Valentines Blind Date, Izayoi and Ashelia

Well, this is it. I think.

Ashe checked the card again. The flowery invitation had a small map printed on the back that the event organizer had instructed her to follow with a tea house as the destination, and while Ashe had never been to a tea house before she certainly hadn't expected this.

Like all buildings in Hosenka, the tea house was constructed in an flashy oriental style that lent itself well to an abundance of ornate styling. However, rather than seem ostentatious as most Hosenkan architecture did, the tea house came across as serene and relaxing. It was situated just off the shore of a small lake and accessible only by a short bridge, but even from here Ashe could smell a peaceful aroma.

After entering she showed the card to the greeter, who flashed her a knowing smile and directed her to a private table on a second floor veranda overlooking the water. The view was quite something: from this height one could just make out the horizon over the trees on the far side of the lake, and the reflection of the setting sun over the water was a sight to behold.

"Here you are dear, can I get you something while you wait?"

Still taking in the view, Ashe was startled when the woman spoke up. She quickly sat down and tried to conjure up her limited knowledge of teas.

"Uhm, y-yes...I'll have, um, d-do you have any..um...oh! G-gyokuro? Am-am I saying it right? It t-tastes like r-roasted p-pears..."

The woman simply smiled, nodded, and left, leaving Ashe to fidget nervously. This wasn't the sort of thing she would normally do, she had only entered this event because Ana goaded her into it. She didn't even have Vendrick around for moral support either; the old ghost king had disappeared somewhere with a wink and a quip about 'not wanting to intrude'. To top it all off Ashe had no idea who might show up. She hoped it would be Ana, but with the number of people participating...well, the odds were anyone's guess.

A server arrived in short order with her tea, which Ashe sipped slowly. It did a lot to calm her nerves, but the question still remained: who was she going to meet?

Annoying... thats what ran through Izayoi's head as she followed the little map on the card she had recieved. She had not signed up willingly but had ended up getting conned into entering by a smooth talking event coordinator, but she had spiffed up anyways. She looked around the area she was in as she walked, it was pretty lively and she was getting alot of people staring at her. 

"Thats the last time i wear this dress."

Izayoi was wearing a form fitting black dress with black high heels that matched, in short very little was left to the imagination. She sighed as a man stepped into her path clearly looking to get something from her.

"Hey babe how about me and you go somewhere private and have ours..."

The man didn't get to finish as Izayoi summoned a Hatred Legion, which grabbed the man by the head and moved him to the side. She could see the fear in the man's eyes, he understood that this girly was not someone to mess with. Izayoi huffed and continued on her way, not bothering to dismiss the Hatred legion that fell in behind her. She was getting more looks now, but these looks she didn't mind, they were looks of someone who was wary of something and that in her mind was better then lust filled. She continued on until she reached her destination, a tea house from the looks of it. Izayoi sighed and pulled the card out.

"Present upon arrival... wonderful... now they get to be in on it."

Izayoi knew that they would but she was still a bit pissed at the way she had gotten conned into it, the event person had bet her that if they flipped a coin three times and got heads each time she would sign up. Unfortunately both sides of the coin where heads, something Izayoi didn't find out until after she had signed up completely. Izayoi walked into the establishment only to get stopped by the greeter.

"Can i help you?"

Izayoi held out the card for the person to take, which they did then motioned for her to follow.
They were lead up to the second floor to a special table, where Izayoi's date awaited. Izayoi moved over to the table and sat down.

"Hello..."

She looked at the woman sitting across from her with very intent eyes, trying to size up the woman. The Hatred legion took up a position behind her, but sitting outwards facing the view, Something Izayoi had yet to do.

Oh, wow. That's uh...wow.

Ashe blinked slowly. It turned out her partner wasn't Anastasia after all, and while that turn of events might have normally occupied her thoughts, she found herself rather...distracted by her date's arrival.

She couldn't say what specifically drew her eye. It was certainly unusual to find someone with hair and skin as pale as her own was, and while crimson eyes weren't unheard of in the magical community they stood in stark contrast among all the white. The dress too was...intriguing, to say the least. The sheer black showed off her curves in a way that was at once provocative and stylish, leaving Ashelia somehow feeling both over and underdressed; her own simple green dress over a white blouse and black stockings seemed rather drab by comparison.

Then there was her height. Ashe could see above most people in a crowd, and yet this woman was able to meet her gaze with ease. That was another thing she wasn't used to: most she met found something else to do while talking with her to avoid having to look up, but she was looking her straight in the eye, crimson orbs taking her in with an intensity that...

Heat began creeping across her face, a blush spreading with the realization that, not only had Ashe been staring at the woman across from her since she entered the room, but that she had been watching her the entire time. Somewhat belatedly, it sunk in that the other woman had already spoken, and was probably waiting on a response.

"Oh, I am s-so sorry! I didn't mean to st-stare, it's just...you're r-really pretty-er, that is, your d-dress...not t-that you aren't yours-self! I mean...uuuugh..."

Ashe fumbled for words, well aware she was likely digging herself a bigger hole in the process. This was her problem with living people. It felt like the expectations got in the way of what she wanted to say, and instead of smooth, normal speech, what came out was a garbled mess.

Come on, keep it together Ashe. Deep breaths, you can do this. You can even talk to your team without turning into a mess, just apply that here!

If only it were so easy. She'd already made a fool of herself, and her blush got progressively worse the longer she sat silent trying to think of something to say. The tea helped, but it was hardly enough.

Forget it. Focus on the basics.

"Um, an-anyways...my n-name is Ashelia. You can c-call me Ashe, if-if you like." She paused, at a loss as to how to continue. How does one bow or curtsy at a table? She settled for sticking her hand out awkwardly in hopes that a handshake would at least suffice.

"M...may I ask yours?"

Izayoi studied the stuttering girl intently and liked what she say, Izayoi smiled as the girl jittered some more. The girl complimented Izayoi on her looks, or sort of did it was a bit hard to tell with all her fumbling. Izayoi tired to not laugh but could not help her self, she broke out laughing.

"My dear i don't bite and I'm not going to hurt you."

Izayoi was still a bit annoyed at the situation but she didn't get a man and she was kind intrested in this girl now. Izayoi waved over to one of the servers and placed a order before answering the girls question.

"I'm Izayoi Burakkurozu." Izayoi didn't really know where to go from there honestly so she just sat waiting for her tea.

If she hadn't been red-faced already, the other woman's laughing would have certainly made her so. That wasn't exactly fair of course-Ashe couldn't help if she was a social train wreck. She would have actually taken offense had it not quickly become apparent that the woman was simply laughing at her reaction, and not mocking her directly. Her date probably took her reddening expression as a cue to reassure her, stating that she wasn't about to bite, and she had no intention of hurting her.

"I didn't...That is...I..." Ashe waved her hands and looked away, unwilling to embarrass herself any further.

Deep breaths Ashe. Deeeeep breaaatths.

"T-thank you. I'm v-very sorry I'm so n-nervous, it's just...I d-don't exactly so-socialize v-very much..."

Her partner seemed to take that at face value, calling over a server and ordering tea before giving her own name.

"Izayoi..." She murmured, trying out the name. "Th-that's very pretty, it s-s-suits you."

Ashe flushed further. She knew off of the top of her head that Izayoi meant 'the sixteenth night of the moon' and that it was tied with the season of autumn, but she was somewhat hesitant to say so. Would it be strange to bring up such a thing to someone she had just met? Especially considering her own name contained no special meaning? No- she would need to find some other topic of conversation.

Oh! Ask her about her hobbies! Perfect, nice job, me.

"S-so...uhm, Izayoi, y-you don't mind if I c-call you Izayoi, do you?" She fidgeted a bit, unsure how the woman would respond. Regardless of the answer, she continued.

"Oh-okay. Do you p-perhaps, that is, wh-what are s-some of your in-interests?"

Izayoi's tea finally arrived and she immediately picked it up and tried some, it was good but not great. Izayoi frowned and put it down, she had brought her own just in case. Izayoi looked up at the other woman as she spoke and smiled.

"You can call me whatever you wish to call me"

Izayoi motioned to her legion, who produced her bag then went back to watching the sun set. Izayoi looked at the legion intently, she had not seen the legions be so.... personable before. She shrugged and fished out the tin of tea she had prepared that day before, she set the tin on the table.

"Erm... well i study the application of magic tech as well as lost magics. I'm really intrested in time magics, but for reasons that are fading i suppose. To be honest I'm not really sure what to do anymore... now that I'm free..."

Izayoi looked out over the horizon and though about what she could do now, she didn't know if the people she ran from were still looking for her. Izayoi sighed and looked back to the other girl.

"What are you intrestets?"

Ashe listened attentively as Izayoi responded, not wanting to miss anything. As she had never really gotten the hang of striking up conversation with new people she wasn't sure exactly how to proceed from here. The other girl had some sort corporeal soul companion that was just fascinating, but she didn't want to seem rude if she inquired about it. Would that be rude? Ashe hoped that Izayoi would mention it during her explanation of her interests, but there was no such luck. She did speak of some other interesting things however; lost magic, magitech, and time magic were all interesting fields of study.

Then the woman let slip that she seemed unsure of herself now that she was free of...something? Ashe couldn't help but lean forward ever so slightly to try and catch Izayoi's next words, but no more were forthcoming as she looked out over the water at the setting sun. A sigh passed her lips, though Ashe could only guess at what thoughts prompted it. The moment passed, and Izayoi turned her attention back across the table causing Ashe to jump backwards as she realized how far forward she had been leaning.

"M-my interests? O-oh...well, I'm afraid it's nothing so interesting as ti-time magic or m-magitech. My t-te-teammates Nao and Anastasia would be b-better for those..." She caught herself fidgeting again and willed her restless fingers to stop, with limited success.

"Mine are-that is, I p-personally find history absolutely fascinating and...um...well, it sounds rather silly when you say it out loud, but I'm also rather fond of the supernatural! l-l-like curses and g-ghost stories...and things like that..." Although she began to brighten a bit, Ashe quickly trailed off realizing what she must sound like.

No, you idiot! Why did you mention that? She's going to think you're one of those kooky superstitious fools who put rabbits' feet on everything for good luck and cast worthless dime curses on people they don't like!

"Oh, d-don't get me wrong, i-it's not like like I'm superstitious or an-anything! It's just, I c-can talk to spirits, so-"

She immediately clapped her hands over her mouth, but the damage had been done. Without fail everybody she talked to wrote her off as crazy the minute she mentioned talking to spirits or mentioned being able to in their presence. Even among her teammates the suspicion lurked that she was deluding herself. After all, even among mages the idea of ghosts being real was a tough pill to swallow. Seeing a girl talk to these supposed ghosts out of the blue did nothing to dispel that notion when nobody else could see them either.

Well, there goes any chance of that. She's surely going to think we're crazy now too. At least we didn't tell her about the curse, or she'd be running for the hills. And it was going so well...

"I...I shouldn't have said that. I can...I can understand if you w-want to leave now."

Ashe couldn't even look Izayoi in the face. She didn't want to see the look of pity and skepticism directed towards her once again. Her hands were shaking slightly as she tried to take another sip of tea, though she doubted it would help. At this point she just wanted to crawl under a rock and die...maybe this whole thing hadn't been such a good idea after all.

Izayoi listened intently this girl was quite interesting, and her shyness made her cute. she listened but waved the server over and pointed to the hot water and held up a finger, indicating she wanted another pot of water. She smiled and put her hands together and listened to her. It was quite adorable that she kept stumbling over her words. Izayoi laughed at the girl mentioning her teammates, Izayoi didn't have any teammates... and her sisters had stayed with Sabertooth.

"Hmm... i think i might have a good history book at home you might like.." Izayoi mantioned as the girl took a breath. The girl continued as the server came up with Izayoi's water only to stop and stare at Ashe as she mentioned talking to spirits. The words didn't even phase her, she worked with souls on a daily basis when she used her magic.

"What?!?" The server had not moved, Izayoi looked at her, her face was shown with mild shock. "Thats... i have to go."

Izayoi blinked as the girl took off, wondering what that was all about, she shrugged and turned back to ashe to see she had a similar look of shock on her face. "Uh... something wrong?" It had not dawned on Izayoi yet. Izayoi looked around and caught sight of the server talking to what looked like the main host, It clicked. As did Ashe's next words about wanting to leave, which caused Izayoi to laugh.

"Why would i leave" Izayoi turned around, "Come here please." She said to the legion, who got up and walked over to here. "I work with souls on a daily basis with the usage of my magic." Izayoi tapped the large legion in the chest. "So in a way i talk with spirits too." Izayoi already knew that they had outstayed their welcome, she produced some jewel and put it on the table. "Lets go i want to see that horizon from higher up... and i would like to get out of these dress... if you don't mind its really not my taste..." Izayoi stood up and moved to the girls side, offering her hand like a man would to a lady.

And now the server too? What did I do to deserve this? I just...please hurry and leave. I can't bear it.

Ashe let out a dejected sigh, expecting to hear the familiar rustle of fabric rustling as one gathered their things to leave. What she received was just about the last thing she expected: laughter. Not the mocking sort either; she'd heard that before as well and was ready for it. No, this was genuine amusement at the course of events. At this she finally looked up and watched wide eyed as Izayoi beckoned to her large companion, tapping him on the chest while explaining that, as one who worked regularly with souls in their magic, she was more than familiar with the concept of talking with spirits and often did so herself in her own way.

Pure wonder and relief crossed Ashe's face. At that moment, Izayoi couldn't have been more perfect in her eyes even had a chorus of angels came down from on high and graced her with wings. Ashe knew that other spirit and soul mages existed of course. They were unusual, but they were there. For Ashe to go on this blind date and be matched up with one who was both beautiful and willing to put up with her awkwardness...well, what were the odds?

So starstruck was she that Ashe barely caught what Izayoi said. Something about seeing the horizon, and the dress not being to her taste? The words of a response jumbled together on her tongue but failed to find any coherent pattern. Izayoi didn't give her a chance to order them either, stepping around the table to offer her hand to Ashe like a figure straight out of a romance novel.

Simply dazzled at the gesture, Ashe stared dumbly at the offered hand, then at Izayoi herself. Sure this was a dream, or some form of trick? Real life couldn't possibly be so storybook in nature...could it?

"O-of c-course! L-let's, um...y-yes?"

She placed her hand in Izayoi's and let the woman pull her to her feet, blushing furiously at the softness and warmth as she briefly leaned on her partner to avoid falling over after sitting still for so long. Human contact was foreign to her after so long spent alone, and to be holding hands with someone like this on top of that was almost more than she could take. In a good way, of course.

"I-if y-you could l-lead the way, p-please. I, um, s-seem to be having difficulty s-standing properly..."

She honestly couldn't tell if it was the lack of movement or the rush of giddiness that was turning her legs to jelly right now, but it didn't much matter. Izayoi could probably lead her off a cliff right now and she follow along without a care. Whatever destination the woman had in mind, it was just fine with Ashe.

A few minutes after leaving the teahouse she spoke up again, not wanting the conversation to lapse into awkward silence.

"Oh, b-by the way, you mentioned a b-book earlier? About history, that is."

Izayoi led the way out of the tea house, ignoring all the stares they were all getting, she had a princess to protect and was not going to stand by and let her have a bad time. Izayoi led the way smiling the entire way, changing form while she did, her tails wrapping around the girl's waist as they walk. Izayoi didn't know why she was being so possessive but she would enjoy it while she could. Izayoi walked down the street to where she has stashed her bag, she had spare clothing in there and she was alrady sick of the dress she was wearing. Ashe asked about the book she had mentioned eariler, Izayoi smiled even more.

"Yes its about 1000 years old, not sure if you have read any books that old but its a good read. Though i guess its less of a history book and more literature."

Izayoi lead the girl to the small corner she had left her back, she picked it up and headed off to the nearest changing room. They ended up at a clothing store, Izayoi made right for dressing rooms, leading Ashe as well.

"I'm going to need your help getting out of this dress"

Izayoi let go of Ashe and pulled all her hair up and put her back to Ashe so she could undo the dress.

She's so...confident. All these people looking at the both of us like freaks and she's just waltzing out without a care. It's just...amazing.

Disregarding all the stares they were receiving Izayoi just smiled and led Ashe on out of the teahouse, paying no attention at all to the whispers of the staff behind them. Ashe herself couldn't quite muster that degree of self-confidence though, and kept glancing back towards the teahouse as if someone would suddenly leave and start following them. If someone were to follow them there would be little real danger- Ashe could take care of herself, and she had a feeling Izayoi was probably more lethal in a fight than she was. Still, it would create quite a commotion, and things could quickly go bad in such a situation. She couldn't help but worry...

"Eeep! Wha-oh!"

The feeling of something curling around her waist jerked Ashe's attention back to her immediate surroundings, her free hand grabbing hold of the...fluffy tails wrapped around her hips? She turned to Izayoi with a question on her lips and was greeted not by her gaze, but by a pair of equally fluffy ears. As if the girl's previous surprises hadn't been enough, Izayoi had transformed into a fox-girl; sprouting a set of vulpine ears and tails the same colour as her now blonde-hair while also shrinking several inches. Despite Ashe's reaction Izayoi just kept smiling as if everything was perfectly normal, going on to explain about the book she had mentioned as if she had expected it entirely.

"One...one th-thousand years old? I've read s-some tomes that old or ol-older before, and I love ancient literature as well! I would l-love to read it s-sometime."

Her confidence really is something, isn't it? She just takes it all in stride...I feel assured just being around her.

Whatever Izayoi's intentions had been in transforming next to her, the act did a lot to calm Ashe's nerves. She found herself relaxing; the tails curled around her waist were actually rather comforting, and while she blushed rather heavily at intimacy of such a gesture it certainly drove off the lingering uneasiness after what had happened in the teahouse. Not to mention that Izayoi having two sides to her appearance made Ashe feel better about her own secret.

Perhaps...maybe I could show her? Maybe...

But that thought was cut off as they arrived at their first destination: a clothing shop. The other girl dragged her straight into the changing room with her despite Ashe's embarrassed protestations (B-b-b-but I can't g-go in there w-with you!) and pulled the curtain closed before dropping a bombshell:

"I'm going to need your help getting out of this dress."

Ashe froze, the gears in her head grinding to a halt. Certainly she must have heard her wrong? She tried to imagine what else Izayoi could have possibly meant, but any such thoughts were dashed to pieces as the girl turned around and pulled her hair up and away from the straps tying the dress up the back. Ashe gulped. Heat gathered under her collar as she considered the prospect of what laid before her: here stood this absolutely fantastic and beautiful girl who was super confident and assured and completely unfazed by any of Ashelia's oddities, and who had pulled her into a private dressing room and asked her to remove her dress.

Gods above, my life has turned into a romance novel. What do I...no Ashe, you can do this! It's just a dress! Yes, just a dress! A dress attached to a very beautiful girl, and when I undo the straps, there will be- no, focus!

She swallowed once more and reached trembling hands towards the black threads keeping the back closed. She fumbled more than once getting them undone, blushing even deeper each time her fingers brushed Izayoi's pale skin, and by the time she finished Ashe was breathing rather heavily. The last knot came undone and with it the dress fell open, leaving a great deal of bare skin on display and causing Ashe to spin around in embarrassment while clasping her furiously red face with both hands.

Good gods that is just too...am I bleeding?!

She rubbed her nose and sure enough, a trickle of red was streaming down the lower half of her face, prompting her to quickly pull out a handkerchief and hastily press it to her nose to staunch the flow.

No no no, please don't notice! Stop bleeding you stupid nose!

Izayoi was enjoying every second with the girl, to the point she didn't mind her fumbling, hell she even enjoyed them. It was nice to be the center of someones attention every now and then, Izayoi finally felt the laces come loose, she turned around to thank Ashe, only to find her back to her. Izayoi laughed again and let the dress fall around her ankles, she then did away with the far to frilly panties.

"Thank you."

Izayoi set about getting dressed, pulling her normal clothing out, she sniffed them after thinking about the last time they might have been washed. 

*Clean?*

Izayoi blinked then shrugged and got dressed, putting on a pair of shorts and most of a button up shirt. Thats when the evil idea popped into her head.

"Hey Ashe? Can you help me button this up?"

Izayoi turned around and pointed to her front, the buttons on her shirt were undone leaving a large amount of her chest exposed, even worse is Izayoi never wore a bra.

Ok Ashe, keep it together. Remember, you have teammates now. You can socialize with them just fine right? Just apply that here!

Ashe took a deep breath and counted to ten before removing the cloth from her nose, checking to make sure the blood flow had stopped. It had begun to wind down...until a laugh rang out from behind her accompanied by the sound of Izayoi letting her dress hit the floor. That certainly sparked Ashe's imagination, but not nearly as much as the softer sound of her underwear following suit.

Wait wait, she's changing everything? That means right now, she's...oh dear.

The handkerchief went right back into use as soon as that thought finished making its way to the front of her brain. If this kept up she was going to die of blood loss long before the date was over. She was tempted to just step out of the dressing room, but didn't want to seem rude. Besides, what if Izayoi needed help with something else?

"Hey Ashe? Can you help me button this up?"

There it was. She hesitated for just a second as she wiped the red from her nose as best she could, then turned around to see another display of bare skin...only this time from the front. And Izayoi apparently was the type who disapproved of covering such treasures up.

Ashe simply stared for a moment, blinking slowly as her mind processed what she was looking at. One could almost see the gears turning, and the click as it hit home.

You know Ashe? I don't think our team experiences are going to help us with this one.

"You...I d-don't th-think...b-buttons..." Was all Ashe managed to get out before a fresh trickle of red began to flow, followed by a faint sigh as she passed clean out with little foxes dancing through her vision in place of stars.

Izayoi caught the girl as she started to fall, a look of minor disappointment on her face. She knew better to be honest, she had seen the girl freak out at the most minor of things something like what she had just done was clearly to much. Izayoi giggled and laid Ashe on the bench that was in the dressing room then finished dressing. Once she was done she picked up the unconscious girl and walked out of the shop, earning more than a few looks. She didn't care about any of the looks, she wanted to have her little idea she had ready for when the girl woke up. Izayoi set the girl down and let the hatred legion go and summoned three guilt legions.

"watch her... I'm going to get us a picnic."

Izayoi took off and got everything she felt would be nice, a basket full of all kinds of goodies and a blanket for them to site on. She returned and handed the basket off to one of the guild legions and picked up the sleeping beauty. She carried her all the way out of the city to a nice patch of land she had found with a nice view, The legions busied themselfs with setting up the picnic. Once the finished Izayoi laid the girl down and sat next to her, putting the girls head in her lap, just waiting for the girl to wake up.

It was such a pleasant night out. The moon was full and stars were bright in the sky so far away from civilization. It was nice to relax like this when one had the chance, to take a moment and appreciate the world. She found an apple in her hand and was about to take a bite when a small blur snatched it out of her hand.

"Hey you, bring that back!"

The culprit, a reddish-blond fox, stopped for a moment to stare at her with red eyes before dashing off into the forest with the apple in its mouth. Feeling compelled to follow, Ashe gave chase; hopping over tree roots and ducking under branches as the fox bounded ahead. Though it was certainly faster than she was it never strayed out of her sight, leading her on until they reached a clearing. Laid within was a cloth set with food and space for two, one of which the fox sat down at while adding the apple to the feast. The invitation was clear, and Ashe was about to sit down herself when a faint, amused voice spoke in her ear.

You need to wake up Ashelia. One should not keep their date waiting overlong.

Ah...it was a dream then. Ashe thought to herself, turning sideways to snuggle into her pillow. She sniffed. Did her pillow always smell like that? A pleasantly musky, earthy scent that reminded her of bedding down for the night in the woodlands. The fox in the dream had smelled like that too, come to think of it.

Foxes...foxes...why do foxes sound important? Actually, why was I asleep? What happened, wasn't I...on a date...with...oh no.

Sure enough, the memories flooded back in. Waiting at the teahouse, Izayoi arriving in that dress, awkward but enjoyable conversation, leaving in a hurry, and then...the dressing room.

Oh, gods above I fainted again didn't I? But wait...if I fainted there, where am I now?

She opened her eyes, but snuggled in as she was there was only cloth to see. Curious, she poked it with a finger. The surface was soft, yielding, and surprisingly warm.

"Well, that didn't help much." She muttered sleepily to herself, before a slight sound from above drew her attention. She looked up to see Izayoi staring down at her, a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. Slowly, like a thermometer placed in hot water, her face once again went from pale white to flushed red before she scrambled upright.

"I am s-s-so s-sorry! I-it's j-just, y-you surprised...th-that is, I w-wasn't p-prepared f-for, er, I d-didn't exp-pect y-you to d-do, w-well, th-that..."

Ashe decided to shut up and try not to make things worse. She couldn't even bear to make eye contact with how red-faced she was already. It was embarrassing enough that she had passed out when Izayoi flashed her, but then to wake up on her lap of all things! However...as embarrassing as it was, she wouldn't label it as a bad feeling. The teasing was enjoyable in a way, just as the very personal and caring attention was. Despite how unexpected and new all of this was, Ashe found she was actually enjoying Izayoi's company. Quite a lot, in fact.

Still, as much as she secretly enjoyed all this, admitting it to herself didn't make it any less difficult to deal with. If anything, it made it worse. She wanted to say something, indicate somehow how much she appreciated the effort Izayoi was going to in putting up with her awkwardness, but the words just wouldn't come. She would have to try a different tactic.

"Th-this is a w-wonderful view," Ashe managed to squeak out. She immediately clamped a hand over her mouth, then tried again with a more normal tone of voice while trying her best (and failing) to avoid sneaking nervous glances at Izayoi.

"D-did you s-set this yours-self? It's v-very n-nice..."

Izayoi smiled as the girl poked her, not realizing what happened, she was having a quite a bit of fun. The girl recovered and flused hard, Izayoi simply smiled and wrapped her tail's around the girl again pulling her close. 

"I'm glad you like the view... Sorry about that I don't know what came over me to be honest."

Izayoi reached into the basket and pulled out one of the plates she had prepared. I had a sandwich and some fruit on it. She set it down and continued emptying the basket, she continued to listen to the girl stutter and stumble over her words. Izayoi huffed and grabbed the girl by the chin, bringing their eyes together.

"You my dear are beautiful and i adore you... I don't know why but everything you do does nothing but further my happiness."

Izayoi lunged forward and pressed her lips against Ashe's lips, Izayoi would not pull away for quite some time, her eye shut as she tasted Ashe's lips. When it did finally end Izayoi was purring, she was having a great time with Ashe and the date had barely even started. 

"I... er... may be jumping the gun but i think i would like to see you on... er a more perminant basis."

It was Izayoi's turn to be embarrassed, her face flushed and her eyes wandered to everywhere except to Ashe's. She picked up on of the sandwiches and offered it to Ashe without looking.

"Here... we should eat."

It all happened in an instant. One second Ashe was watching the sunset and fumbling for words, and the next Izayoi went from rustling through the picnic basket to grabbing her by the chin. Her hands were firm but gentle, thwarting any chance of looking away. This was undeniably the most intimate moment of the night so far; Izayoi's tails pulled her body close while her hands forced their eyes to meet, and yet Ashe felt...relaxed. Izayoi's eyes pinned her own down with an intensity that left no room for embarrassment or nervous fumbling, for they clearly had something to say and would brook no argument.

"You my dear are beautiful and I adore you... I don't know why but everything you do does nothing but further my happiness."

It was everything Ashe wanted to hear, but the fox girl didn't stop there. She lunged forward, lips pressing fiercely against Ashe's own in a surprise kiss that left her breathless. Ashe resisted at first, startled by the suddenness, but those thoughts quickly melted away into a heat that spread throughout her entire body. It was a simple kiss, but eager and passionate, and it was her first. Izayoi was purring by the time she finally withdrew, obviously enjoying herself as she left Ashe stunned with one thought on her mind:

I could definitely get used to this.

Even after that Izayoi didn't slow down, dropping an even bigger bombshell: she wanted to see Ashe again. And not just once either, this was more permanent. She wanted to Date.

As she was still stunned from the kiss, Ashe had no words to answer the incredible statement. Her eyes were locked on the same spot with an unblinking stare, lips slightly parted as she tried to process what just happened. For her part Izayoi seemed to be the flustered one for once, refusing to look at Ashe while she handed her a sandwich and suggested they eat. Ashe accepted the plate and ate it absently, barely tasting the food as her brain struggled to keep up with the onslaught that was Izayoi.

She...she just kissed us didn't she?

Yes, yes she did. It was really good too.

And then...she asked us out, right?

Yeah she did!

But...what do we say? We can't just leave it like that, we need to answer her!

Hell Ashe, I'm just an imaginary voice in your head that you made up on the spot to help you figure out what just happened to you, how should I know? Just go with whatever first comes to mind, I guess.

Huh...okay then.

Ashe chewed thoughtfully for a moment, noticing that this was, in fact, a really good sandwich before she swallowed carefully and turned to Izayoi.

"Can...can we do that again?"

Izayoi munched on a sandwich in silence, she had just made a fool of herself, she had just met this girl and asked her out like that. She figured the girl would just say no and leave, Izayoi didn't mind so much she was used to being alone. Izayoi was about to excuse herself when Ashe asked if they could do it again, Izayoi's eyes went wide and she looked at the girl.

"Uh... i uh... Yes!"

Izayoi tossed her sandwich aside and pounced on the girl, Kissing her on the lips. She would not pull away for a while, when she did Izayoi would snuggle up next to Ashe and pur some more. 

"So... er does this mean were dating? or uh..."

Izayoi was acting far more feminine then she was any time before this point, she was kinda happy and still unsure of what was gonna happen next. She simply sat and watched the horizon waiting for Ashe to answer.

Ashe didn't know what exactly she expected to happen after that, but she was confident it would be something surprising. Izayoi must have read her mind, as she practically flung away her own sandwich in her haste to get at Ashe. The pounce knocked her back to the ground, but she had little time to worry about it as the fox girl immediately locked lips with her, squelching any protest she might have made.

As for the kiss...Ashe would have said nothing would top the last one, but now that the shock had worn off she actually had the chance to enjoy it. And enjoy it she did, very much so. Izayoi obviously knew what she was doing, although Ashe had the feeling she was holding back. Whether it was for her sake or not she couldn't say for certain, but just in case it was Ashe did her best to return the kiss. She hoped Izayoi wouldn't mind her lack of experience, though, judging by the purring, that wouldn't be an issue.

Eventually Izayoi pulled back, only to cuddle up next to her while still purring up a storm. She was like a fluffy space heater, spreading vibration and warmth through each point their bodies touched. Ashe took a moment to catch her breath. It was somewhat difficult to do so when a cute fox girl was using your mouth for...other reasons, and Izayoi's kisses were nothing if not thorough. Izayoi however took the opportunity to ask the real question of the hour: did this mean they were dating?

She never lets up, does she? Though...that isn't exactly a bad thing...

"I...I'm n-not sure." The shyness was back, but how could it not be? This was the first time anybody had asked her to date! Well, seriously asked her at any rate. Drunken people in the street didn't count. But was she ready for this?

Just say the first thing that comes to mind, wasn't it?

"I..th-that is, i-if you'd like t-to have m-me...I w-wouldn't b-be against it..."

Despite her best efforts Ashe could feel the redness creeping up her face again as she forced out the words. She'd for sure be fidgeting her hands as well, had Izayoi not claimed and pinned one of them when she snuggled up to her. In a way, that answered her question didn't it? Regardless, what Izayoi said next would determine how things went from here, though Ashe had a feeling she knew what the fox would say.

Izayoi simply laid down next to the girl, quite happy at the turn of events. If you didn't have a enough courage to ask a stranger to be friends or out youll never get anywhere. Izayoi chuckled to herself as the thought entered her mind. She reached over into the basket and pulled out a handful of grapes and rolled over onto her back. She looked into the sky and popped a grape into her mouth. She chewed it and listened to the girl speak,

"I..th-that is, i-if you'd like t-to have m-me...I w-wouldn't b-be against it..."

Izayoi smiled and picked up another grape, she looked over to Ashe and put it up to her mouth.

"Yes i do want you... I guess its kinda sudden but yeah." 

Izayoi smiled looked toward the sky again, she held her hand over into the air. She watched the clouds as the passed over, she was quite happy now, Izayoi had expected to be alone for a long time but had somehow found someone that would accept her. It took a second for reality to kick in, Izayoi would live for quite a long time and she didn't know how long Ashe would live.

"Erm... I uh... have a quesion... I will live for... quite a long time... more... than hundreds of human lifespans combined..."

Izayoi took a deep breath and roll on top of the girl and leaned down so that they were eye to eye.

"Never mind"

Izayoi sat, pulling Ashe up with her, she rolled off of ashe and intertwined her fingers with ashes and leaned against her. She simply watched the sunset now purring up a storm. Izayoi did indeed want the girl badly, she had not met anyone like this and it very much peaked her intrest

No sooner had Ashe managed to force the words out than Izayoi smiled, reaching over to pop a grape in Ashe's mouth as if to silence her stuttering. She was a bit surprised by the gesture, but dutifully opened her mouth and accepted the sweet fruit.

What was the saying? Everything tastes better when you're in love? Well, I don't know if this is love yet, but...

Izayoi took the opportunity to assure Ashe that yes, she would like to have her. The answer wasn't unexpected, but all the same she couldn't help but smile shyly. Izayoi was right, it was sudden. Somehow though...in the moment that didn't seem like such a big issue. What were blind dates supposed to be for if not this?

A moment of silence passed with the both of them watching the clouds pass by, until Izayoi spoke up with a bit of worry in her voice. Her speech was halting as she brought up the subject of her lifespan, obviously concerned that if this was to be a serious relationship she would eventually outlive a normal human. Ashe opened her mouth to reply but Izayoi suddenly switched tracks and rolled on top of her, the words 'never mind' on the fox girl's lips as she stared into her eyes. Ashe felt her pulse quicken and her heart skip a beat as Izayoi's breath gently brushed across her face. The kiss had been too sudden to even properly react to it, but this sheer degree of closeness was so very intimate...and just like that the fox girl rolled off her and snuggled up to her side with their hands intertwined. A moment Ashe caught her breath, a soft smile spreading across her face as they simply sat together and watched the sunset go down.

Yes...I could get used to this.



Eventually the light faded and the pair had finished off the rest of the picnic basket. Izayoi's concerns over her lifespan from earlier had stuck in Ashe's mind, and that reminded her of her own special concern. After all this however...Ashe had a feeling she could trust Izayoi with her secret.

And perhaps...I need to introduce her to Vendrick, and I'll ask him then. There's a possibly that addressing one could solve both. My lifespan...I've never thought about it before.

"Uhm...let's head back Izayoi. There's someone I want to introduce you to, and...s-something I want to sh-show you..."

Then, tugging on the fox girl's hand, Ashe led her back to the city. She had rented a hotel room at Ana's urging which would be perfect for them to spend the rest of their night in comfort and privacy, whether it be talking or...something else. Regardless, it was certainly going to be interesting.

~Fin~