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Purple Lemonade

When saving the world one doesn’t have time for holidays. Unfortunately, that doesn’t stop one from wanting them.

He was not normally an early riser, being more of a night owl, but for some reason he’d woken up before his alarm. Sitting up, the man turned the device off for now and pushed out of bed, eager to get dressed and get going. Pilfering through the rows of fabric in his closet, blue eyebrows furrowed in concern over what to wear. Any man knew not to wear their ordinary clothes on an occasion like this but they didn’t know quite how formal they should go. Should he keep it simple with a T-shirt and jeans? Or would a tuxedo be better?

Today was Valentine’s Day. He’d better go with the tux.

Slipping on the crisp white shirt, Cian marveled at how he was still skinny enough to fit in this thing. He’d bought it two years ago when he’d had to attend three weddings in a row and didn’t want to deal with renting. On went the black coat next, sleek and smooth as the day he’d got it. Admiring himself in the mirror, the man combed his fingers through his messy hair to try and get it to lay flat before heading to his bedroom door. It was nerve wracking to prepare but somehow still exhilarating. He was going to spend Valentine’s Day with his girlfriend!

‘Oh right. Can’t forget these!’ He paused at the door to pick up a bouquet of flowers he’d brought home the night before. Prepared and armed for battle, the man took a deep breath and left the safety of his room to enter the warzone.

“Amie, are you in?” The hopefulness was hard to disguise in his voice. Embarrassed but not enough to stomp away, Cian knocked on the door to the angelic blonde wondering if she would be sleeping in today. Nah, she wouldn’t. Today was the day of love, something the Al Bhed girl would want to milk every minute of. Huh, getting weird now. Why wasn’t she answering the door?

“Amie, it’s me! Open up!” The banging got louder now as the samurai grew impatient. He’d actually planned out a great date today and they needed to get going! Augh this was why he didn’t do this normally! Maybe this was a sign to stick to his more casual ways. But did he really need to learn this right now?

“Fine, I’ll be back in five minutes. I’m going to hit the kitchen and I’ll bring back some apple juice.” That ought to make her happy. Sugary treats and free food was sure to win over anyone. Trying not to feel impatient, the man walked down the hallway while wondering what Desta’s plans for the day were. Did the berserker like or dislike Valentine’s Day? On one hand it meant people expected you to give them bright colored cards and gifts. On the other hand, you often received chocolate in return. Like how Ilex was currently doing as he entered the kitchen… ?

“Th-this is for you!”

“A-ah, thanks. You shouldn’t have.”

Whoa whoa whoa what!? Golden eyes stared at the scene before him in horror. This wasn’t right! She wasn’t supposed to… Seriously, Ilex?!

‘Now what am I going to do? I can’t believe…’ Cian frowned as he felt his grip on the bouquet tighten. He’d made reservations to a nice place and it would feel stupid to go alone. Sure there was a bar and all but it just didn’t seem right. He’d have to make a detour then and figure out a different plan of action. There was no way in hell he was going to give them to the happy couple in front of him so he’d have to find someone else to go with while he mended his broken heart.

“Pfft. Nice feathers, penguin.”

“Thanks. How kind of you.”

As Taika smirked at him from the coffee machine, Cian glared in return. This was not a good time to be laughing at him. And weren’t women supposed to like sharp dressed men? Embarrassed and mad now that the Al Bhed couple were turning to look at him, Cian struggled to come up with some way to save face. He couldn’t tell the truth; that he’d worn it for Amie, but he also couldn’t lie and say that today was the day he was getting married or something. That left him with only one option.

“It’s for my date with Kylina. So shut up.” It wasn’t great but it would do for now. He’d chosen the only other available girl for him that wasn’t currently in the room so she couldn’t protest. Purple eye brows raised in question but the researcher wasn’t able to deny his claim without talking to the warrior first. The two of them shared a unique bond that was a little hard to read at times. One moment she liked him, the next moment she was standing on his face.

“I don’t have time for this anyway, I’m going to be late. See you all later.” The pilot grumbled as he left the kitchen and hurried down the hall. Now he was going to have to find the blonde human and try to convince her to go along with him. Not sure how he was going to pull this off, the man tried to remember if she owed him any favors. Nope, actually now that he thought about it… he owed her some. Well maybe that would work.

“Hey, open up! I’m taking you out on a date today!” His voice sang through his new victim’s door. As she ignored him in an attempt to make him go away, Cian pulled out his master key and let himself in. Sorry girl, you were now his for the day!

“I’m not interested. Now get out!” Blue eyes flashed at him. Clearly this was going to take some convincing then. Stepping in closer, the man expertly dodged a low aimed shoe and grabbed her arm. Normally he would not be so forceful with him (in order to avoid the consequences later) but he had no choice. If they were going to follow his schedule they’d need to leave in ten minutes which meant she’d need to start getting ready now.

“See, I figured you don’t have a date today and since I owe you that favor… C’mon, it’ll be fun!” Channeling a salesman did not come hard for Cian and he easily plastered on a big cheesy smile as he looked down at the patroller’s eyes. Not even acknowledging her protests and rejections, the man pushed her over to her wardrobe and growled in a low voice.

“Look, I have reservations at La Crystal and my girl’s in another man’s arms. Do this for me.”

“… fine but you owe me another favor. This sure as hell won’t be one for me.”

The two stopped and glared at each other, both wishing the other would just do what they wanted. It was interesting to note that they were opposites of each other. She had ice cold eyes and long golden hair while he had sun colored orbs and hair the color of the sky. Whoa, just how into this was he getting? Focus on the task at hand, man! All he needed her for was to not go through today alone!

“Well, what are you waiting for? Put on a dress.”

“You to leave, dumbass.”

“You know, day is supposed to be the celebration of love. At least try to pretend.”

She rolled her eyes and pushed him out of the room, neglecting to mention that she was a terrible actress. A few minutes later and she emerged wearing a red dress that made him question if he was still upset from what he’d seen in the kitchen. Offering his hand to her, the man grinned at his good luck and began to drag the woman down the hall. Today was going to go well after all! He was going to spend Valentine’s Day with a girl!

“So where are we going? I don’t imagine La Crystal serves breakfast.”

“No. First off we are going to visit the local Museum of Art. I checked ahead and they said they have this special exhibit going on that’s showcasing different kinds of cushion fabrics.”

“Huh? Are you serious? We’re going to go look at a bunch of swatches?”

“No, see it’s more about the… pillows…”

Okay, so maybe this was a bad choice for his new date. As she gave him a look that said she was wondering if he’d mixed concrete with his oatmeal this morning, Cian laughed awkwardly and began to steer her away from the tall majestic building. They’d move on to the next event and just skip that one.

“Here, I’ve heard this place has great food! It’s supposedly just like authentic Al Bhed cuisine!” The two of them now stood in front of a mom n’ pop restaurant that appeared to be just barely opening. The charm of the tiny little building was lost a little on both of the non-Al Bhed customers but they entered anyway, both trying to make the most out of their strange date.

‘I hope he doesn’t try to kiss me at the end of this…’ The warrior frowned as she opened a menu. As the thought dawned on her, fear flooded her veins and soon her grip on the laminated paper was trembling. Past encounters began to fill her mind, reminding her of how physical and demanding this guy could get. She shouldn’t have worn this dress! He probably thought he’d be getting lucky tonight! Oh dear, it was clear to her now that she needed to get out of her before it was too late. Picking up her purse with a horrible attempt at a laugh, Kylina nodded her head to Cian.

“If you’ll excuse me, I need to use the bathroom…”

With that she was gone. Fingers drummed on the table as the man waited, already having picked out what he was going to order. A waitress came and went as Cian sent her away, saying that he’d wait until his friend was ready to order. The waitress made another round and noted his bow tie was undone and by the third time it was shoved in his pocket with the top button of his shirt now undone.

‘Where is she? She can’t have gotten lost!’

As the sun can gently cascade down upon one in warm sweet rays, it can also burn with a fiery passion. Frustrated, the man attempted texting Kylina to ask if she was alright in there. Did she want to go home already? He got a response but it wasn’t the one he’d wanted. SHE’D ALREADY LEFT?

“What is wrong with women today?” The man groaned as he learned that he’d just been ditched. There were at least three eligible girls on his airship and not one of them wanted to spend Valentine’s Day with him? No, he’d even settle for one just being willing to tolerate it with him. Depressed, he rose from his chair and left the diner, wondering what to do next. Naomi was too young for him and probably would rather spend the day watching the spherevision than going to a fancy dinner with him. Desta would not be interested either, Cian knew the man would rather lick his own feet and accept being a cat before going on a ‘date’ with him. Taika had called him a penguin so she was out. As for Eric, well, he’d rather not spend the whole dinner talking about glyphs and aeons when he hadn’t quite understood the whole thing the first time the Al Bhed thief had explained it to him. That meant there was only one option left.

With that, he called up his one last true love and they shared a magical dinner together at La Crystal. And after that they hit the hot tub and wondered if there was such a thing as purple lemonade.

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