, very glad she had stood up for them. Normally he didn’t have a problem with defending himself, but something about being in an intimate situation with her left him at a complete loss.
He could only nod in response to her words; he agreed with the questions of course, but was still so blown away by how firey her response had been when he had simply shut down. Perhaps she didn’t do it specifically to defend him, but it certainly felt like it, and he wasn’t sure if he could find the words to tell her how that made him feel.
Still unable to come up with something to say, and feeling the time passing painfully since her invitation, he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close, taking her lips passionately in an attempt to convey the warmth he was feeling at that moment.
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Posted: Tue Oct 24, 2017 8:18 pm
She tried not to let the kiss get too deep, as they were still in public, but she kissed him back, her hands sliding up to hold his face. She knew, for sure, that she wanted him to stay the night, this kiss, and the heat he was sharing with her, had thoroughly confirmed that to her. Finally, though, she broke the kiss for them, because she didn't want to crawl into his lap here. "Finish your coffee, please?" She murmured.
She settled back to watch him, admiring the handsome Grimm, a sweet, if perhaps a little possessive, smile on her face. The sooner they left, the sooner she could begin phase two of her assault on his heart.
He was a little disappointed when she pulled away, but it was probably for the best. Certainly some other Scandalized Old Lady would show up and try to tell them off if they carried on too long. Her request had him a bit confused, but she had already finished what she had ordered. Though after the SOL incident he was not too keen on staying, so perhaps she was feeling the same way?
“I...alright.”
Grabbing his cup of coffee, he wondered for a moment if getting a large was the brightest idea, not that he would have necessarily known what would happen. He took a sip, glad to find that it was at the hot end of drinkable, and proceeded to chug the entire thing, consequences be damned.
She smiled a little, waiting on Las. Once he finished, she slipped out of the seat, and gathered their dishes and trash, and bussed the stuff, then came back to the table and held out her hand to him. "Come on, Las. I want to show you things." She had a soft look in her golden eyes as she waited on the man, her head tilted softly.
Her tails were slowly flickering, and shifting as she watched Laszlo.
He watched her grab all of their stuff and take care of it, a little embarrassed for not taking the initiative to do it himself. Wasn’t that supposed to be what men did? Maybe she was just getting impatient, which was understandable. Certainly she would want to show off her jewelry before it got too late, though the darkness wouldn’t really matter to him, he would be able to see fine on his way home.
Smiling as he took her hand, he gently tugged on her as he squirmed out of the seat, wondering for a moment how she had made it look so easy in comparison, laughing softly at her insistence.
“Alright, alright. Excited to show me your hobby?”
Granted, he was a little excited to see it as well, with her being so determined. Taking the lead this time, he squeezed her hand in his, making his way with her to the front of the shop and out onto the sidewalk again.
Her smile brightened when he took her hand again, and she waited patiently for him to get out of the seat. She was curious as to how someone with one tail had so much more trouble than she, with her five tails, did. Once he was standing, though, she gave him another bright smile, and followed him out the door.
"I am quite excited to show you, yes." She carefully didn't specify her hobby, because she'd decided already that she planned to show him far more than merely her hobby. But that would wait until she got him to her home. In the meantime, they had another lovely walk between them.
She walked bouncily down the sidewalk with him, making sure they made the turn that would take them to the portals instead of the library. "Do you like gold or silver better?" She asked, curiously. She often went with gold because of her coloring, but silver did look good on her too... And she had options for her plan in both metals.
Laszlo grinned a bit, glad to see that she seemed to be enjoying his company so much, hardly even noticing the direction they took this time as he let her lead. He thought about her question for a moment, tapping his chin with his claws as he tried to come up with a coherent answer.
“Both have a rich history for a lot of cultures, and before the various races found each other it wasn’t always gold that was the most valuable. I still feel like silver gets overlooked in modern times because gold is considered more rare. So if I were to choose...I’d say silver, although I still think both are nice?”
His cheeks tinted a soft red in embarrassment, realizing he had rambled on a bit, probably boring her with the extra history. Hopefully that wouldn’t be as noticeable in the dim light, but even that thought wasn’t very convincing. He focused for a moment on his feet, feeling the warmth of the sidewalk on the pads before he looked up at her again.
“What do you prefer to work with?”
Her brows lifted as he talked about the historical values of both metals, and the considerations of how they came to be that way. It was a different perspective, and an unusual way to make such a decision about metal preferences. Still, he picked one, which made things easier for her in her long term goal. "Silver it is, then. I'll show you some pieces in that."
She continued to lead him to the portals, and it wasn't too long, since they weren't distracted by her desire to stop and kiss the breath out of him, before they reached them. She didn't notice his embarrassment, because it didn't matter, in the sense that his rambling, odd though it might have been, didn't bother and she thought it was an adorable trait.
"Me? I like both. Gold is softer, and sometimes a little easier to work with, but it can also be too easy. Anyways..." She stopped at a particular portal. "This is the one that'll drop us closest to my apartment... come on." She let go of his hand to step through the portal, simply because it was safer, then waited for him on the other side, hand outstretched to retake his.
He smiled at her response, glad that she hadn’t taken offense to his preference. There was a momentary worry that she would favor the other by chance, and would be less excited about showing off her work. Then again, he did say he liked both, why not show everything she had? Or maybe there was too much to show in one sitting? Either way he was curious and looking forward to seeing what she had.
Stopping once they had reached the transit portals, his ears perked up as she explained, nodding and letting her hand slip from his as she walked through the portal and disappeared. He paused for a moment, ears going back. She was inviting him to her apartment, presumably alone. What if...she wanted to…? No. He shook his head slightly, trying to convince himself. She just wanted to show him her hobby. He had asked, and she was interested in showing it off. Nothing more.
Not wanting to make her wait, he took a deep breath, trying to relax once again. He was getting worked up over nothing, that was all. Stepping through the portal finally, he blushed lightly when he found her waiting to take his hand again, smiling shyly as he slid his claws between her fingers once again and moved closer to her. It was warm and comforting to be near her. Everything would be fine.
She leaned up to kiss his cheek, as she took his hand again. "Come on, Las. My place isn't far, nor is it huge. Let's go." She gently lead him down the street, her tails flickering back and forth as she considered how to handle her plan.
He was so sweet and innocent. He almost certainly had no experience with things. She'd have to take the lead, but not scare her beautiful wolf off.
She could do this, though. "So, tell me... Do you have a roommate? I don't." She said, when they got to the door of her apartment, and pulled her keys out to unlock it.
Laszlo stayed close to her, glad that she was going at a slow enough pace that he could still walk by her side without simply being tugged along. He looked around a bit, trying to get his bearings so that he didn’t get lost on the way home, while also admiring the area she lived in. It was a nice little neighborhood, somewhat like where he lived, but it was still a pleasant change of scenery.
His ears perked up at her question, looking over at her for a moment curiously. It seemed like an innocent question, but at the same time he couldn’t tell if it was normal to ask. Or even to offer that she lived alone. Maybe she mentioned it so that he wouldn’t be alarmed or something?
“Yeah, I share an apartment. My roommate is the one that pushed me to join the dating site, actually. I let him know I was seeing you this afternoon, so he shouldn’t be worried.”
Then again, it was normal for Laszlo to stay out late studying from time to time, so his roommate might not have even noticed. Still, he would probably send a text or something to let him know he was heading back, just in case he was worried.
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Posted: Tue Oct 24, 2017 8:30 pm
She popped open the door, and did a silly little 'tadaaaa' hand at it. It was a pretty standard apartment... Dining/kitchen/living room that were basically all one space, a small hall leading to the bathroom and bedroom. "Come on in..." She walked in and went to the kitchen, and began to boil some water for hot tea.
"I'll get you some of my favorite tea, Las, and then I'll go put on some pieces to show you them." She was kneeling over to get a tea cup and saucer from the cupboard, then set them on the counter. She was glad he couldn't see the slight smirk on her face at that moment, glad her plan was working so far. By the time she stood, her face was smooth and calm again.
She got out her favorite tea, something expensive and imported from Above... a Jasmine Dragon Pearl tea. When the water was ready, she poured a little in the cup, to warm them, then dumped the water, put the tea in strainers and into the cups, then poured the water over the tea. "Let it steep for 3 minutes... then feel free to place the strainer on the saucer. I'll be back in about five minutes, I want to be sure I got no paint in my fur earlier... Just in case... then I'll be out with some jewelry." She disappeared down the hall to where her bathroom and room were.
Laszlo followed her in, looking around a bit; she hadn't been kidding when she said her place was small. It was nice and cosy though, and he liked the decorations, part of him wanted to take notes for his studies.
His ears perked up as she spoke, turning to look at her and getting a great view of her bent over. Well, of her tails at least. He wondered for a moment how much time she had put into brushing them out. Shaking his head, he tried to remind himself that he was a guest, and really shouldn't be thinking along those lines.
“Tea?”
He moved closer, watching her methodical preparation, having never seen tea made quite like that. Certainly the coffee shop didn't go through as much trouble from what he saw, perhaps it wasn't as important to Below as it was to Above? He was still feeling the warmth of the coffee he'd had, but it would be impolite to turn down an offer like this when she went through so much trouble.
“I can see why you didn't want to get tea at the cafe, it smells wonderful already…”
He shifted out of the way once she had set the tea to steep, nodding slightly. Leaning against the counter, he made note of the time, watching her disappear into the back of her apartment. Once the desired time had passed, he took the strainer out, then looked around again. There was a couch in the living room area, which would probably be best if she was going to show him her jewelry. Carefully taking a seat, he closed his eyes and relaxed into the soft cushions, enjoying the aroma of the tea as his worries floated away.
He had truly enjoyed seeing her today, even with all the mishaps. Hopefully he would know whether she wanted to see him again or not before he left tonight; he was certain his roommate would want to hear all about it.
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