Pao
Rhys made mental notes as they went along, equally as fascinated by just about everything the exhibit had to offer and rather absorbed in all of it to keep the conversation up for a little while. When they came to a pause he looked over at her, blinking but smiling like a little kid in a candy store.

"This is pretty ********' cool," he said, expression changing to one that said "the ******** you lookin' at" when a parent hustled her kid past the two of them.

Aria
She had to control the urge to giggle at his expression. His enjoyment of this place was so adorable, and she reached up to caress his cheek, lovingly. "This is pretty epic, yeah." Then she tapped his lips, gently, and said "Language, babe. All the kids, remember?" She leaned up and gave him a fairly chaste kiss on the lips, to take away any sting that might have come from the mild reprimand.

She just had noticed, as they walked, that lots of parents had brought toddlers to this amazing exhibit. Kids loved dinosaurs, and it probably was a great time for them... And she remembered VERY well how much toddlers repeated words.

Pao
The reprimand irritated him more than anything else because he hated censorship and having to be mindful of kids, but because he did understand the reason for it he just grumbled silently to himself when she kissed him on the cheek.

"If I didn't love you I'd probably care less about watching my language," he murmured, sticking close to her as they continued on, basically scowling at all the kids. For the first time he was thankful for the lack of them on Deus. "But I do so just gonna not say a whole lot 'til we're clear of these..." A little one toddled across their path and he snorted. "Things."

Aria
She sighed and hugged him at his reaction, then murmured "They pick up so much at that age, and for their sake, I'd rather not risk them having parents who'll go 'HOW DARE YOU LITTLE JOHNNY' or whatever. Not all parents are what they appear, after all. And some of these young ladies might be nannies, who could lose their jobs over it, and if it's not their fault..."

She had her issues, and guilt for bad things happening to others was always going to be an issue, with those years of being told bad things were her fault.

Pao
He did get it, so leaned a bit into the hug and nodded. He didn't think as far as she did about the possible repercussions for nannies or anything, but it didn't feel like something he needed to be stupid-stubborn about. And that would probably ruin the rest of their time at the museum, which he really didn't want, so he left it alone.

"Just don't let me not talkin' much mess you up," he murmured again, eyes up and off the kids finally. "Still want you to have a good time, too."

Aria
"All right babe... I don't want it spoiled for you, either, though. I love you." Her eyes were a little worried at the idea that he might have his mood ruined. She pulled him into a quiet corner, sort of behind an exhibit but not in a 'not allowed' area, just one where kids weren't gonna go cause it looked 'booooooooooooooring' and then pulled him into a real kiss, holding him tight. She just wanted him to be able to enjoy this whole visit, not feel frustrated by having to remember to be good.

She felt bad, kind of, that she might have spoiled his time here.

Pao
"Love you, too," he replied, meeting her eye and giving a smile despite still being annoyed at the whole having to watch his mouth thing. He saw the worry and hoped it passed soon; he had a feeling it was about him and he felt a bit guilty at having blown up the issue at all.

He was a little confused when she pulled him into a random, out-of-the-way corner and was about to say something when she kissed him. And much the way it always had, her kiss took his focus away from the rest of the world and put it all on her. He held her close and leaned into the kiss for a moment before pulling away, sighing as he did.

"Not complaining, but what was that for?"

Aria
She tilted her head at the sigh, wondering why he had. "Just... I know having to watch your language is gonna frustrate you, but... At least I can try to make if a little better, yeah?" Her fingers slipped up to run along his cheek, in a warm and loving fashion. "And best way I can think of is sneaky kisses in private corners." Well, she could think of other ways but this was definitely not private enough for anything like that, and he wasn't ready for it, either.

"I just want you to have a good time, babe." Her eyes were gently searching his, hoping to see a sign that the kiss had at least helped.

Pao
Her concern was sweet, and the sigh was only because the kiss was just as sweet and he loved her for both. He leaned into her touch, smile soft and warm and loving and absolutely grateful for her thoughtfulness.

"I am havin' a good time," he replied, "'cause I'm with you, even if I gotta watch my mouth when we go around. Not too happy 'bout that, but I'll live. Love you for bein' so concerned though..." With that he leaned in for another real kiss, short and sweet. "And you're right, sneaky kisses in private corners does help. A lot."

Aria
She sighed softly, her hand staying on his cheek for a long moment, enjoying the feeling of his skin on her fingers. He was everything she could ever have wanted in life, and every time he responded by leaning into her touch, it just made little butterflies flicker in her stomach, as she thought about how amazing and impossible and lucky this seemed to be... Despite it being real.

"Good... I know you'll live, but I'd rather it not be totally a bummer for you, yeah?" She kissed him back, and hugged him tight for a moment. "So I'll make sure to find lots of sneaky corners for sneaky kisses, so it'll be all the more fun for you." She paused, and chuckled a little. "And me too, of course."

Pao
"It won't be," he replied, "but I won't say 'no' to sneaky kisses, babe." Which he did just once more, by turning his head and pressing a kiss to her palm. He lifted a hand to take hers and twined them together as he leaned down.

He didn't kiss her though, just hovered for a moment, eyes closed and savoring their closeness. "You know I love you, right?"

Aria
"Excellent. Sneaky kisses just sound like a great way to make this more fun, then." She gave a soft gasp at the feelings that kiss sent through her. No matter how many times he did that, it still amazed her how sensitive the hand really was. She sighed softly, happily, and squeezed his hand, eyes gentle with how much she loved him.

His face, so close to hers, was a temptation, and she wanted to close the gap but his question distracted her. "Yeah, babe. You make sure I feel it, every day. I have never felt so loved in my life. I hope that you know, and feel the same..."

Pao
With how close they were it was easy to imagine her lips on his already, to imagine the feel and taste of her again...it couldn't have been more than a minute or two since they last kissed but he was already longing to close the gap as well.

"Mm, I do," he finally giving in just a little, barely brushing his lips against hers. "Still amazes me when I think about it, but am always thankful for you and for how you love me..."

Aria
She gave a sigh at the quick, almost teasing kiss, and tilted her head to give him another, proper, kiss, her arms tight around him for the moment. Finally, though she pulled back and murmured "I'll say it, as I've said it before. You're the best thing that has ever happened to me. I have no intention of letting you go."

She then took a few calming, steadying breaths, and said "Let's move on before some kid does get curious and then reports to Mummy about how the two adults are in the corner being weird."

Pao
He smiled into the kiss, pulling her in close and holding her just as tight as she held him, happy to let the kiss go on until she finally pulled back. "Same to you, love."

He took a few breaths as well, then chuckled and glanced around to see if there were any curious kids around at all. Sure enough, there were still plenty, all ignoring their boring, private little corner. "I like 'being weird' with you, but alright. Still gotta look at the rest of what they got here, find other little corners..."

Aria
She smiled happily up at him, kissed his cheek, and then gently pulled free so that they could walk together, hand in hand again. She wondered if the world could see how happy she was, because she felt like she was glowing with joy every time he said he loved her, or called her love.

She was glad none of the kids had come where they could be seen, and then chuckled at his words. "I like 'being weird' with you too, babe, but who needs angry parents coming to accost you for 'exposing kids' to 'such behavior,' after all?" The way she said part of that was in silly Sniffy Snobby Voices, and she winked at him. "There's more to see... We haven't found your triceratops yet, for instance."

And on that, she moved down the hall, looking at the exhibits, but hunting for his favorite.

Pao
He followed after her, gently squeezing her hand as they went. His thoughts mirrored hers in a way, and he found himself wondering if the people around could see how his demeanor changed just from her reminding him that she loved him, not just by saying it but with her concern and her thoughtfulness as well.

"They can fight me if it comes to that," he huffed, amused by her Sniffy Snobby Voices, "but yeah, extra hassle we probably shouldn't risk. Brilliant as always, babe." He lifted her hand to his lips and gave the back of it a kiss, feeling it was tame enough to do outside of a corner.

Mention of finding his favorite dinosaur got him to pay more attention to the exhibit again, grin back and wide as it had been at the start. "Bet it's near the back or the end," murmured the brunette while he searched.

Aria
She chuckled and shook her head. "I'd really rather they not have to fight you, babe. We could get kicked out if that happened, and then I won’t get to see my stegosaurus, and you might not see your triceratops." She once again shivered at the kiss, even if it was generally tame... It just seemed to have that effect on her. She gave him a bright smile, however, her eyes scanning the cases.

She stopped, however, when they found a small group of various raptors of different sizes, since he'd mentioned them too. "Oh! Look here, babe!" She said, pointing at them all, with their sharp foot claws and their incredibly dangerous teeth. "They have a selection!"

Pao
There was maybe a small huff of pride that he gave when she said that, though being able to best a handful of Angry Moms probably wasn't anything too impressive for normal people. "I know, I know," he just wound up saying, smiling a bright smile right back at her.

Her sudden excitement got him to turn his head so fast because raptors, that if he wasn't a hunter he might have given himself whiplash. He didn't say anything, though, but his excitement was all over his face as he led her closer to the display.

"Fu-- awesome sh--stuff..." he marveled from behind an annoying crowd of little kids again. It was so tempting to just elbow them out of the way, too, but he behaved himself and watched from as close as he could get.

Aria
Seren was chuckling softly at his reaction, amused that he would be proud that he could take on Angry Moms. He was such an oddball at times, but it was part of what she loved about him. She gave him an eyeroll of amusement, accompanied with a loving look.

His reaction to the raptors was actually a surprise to her, but she was glad she'd spotted them, given HOW excited he was. She happily followed him close, and gave his hand a warm squeeze, looking between the display and how happy her boyfriend looked. Both were wonderful sights, in her somewhat biased opinion.

She had to chuckle at his battle with his normal vocabulary, and gave him another hand squeeze, this time to encourage him. "You wanna hang out here a minute or two?" She could see this was a class group, and the teacher would make this crowd move on soon, so he could get really close up.

Pao
None of what she did escaped him, and he squeezed her hand right back after he heard the chuckle. It helped him ignore the struggle, because it was a struggle, so he could focus on the raptors. Her question was answered with a little nod, and sure enough the kids were ushered along soon enough and he was able to get as close as he was allowed to go.

"I'm 6'2", ripped, and I know how to fight and defend myself, but I'm still kinda scared shitless standing next to these bones..." he murmured, then blinked over at Seren. "Is that weird?"

Aria
When they got up close, she tucked herself under his arm, and stared at the bones in fascination. They were so neat looking, and imagining what they might have actually looked like when they were alive was fascinating beyond all belief. She wondered how brightly colored they might have been... Supposedly they were at least sort of feathered, from what she remembered reading.

His comment, and then question, had her glancing up at him and smiling gently. "I don't know? I'm not, knowing that they're as dead as can be, but..." She looked at them again, and said "When I imagine what it'd be like to face them in person, that adds fear. So I doubt it's weird?"

Pao
He let her tuck in, subconsciously leaning toward her as he looked on, still absorbed in all of what was right in front of him.

"Hm..." he mused, silently observing the bones again. "Yeah, I'm kinda imagining 'em alive and breathing and... hungry. Honestly probably the only reason I can appreciate the bones?" At that he tore his eyes away to look down at her, smiling but silent. She always had a way of encouraging him, understanding and kind and very accepting of his thoughts, and it never failed to lift his spirits.

Aria
She just hugged him at his words, a loving smile gracing her lips as she gazed back up at him. They were fascinating, but his enjoyment and interest was far more fascinating to her. Seren couldn't help but think that when he was really interested in something, he just lit up, and it was beautiful, and wonderful.

"Mmm yeah that would be scary, indeed." She finally said, her head resting on his shoulder. "Even with our... helpers..." She brushed her fingers against Diwata's star-shaped totem for a moment. "I suspect a group of them would be challenging."

Pao
There was no way he would know if being really interested in anything made him light up like she was thinking, except when it came to her. He always lit up when she walked into the room, or when he thought of her, or really just whenever she came up, and he was certain of that because it wasn't just a look on his face. He felt it, even more so when she was close like she was right then, hugging and holding on to him while wearing such a lovely smile.

He hugged her as well, smirking. "A group versus you and me?" he raised a brow and considered the thought.” Even with our helpers, I figure we'd still be on the run even if we manage to take one down."

Aria
"Unfortunately, I'm inclined to agree. We're tough, but... not that tough." She looked back at the dinosaur fossils, her eyes still fascinated. She simply held him and leaned against him, letting him have as much time as he wanted to look at the ferocious looking bones. She'd move when he was ready. Until then?

Well, until then she was quite comfortable where she was, and uninterested in worrying about it.

Pao
He nodded and contented himself with holding her while still observing the bones. It was at least a few more minutes before he heard another cluster of kids starting to descend on their quiet appreciation of the fossils, so with a sigh he de-tangled from her and took her hand again as they finally walked on.

"Raptors done, triceratops next?"

Aria
She sighed as well when he moved back a bit, and nodded. "Let's find the big guy, yeah." They passed some huge skeletons, brontosauruses and others, and she looked appreciative at all of them. She paused under one of the brontos, and, with an amused tone, said "Such a rare thing, to see you looking dwarfed, babe."

She did keep her eyes out, and finally they found what they were looking for. She stopped in front of it, and just looked the dino over, eyes a little wide as she took in the three horns, the bone frill, and all of the incredible details that made the triceratops so fascinating.

Pao
He squinted at her when she teased him but was still smiling, clearly amused by the playful jab. As they walked he gave her hand periodic squeezes, gentle and a small expression of his love and affection for her, until finally they found it. And if his excitement with the raptors was visible, this time it was maybe even palpable to a degree.

His eyes went over the various bones; the horns, the frill, the details...and life-size, which was probably the coolest part...he took it all in with quiet, childlike fascination as he flashed back for a moment.

Aria
She tilted her head so she could take in his reactions, and she found herself lost in how he looked. The childlike fascination was a new look on him, and it had her more entranced then the bones... And they were fascinating, no lie. He just was so much more important in her world that she couldn't look away from him while he looked like this.

She wasn't entirely sure why it had her so entranced, honestly, but it did. Maybe it was because it was something she'd never seen before, and gave her a slight glimpse at what little Rhys might have been like, before things went badly.

Pao
He gently tightened his grip on her hand for a long moment as he looked on, the fascination not fading until he came back and took a deep breath. "Whoa..." he murmured, finally looking over at her. Which was when he noticed that she was watching him instead of the display, so he quirked a brow again.

"Something on my face, babe?"

Aria
She just smiled and shook her head, turning back to look at the display. She suddenly knew what he meant by 'falling in love you all over again', from that night watching the stars. She'd just experienced that sensation, watching him as he looked at the triceratops. He was beautiful, and strangely innocent, in that moment, and it was wonderful.

She stayed quiet, though, and leaned into him, a soft smile on her lips.

Pao
He was curious but didn't press, instead just leaning a bit into her as well while looking at the display. They spent some minutes there, and then finally leaned over and gave her a soft kiss on the cheek to get her attention. "On to your favorite, love?" he asked before kissing her again, then whispering, "or find another corner?"

Aria
"Shop... The shop is right outside the exit of the Dinosaur hall... Then on to the stegosaurus, love." She said, coming back from the thoughts she had been lost in as she studied this deceased giant they'd been standing in front of. She paused, then murmured "But if we find a good, private corner on the way, we should use it." She began to walk, but stayed under his arm this time, wanting to keep the closeness going for as long as possible.

Pao
Rhys laughed lightly and nodded, giving her a little side-hug as they went. He wanted to stay close for as long as possible as well, so he was fine with things staying that way even as they entered the shop.

"Frames, babe," he pointed out before his eyes got pulled to other things on the shelves. Stuffed animals were one, and he found himself wondering if she had an appreciation for them at all. So he slipped away for a second and grabbed two small ones, a triceratops and a stegosaurus, before coming back and showing them. "Yes or no?" he asked, expression purely curious.

Aria
She mmm'd happily at the side hug, and was quite happily cuddled into him as they walked in. Her eyes took in all the colors and shapes, initially, a little overwhelmed at the variety of stuff.

When he pointed out the picture frames, though, she turned to focus on them. She sighed when he pulled away from her side, but picked up a couple of the frames, before selecting two... One for Dai's photo, one for their photo from the Haunted House. She figured he could pick the ones he liked for any other photos.

When he returned, with the plushies, however, she almost dropped the frames, her eyes going wide, and she reached over to take the stegosaurus, pulling it gently out of his hand. She stared at it, her fingers trembling a little as memories from when she was small, and had seen other kids with plushies and teddy bears, and the craving of just one small snuggle-able toy of her one, over taking her. She bit her lip, hard, trying not to cry as that memory swept over her. Unable to speak, she just held it close, nodding, while staring down at it, still fighting the tears.

Pao
Her reaction was...unexpected, but he pieced it into perspective, recalling her story and what she must have had to live without. If they refused basic necessities then stuffed animals were out of the question, and he sighed, smile a bit sad at drawing out unpleasant memories. He quietly pulled her into a hug, hopefully to offer some comfort and also to help calm her down, whispering soothing reminders of how he loved her, that he was there for her, and that she deserved all the good things in life and that she could have them now.

While they were standing an employee approached, concern in her eyes, but he waved her off, but only after quietly asking her to bring the biggest stegosaurus plushie they had available. Because the love of his life was denied plushies as a kid, so damnit her first ever plushie was gonna be huge.

Aria
She cuddled into him, her face against his chest, battling the urge to cry and taking comfort from his warmth and his closeness. She heard his words of love, and all the things he was saying to help her feel better, and it was helping, a lot. It just was overwhelming to have been surprised with something she had always wanted but never thought she'd get. She had mentioned it, vaguely, how she'd wanted a teddy bear but it was such an in passing thing. Him just... deciding to do this was awesome.

She didn't notice the shop employee, nor did she notice his request to her, because she had focused on some deep breathing, just trying to get herself re-centered, and relaxed. Finally, she lifted her head again, and gave him a slightly wobbly smile, but one full of love and gratitude. "Thank you, baby."

Pao
He held her for as long as she needed, the giant dinosaur plushie sitting by his feet as they stood there for a good while. When she looked up and smiled, though, her smile, however wobbly, was still beautiful to him. She was always beautiful, really, and he smiled back. "Of course, babe," he said quietly before kissing her forehead. He didn't care if Angry Moms protested the gesture, she was his first priority. Always. "You okay? We could take a second outside if you need to..."

Aria
She wiped her eyes, to get rid of any tears that she hadn't managed to blink away, and shook her head at his question. "I'm fine, babe... Just re-centering." She happened to glance down and her eyes went huge as she stared at the huge plushie at his feet. She stared at it, then slowly looked up at him an expression of wordless surprise, shock, and gratitude in her eyes, her mouth working as she was unable to find words to express herself in that moment.

Pao
"Okay, if you're sure." He was about to hug her again when she looked down, then back up at him with those gorgeous blue eyes of hers full of all kinds of emotions he could only guess was love and gratitude. So he smiled at her and reached down to pick it up, then handed it to her after carefully pulling the tiny version out of her grasp.

"Your first one, figured it was go big or go home. Hope that's cool. I'm just glad they went for cute and not an accurate picture in the shape of a doll."

Aria
She hugged it tight, the love and gratitude she felt for having such a ******** thoughtful and loving boyfriend shining from her eyes. She would have leaned over to kiss him, but her arms were kind of full of Big Dinosaur. She whispered "You're the best effing boyfriend a girl could ask for. I don't know what I did to deserve you, but thank you, baby. Thank you so much."

She cradled it close, holding the frames she'd picked with care. She wasn't entirely sure how they were going to get everything back to the apartment, with other stops between now and then, but that was a concern for later. Right now, she was too much in shock from this.

Pao
He smiled, big and bright just for her because it meant a lot to him that she now had some of the things he was sure she'd always deserved but never got her hands on until now, and that he could again have the privilege of being the one to give her one of those things...

He carefully took the frames she'd picked in one hand, while taking her hand in the other as he led her to the register. He then paid for everything and after making a brief arrangement he turned to her just to double check. Plus he didn't really want to tear the stuffed animal out of her arms. "They'll hold it for us so we can see the stegosaurus, that okay with you?"

Aria
She followed him to the register, in a kind of happy-numb state of shock, not really fully processing everything yet. When he got everything paid for, and arrangements made, she blinked a little, and then nodded. "Yeah, that... is a good idea, love." She gave it a gentle kiss, blushing some as she felt a little shy, but at the same time... She was so happy. She then handed it, and the other frame, over so that the purchases could be kept together.

Once her arms were empty, she spun to face him, and hugged him tight, doing her best to put all of her gratitude into the hug.

Pao
He barely finished thanking the lady behind the register when Seren hugged him, and he gave a low chuckle while happily hugging her back. He definitely felt the gratitude, and he sighed, happy that he did good again, but also sad because something so small and so simple had been kept from her for so long... the thought had him hug her just a little bit tighter.

"Love you, baby, and you're always welcome," he murmured into her hair. "Always, okay? Just gotta ask and if I can, I'll do it."

Aria
"You're the best, love." She gave him one more squeeze, and then stepped back, taking his hand in hers again, fingers laced through his, and led him down the hall.

When they made it to the Earth Hall, she looked around, then saw the stegosaurus. Her eyes lit up and she walked straight to it, finding a spot where she could stand and stare at the giant and amazing skeleton. Her hand was tight in his, but not so tight it might be painful. Wonder and joy was on her face, and she too got lost in the excitement of seeing her favorite dinosaur in person for the first time.

Pao
Rhys happily followed after her, content to see her blissfully floating through the crowds until they finally found her favorite dino. He stood beside her, giving her hand a squeeze before letting go and draping his arm over her shoulders, pulling her close as he watched her, so beautifully amazed by the display in front of them. Maybe it was the lighting or his supreme bias, but she looked exceptionally gorgeous in that moment.

Aria
After a long moment of silence, her bright eyes refocused on him and she said "Can you imagine one of these, alive and in the flesh? Herbivore, so it wouldn't try to eat us... But so big, and just... Amazing!" She was almost clinging to him in her excitement, and she bounced a little on the balls of her feet, unable to help the childlike energetic reaction to seeing this. She'd never thought she'd ever get to see any real fossils in her life, let alone one of her favorite dinosaur, and she was seeing it with Rhys.

Pao
"Hm?" he mused, blinking at her question before finally looking over at the dinosaur properly. It was huge, definitely, and it took him a second to really imagine it alive and in the flesh. "Amazing would be the word I'd use, too," he said, smiling up at the display before looking down at her again. It was his turn to appreciate her reaction to the display; with the way she was bouncing and clinging to him he couldn't help but chuckle. It was adorable, to say the very least, and he would stay and watch her like this for however long she wanted to stay.

"You want a picture with it, babe?"

Aria
"Ah! A picture would be awesome! We should have gotten one of you with the triceratops, though!" She sound excited in the first half, and a little mournful at the second for not having thought of it. "We should sneak back in, via the exit, and get one, before we leave, babe." She leaned up, and kissed his cheek, then moved to where she could be photographed and he could still get most, if not all, of the huge skeleton in the photo.

Her expression was a beaming smile for the picture, too.

Pao
"It's fine," he said once the photo was snapped and he was already handing her the phone so she could examine it and see if she wanted a retake. "We still gotta pick stuff up at the gift shop so best not kicked out before then, in case we get caught."

He leaned down and gave her a kiss on the cheek this time. "So should we head out now or what else did you wanna see?"

Aria
She looked at the photo, and gave it a happy smile, then looked at him, thoughtfully. "We should find other museums with good dinosaur collections, and next time, we'll get a photo of you." She handed him his phone back, and smiled at the kiss, her arm slipping around his waist again.

"Mmmm I think we've seen everything I specifically wanted to see. Wanna head out, then?" She glanced at the time, making some mental adjustments to her plans for timing's sake.

Pao
He smiled as her arms went around him; it felt so right, standing there with her like that. At her question he nodded, hands tracing her arms down so he could grab her hands and untangle from her. He held just one of her hands, though, as he led her back to the shop.

"More dinosaurs is good, definitely," he replied, "but are there other ones? What if they suck compared to this one?"

Aria
Seren followed along next to him, fingers gently caressing his as they walked, taking in whatever they passed. She'd been too caught between her joy over his incredibly thoughtful gift, and her excitement over seeing the Stegosaurus, to look before. Now, she appreciated the stuff, even though she didn't stop.

"There are definitely other ones! There's one that's famous from up by your home neck of the woods, in fact! If we can manage to go without attracting attention we wouldn't want..." Like risking people who thought he was dead seeing him... "We should go to the American Museum of Natural History. It's in Manhattan!"

Pao
Mentioning Manhattan got him to squint. "Risky plan," he said, glancing over with a doubtful expression. "But New York City's pretty huge, and Manhattan's way outta my actual neck of the woods, so I'm gonna go with...maybe?" It'd be nice to visit, though, make a very short day-trip out of it. Just long enough to see the museum, but touring around the city wouldn't be an option. Or at least not an advisable one.

They made it to the shop soon enough, and after a quick stroll to the front register and picking up a small bag and the giant stegosaurus that didn't fit in a bag, they were out and ready to officially leave. Still, he gave her a nudge. "Last chance at last minute museum things, love."

Aria
Seren beamed a little. "We should plan a day trip to the museum. We can make it work." She hugged him tight, and added "I hope someday we can find a way to see other stuff, I always wanted to see New York, but if not... the Museum is enough. I hear they have an incredible collection of dinosaurs, actually." She paused, then said in a distant tone, "They took Dai to New York when he was 7, and he told me all about it. He gave me a tiny plastic stegosaurus he'd managed to get, but they got mad, because he didn't do very good at hiding he'd done it." She sighed a little, then gave him a warm smile, making the bad things go away. "So it's something I've wanted to see since I was 11 or so."

She carried the big plush, when it was handed to them, and just beamed up at him, shaking her head. "Not sure how we're gonna go ice skating with all of this... Maybe we should do that another trip? Go drop this off at the apartment, then go downtown to where the shops are and have lunch there?"

Pao
It broke his heart a bit that there was that restriction because of work. If New York slept at night he'd suggest taking a night trip, but...well, it didn't. Not really, anyway, so for now he gave her a hug and a nod. "We'll figure something out, yeah. Would have to plan carefully, but I think it's doable if we're careful enough."