| By Neo Bahamut | Genre | Rating | Reviews | Updates |
| More from Neo Bahamut | Adventure, romance | PG-13 | See main page | See main page |
"Sweet spirits, Eur, you should get a load of these autopsy files!" Kali clucked as she rifled through papers at her desk, "All these weird implants and drugs he took, I'm surprised Surgeon Screwloose stayed standing long enough for Old Babs to whack him."
Nearby, Euryale's face wrinkled in disgust as she continued labeling dusty weapons on a trolley. "I'd rather not spoil my appetite. My shift's over soon, and I've got an important night planned...does Barbatos know you call her 'Old Babs' when she's not around?"
Kali smiled mischievously as she leaned back, ignoring her partner's question and resting her arms on her chair. "Something to do with that moll of yours? Don't think I haven't noticed you kids sneaking time in the stairwell to—"
Euryale gave a little smile but shook her head. "It's not like that, we haven't—"
"Get out, what kinda sap do you take me for?"
"Aroma likes to take it slow, alright? We just want a night out, since we never actually got a 'first date' before we started dating."
"Well, as long as we're being honest, I gotta admit, I thought she was your sister at first."
"We look nothing alike, and Stheno's only 10," the metalbender grumbled, trying to keep the rising edge of annoyance out of her voice.
"If you say so," she responded, crossing her arms, "Say, you're not gonna date everyone we put under your protection, are you?"
"I never took you for a workplace gossip," Euryale countered.
"Yeah, well, gotta entertain myself somehow, what with Sobek seeing all the action at the compound."
"Have there been a lot of fights?"
"A few. Turns out what you've got there is just the tip of the iceberg. There's a huge weapons cache in the mountains the Purists don't want us getting ahold of. Firebows, bombs, blasting jelly, you get the idea."
"Yeah," she acknowledged, tagging the last firebow, "Hey, I've gotta go. Be sure to call the tower if you need me, alright?"
"Yeah, yeah," she chastised, waving her off, "We can handle things without you for a night, y'know."
Euryale delivered the weapons to evidence and made a quick stopover in the locker room. By the time she approached her cruiser, she wore a sweeping crimson hanfu, held together by a white belt that matched the robe's mottled flower etchings. The hem obscured her feet, but the clacking of her slippers could be heard echoing through the parking lot as she placed a golden pin in her hair, topped with a Fire Nation symbol, crisscrossing with a silver Earth Kingdom pin. These held together the bun that dominated most of her hair, save for a thick strand flanking each side of her face. With a smoothing of her outfit and an adjustment of her mirror, she backed out and darted off in the direction of the golden light of the bottleneck-shaped tower in the distance.
Some time later, she stepped out of its elevator to a bustling setting of white-clothed tables, ringed by a panoramic vista and steeped in soft string music. She scanned the crowd of tuxes and cocktail dresses, her eyes eventually locking on the table with her short, sanguine-haired squeeze. She pointed her out and explained her reservation to the receptionist, who nodded her permission, and so Euryale continued on to her flame, but stopped abruptly as Aroma scampered over to move her chair out.
"Is something wrong?" the healer asked as the officer's eyes lingered over the deep v-neck exposing most of her sternum.
"N—no, nothing like that," she answered, clearing her throat with a fake sounding cough.
As she slid into her chair, she took notice of the rest of the girl's attire. The fine jade silk shimmered with every move she made, its gold vine-and-flower designs resembling a jungle swaying in a soft breeze. She caught a generous glimpse of Aroma's thigh through the swaying grass skirt as she returned to her own seat, on the back of which was her familiar fur coat.
"You look lovely," Aroma broke the ice.
"Uh, yeah, you too," Euryale answered, blinking away her slack-jawed stare. "Really great."
"I bought it just for you. I hope I'm not under-dressed."
"Oh, no, not at all," she answered, raising her arm to inspect her drooping sleeve in the light, "This comes down from Mom's side of the family. I thought you'd like something a little fancier, I guess."
"Nonsense, you're plenty fancy. You don't need to try to impress me."
"You think so?" Euryale asked as she metalbent her forks into her fist and began scrutinizing them as if trying to tell the difference.
"Of course. The largest one's your dinner fork."
"I think I'll just ask for chopsticks ," she replied, setting them back down.
As if on cue, the waiter appeared, Aroma ordering a peanut lentil stir fry with aloe-cucumber water, and Euryale the smoked salmon with honey-wine. They soon had their food and chopsticks, as Euryale had promised, Aroma asking for a pair so the former didn't feel singled out.
"So," the earthbender began after washing down a chunk of fish, "How has your family been? I don't think I've heard anything about them amidst all these shenanigans."
"Oh, they live out in the suburbs," she answered, dabbing her mouth after a bite, "They hadn't even heard about the Purists."
"You didn't tell them?"
"Not until it was all over. I didn't want them to worry. They're a little on the older side."
"But what about during the undercover operation? You weren't worried you wouldn't be able to talk to them again?"
Aroma focused herself on sorting through her salad with her chopsticks, as if taking great care to choose the next bite. Finally, she answered, "Not with you watching over me. I knew everything would be alright in the end." With that, she chomped down on some greens.
Euryale suddenly felt a hotness rising up her shoulders and into her face, which she suspected had nothing to do with the heavy hanfu she wore. "Well, I'm—flattered you have so much faith in me—but I remember you having to rescue me in the end."
"Yes, well, like you said a couple weeks ago, we're a team. Do you want to pay them a visit after the tournament? My parents, I mean."
"That sounds like the bee's knees," she cooed.
"I'll have to get another pair of gloves," Aroma noted, inspecting the ones she wore, "These are the only really nice pair I own, but I don't want them getting worn out."
Euryale's smile faltered a bit. "Oh, right, those are the ones Thiera bought you, aren't they?"
Aroma, having taken another bite, merely nodded. Soon their plates were clean, and when the server collected them, he left behind a bowl of dual-flavored ice cream with a pair of spoons.
"Vanilla and wildberry lavender," Aroma answered her quizzical look, "The same as we shared just before our spirit world adventure. I also got something more permanent, just for you."
As she turned to root around in her purse, Euryale herself withdrew a small box from within her robes. She held it out at the same time Aroma turned around with her own foot-long parcel.
"Looks like we really are on the same wavelength," the officer observed with giddy excitement as they made the exchange. "Go on, open it!"
She tore into her own gift so as not to seem like a hypocrite, exposing a pair of fingerless leather gloves, glossy black with a crimson stripe down the center. She slid one partially up her forearm, holding her hand to the light and surveying it with intrigue.
"I thought you might like this style better," Aroma squeaked from across the table. "Do you like them? I made them myself."
"I've never wanted a pair of gloves more," she confirmed, fixing her eyes on her. "What about you?"
The healer glanced back down to the box she'd forgotten, sliding the lid off and coming face-to-face with a dazzling pair of amber eyes. As she surveyed further, she realized it was a ceramic moth pendant sitting on a cushion. The "eyes" were gems set in the wings, which were green with pink stripes. She carefully set the box down and secured the chain around her neck.
"How do I look?"
"Dazzling," Euryale murmured dreamily as she rested her cheek on her hand. Her brows perked as her attention was drawn to the glistening dish in front of them. "We should probably eat this before it melts ."
Their bellies full, they chattered excitedly about the upcoming games as they drove home. Late as it was, their roommates were in their bedrooms, so the lovers retired to their own. But sleep was the furthest from their minds as they enthusiastically slid under the covers. Words no longer necessary, they ignited at long last.
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