A (MESSED UP) DATE!

“Are you sure she’ll like this?”

“Yes yes, why don’t you believe me? There are three things women like after marriage. A faithful partner to show off, rich jewelry to show off, and plenty of chocolate to keep for themselves.”

“Why do I feel like you say that to everyone that comes in?”

“Cause I do?”

Aaron couldn’t help but frown at the idiot in front of him. Tight bodied suit, plus baldness already made him give off an aura that screamed Please punch me . But now he also had this shameless smile. Aaron restrained his twitching hand with some effort and pasted a smile on his own face. A non-shameless one.

“Fine, wrap it up and give it over. How much is it?”

“Lets see, metals were 1 Solide, effort was 1 Solide… 100 Solides.”

“Fine.”

Paying the hundred Solides wasn’t a big problem to Aaron and he also didn’t find bargaining to be so worth it. Aaron traded the product with his payment, made a quick turn to avoid looking at the other man anymore, and started for the door. He almost made it to the door before Cider’s voice stopped him.

“Then, do you have anything else planned?”

“W-what do you mean?”

Aaron was curious. He hadn’t ever participated in such an event before so any extra information would do wonders.

“You don’t really think that little trinket would be acceptable, do you? You need to plan a night to remember! Dinner, walks, activities. And at the end, when you both get back, she will go ‘I’m tired dear, what a fun night’ and you can go ‘you don’t think the night is finished yet, do you?’ and rip off both of your clothes and- Gwark!”

Aaron examined his fist which he had driven into the skinny man’s body. Aimed in the right spot to hurt, the perfect punch took full advantage of his lowered strength and position. Cider quivered on the spot as the pain coursed through his body and he, on reflex, bent to try and ease that feeling. The only problem with hitting the bald man was that he had a hidden personality that was close to Aaron's own. Indeed, Aaron could only sigh when he saw the hideous smile that sprouted from the man’s face. Did he look like that when...

Stepping away from the other man, Aaron tried to wipe at his body to get rid of the lingering heat he imagined. Cider had wrapped himself around Aaron earlier and then squirmed his body around as he told his plan. Aaron shuddered one final time before making sure there was a proper distance between the two. He then tried to restart the conversation one final time.

“So what do you mean a plan?”

“haha… Y-you need to try harder to get her attention. Especially now that you aren’t her main target anymore. So the first part of the plan will be presentation. I can make you a…”

Aaron’s eyes lit up as he listened to the plan Cider created. He himself started to quiver at the ideas and he found himself nodding along towards the end.

Aaron walked home with a happy gait as he thought about the plans he and Cider made. He crept his way through the crowded streets and past rows of shops when he saw a stand that sold some wrapped flowers and chocolate. A young woman manned the stand and perked up when Aaron stopped in front of her.

“Welcome mister customer! Do you wish to buy some lovely flowers for your dearest? Or maybe some chocolate to represent how sweet you find her? Our flowers are enchanted to stay fresh for weeks and our chocolate was made-”

“Ah, sorry. I just want to ask if you do deliveries.”

“Yes sir! We are in business for the next week so anytime between now and then is perfect. We do hope you give us at least a day in advance to make the order possible!”

“Alright then. I would like…”

The order took some time as the two of them spoke about details for preparation, delivery time, and delivery place. Then the young women launched into a detailed explanation of the different types of flowers the shop carried. The torrent of information overwhelmed Aaron’s attempts to stop her so he settled into a patient wait. A different discussion somewhere in his vicinity caught his ear and he honed in on it. Anything was better than hearing why the red of this flower went good with the yellow of this one and not the yellow of that one.

“Did you hear about the Black Bandits?”

“The ones who brazenly target stores in the daytime yet never seem to get caught?”

“Yea, those guys. Heard they hit old Tim’s store yesterday. When the guards arrived and asked what they looked like, he couldn’t give them an answer.”

“Couldn’t? Was it magic or something? Has another Magus popped up?”

“Maybe, or maybe he just went senile at the wrong time.”

“Can’t be. He wasn’t the only one to get robbed, and there still hasn’t been a bounty posted for their arrest.”

“I doubt it’s magic though. Maybe a rampant rogue group?”

“Wouldn’t Shadows deal with it then?”

“Not if they don’t know.”

“Ah, not another conspiracy theo-”

“Sir? SIR?”

Aaron’s attention finally caught on to the shouting woman in front of him and he turned a little red at being too distracted.

“Sorry, was trying to process what you told me.”

“Hmph.”

Her expressions revealed the lack of belief she had for that excuse so Aaron’s didn’t push it and went on. A confident man could turn a storm, or so they said.

“I’ll take the multi bouquet. Just no tulips please. Can I have it delivered at the location and date we discussed. Also I would like to…”

“Celia! Are you- whoops!”

Opening the door to Celia's room, Aaron took a hit from a large cloud of green gas that he then inhaled. He rushed into the room with only a slight pause and closed the door behind him, not worrying about what sort of poison it was. His Poison Immunity could handle anything below a God Ranked poison anyways. Unless his wife turned into a Walking God while he was away, he didn't have to fear her poisons. Much.

“The door was closed for a reason, idiot. I’ve told you so many times; don’t enter so recklessly when the door is closed.”

“Yes dear, I understand. Anyways, are you doing anything tomorrow?”

Celia was still leaning over a bubbling cauldron when she frowned after his words. After thinking for a few moments she finally shook her head and stirred the contents of the pot a bit. The green liquid continued to produce its toxic fumes but neither of them paid any mind.

“I have nothing for the next few days. Michael and Liera are going out with Valerie to do some hunting so I’m actually rather bored. Maybe I’ll go to a spa or something… supposedly there’s an event going on and it would be-”

“Don’t do that!”

Aaron’s frantic shout caused her to jump on the spot and she glared at him a bit while adding in some plant leaves to the concoction. Her beauty only made the glare quite seductive and attractive in its own right. Aaron found he had some trouble keeping himself from accelerating the plan to the last part.

“Ummm, uhh…”

Damnit! Why is this even harder now than before? We’re fricken married!

“Umm, i-if you don’t have anything to do on those days… S-s-shall we go on a d-date?”

Silence dominated the room as Celia tilted her head to regard him. Sweat soon dampened his neck and face as he faced her scrutiny and he wondered if maybe she would say no. What would that mean? Separation? Divorce? Who would take custody of Michael? Would it even be possible to separate the two? Maybe they could do joint-custody? Or maybe have Michael choose? What if he doesn’t choose him? What if he does? What if-

“Yes!”

The gleeful word pierced through Aaron’s spiraling thoughts and he hesitated. Did he hear right? Did that mean they were still together? Aaron did a careful examination of his wife this time and Celia blushed under his stare.

“Oh, don’t look at me like that. We haven’t gone out since Michael was born, right? Wonder where we cshould go…”

“Ah, I have that covered. You just need to dress up a bit. Not too much though…”

Aaron shook away his surprise and gave a mysterious plan to his wife. He then turned and went to the door only just remembering that he shouldn’t open it with the fumes still thick. Since he ended up staying until she finished, the two passed the time in awkward silence.

“Flowers? The shop will deliver them to the house after they left. Items? Cider sent those earlier. Reservation? Checked earlier to make sure. What else should I bring...?”

Aaron fussed over his clothing as his mind went through a small mental checklist. He had planned a light meal at a restaurant that boasted the finest Expert chef in the city, so they say. Then the plan was to walk through the Church of Grendes’ garden - a place everyone agrees is quite beautiful to see. Last was a short walk through the night market to buy some cheap but memorable trinkets. Then when they get home…

Only then did Aaron notice that his face had twisted to something that would have screamed creep to anyone that looked. He struggled a little to twist it back to his usual face, a hard and stoic appearance that made ladies swoon. The mirror across the room confirmed that his features had smoothed over so he patted his clothing down one last time. Then he went out to meet his date. He giggled at the thought. A date at his age? Ha!

Three flights of stairs later and he met Celia at the foyer. She was in a simple but elegant dress; a white one piece that showed off her clean and smooth skin. Her hair was loose and waved down her back and her heels rose her to a more comfortable height that matched his own tall stature. Anyone who saw her wouldn’t be able to believe she was only three years younger than him.

“Finally ready? You take as long as a women who fusses over makeup and clothing.”

“Geez, who was it that once took three hours just trying to choose what to make for dinner? I almost went and made my special stew for us to eat instead.”

“Ha! Special stew? You would probably have killed Michael. Maybe even kill me! A god ranked poison maker right there…”

“So I can say my stew is god ranked right?”

Both of them soon burst into some light laughter as they bantered their way out of the house and into the streets. The conversation helped keep Aaron’s mind off his plans, but that meant he was aware of how everyone saw his wife. Men and women who glanced in their direction snapped their gazes back to Celia and stared at her. Some of them were even drooling and none of the gazes seemed to notice his presence. Aaron sighed and took out two metal bands.

“Here. I had Cider make these for tonight. They only last a few hours but we shouldn’t need that long.”

“Oh? Identify.”

Band for you famous bastards (1)[p=left]Are you famous? Tired of people staring at you all day? Well wear this band and feel relieved as people don’t notice you! Hahaha… Damn famous people. Well I’m famous too so I can relate. And I don’t make this for just anyone! Praise me! This is (1) of a matching set for couples!

Activates when equipped.

You become hazy and difficult to notice. A partner wearing a matching band will still be able to see you.[/p]

Even the description made Aaron want to hit him. Celia, though, was more verbal in her displeasure.

“Hmph. Still rather obnoxious. I should pay him a visit. Maybe bring some trial concoctions for old times sake.”

Aaron could only sigh and shake his head as the two equipped the items. They started up their walk once more and both soon noticed the decreasing amount of stares. Even if Cider had a bad reputation with the two of them, he got the job done.

“Hmm, so where are we going Sir Date?”

“I managed to get reservations at Pino’s Place.”

“Ooh, I’ve heard of that place. Everyone recommends it as the top place to go.”

“I heard the same things. Nothing less for our date!”

Celia stared at him a bit, and then burst into laughter at what he said. A few people glanced in her direction but their attention moved on which Aaron was grateful for. He gave himself a mental groan at the awful statement and his later glee and tried to change the subject.

The pair of them continued walking and chatting before hearing a buzz of noise and activity. They soon came upon a large line of people trying to get into a moderate sized shop. Walking past these people took some effort but thanks to the bands they made it without many people complaining.

“Excuse me? EXCUSE ME?”

Catching the attention of the man who was at the desk was a little difficult but Aaron didn’t think it was much of a problem so he kept the band on. The middle aged man observed Aaron’s appearance and seemed to find it satisfactory as he sniffed and opened up his ledger. His thick accent may have been from the sophisticated city, Ginerd, but was much too thick to be anything but a bad attempt.

“Ah, sourry sir. I dedn’t noutice you there. Dou youu havea a reservation?”

“Umm, yes. Two for Aaron Kane?”

“Kaane, Kaane. Ah here. Twou privatea seats. If youu well just follouw me.”

Aaron could only shake his head at the bad accent and followed the man to his seat. Celia clasped her hand in his and the two wound their way through the chairs and tables as they followed the quick moving man. They arrived near the back of the restaurant where their seats were and settled in. Contrary to the outside line, the tables and chairs were only filled with a few people. Aaron was about to ask why when he noticed a small tag on each table. The tags had ‘Reserved’ written on them, same as on his own table. Aaron couldn’t help but sigh in relief that he managed to get a reservation. He couldn’t imagine anything more horrible than waiting outside in that line for most of the date.

Aaron went over to the table first and pulled out a chair for Celia before seating himself. He had the satisfaction of seeing the man jump when he noticed Celia and he decided that Cider didn’t need to die quite so soon…

The two of them immediately took up the menus the man gave them and only glanced at the list before making their normal orders.

“Medium rare steak with a seafood side salad.”

“Ravioli bolognese with the garlic bread.”

“Ah, and wouuld youu like ouur houuse wine? Madea and delevered by a relative of the chef, a brewmaster who specializes in a fene red wine.”

""Yes.""

The waiter left with their orders and the two of them relaxed in their seats. They took a look at the rich designs of the restaurant and the few paintings around them. There were several movable walls blocking them from the rest of the restaurant so they felt alone in their ‘private seats’. It was a nice feeling of privacy that made their evening all the more intimate.

Before the two of them could start up any sort of discussion, a different man came back with their orders in record time. The younger man had both dishes on one hand while the other was lifting a wine cooler. He spoke without an accent.

“Here you are. A medium rare steak and seafood side salad for the lady. And a ravioli bolognese for the gentleman. This is a darkened red wine from the Pino Winery. Aged to maturity, the taste should be to your liking.”

“Thank you.”

“Of course. If you need anything, please just ring this bell.”

The man bent to leave a small silver bell and then left them alone to their meals. His tact, manners, and lack of accent made Aaron decide on a particularly large tip.

Proceeding through the meal, Aaron found his meal enjoyable and the drink rather relaxing. When some soft music from several lutes sounded through the restaurant he could feel the tension of the night drain out of him. Then Celia started talking.

“Undercooked steak. So is the seafood. There is a distinct lack of flavouring as well and even the salad seems to lack dressing.”

If the chef was here in front of her, no doubt his ears would be dripping blood from the tactless words.

“H-he's known for his Expert Cooking skills…”

“He must have only just reached the level and decided to milk it for all it was worth.”

Maybe the chef would have started coughing blood.

“This wine is fine but do they expect us only to drink it? Some water would be nice.”

“Ah, I can fix that. Let me call the waiter back.”

“Don’t bother. I’ll use some of my reserves if I get dehydrated. I don’t want to be further disappointed by something like water.”

... but the alcohol to influence the night. Even he didn’t think that line of conversation would do the situation any good. Aaron’s previous relaxed mood had been completely erased as Celia continued to eat her meal in silence. Her face was quite unimpressed and Aaron decided he would check out the restaurant before going there for a date. If there was a next time.

“Ah, a nice walk would do me wonders. Have to work off that dessert!”

Celia exclaimed this with a slight, contented sigh as she patted her stomach. Aaron was beside her and he also had a hand on his stomach as he gave a verbal agreement. The meal itself was in large portions and they were almost full by the time they finished. Then when the waiter came back to check on them and he had noted Celia’s disapproval. He went out of his way to pay for their desserts himself and ordered the ones he knew were good. The desserts were better received and Aaron left a sizable tip for the astute man.

Although Aaron felt that the dinner was less spectacular than he had planned, there was still the garden to see. He took Celia by the hand and the two of them walked down the darkened streets. There were still some travelers and couples here and there, but the city was big enough that only a few areas had any large business at night.

With the soft rustling by the wind trailing their steps, the two sank into a long but comfortable silence. They didn’t need to speak to one another as the small contact from their hands was enough for them.

Soon enough they reached the Church of Grendes and its garden. Arrays of flowers were placed one after another in patterns that best showed off their natural beauty. Any normal watcher would gasp in wonder at the sight. Aaron completely forgot that his wife was not a normal person though and…

“These plants are positioned so oddly. Look, these weeds may look good but they will soon overtake the other plants around them. It takes constant maintenance to keep the garden in this state. What a waste of effort...”

Damn… Aaron started to wonder if maybe Cider had known this would happen and planned it out so he would take the fall. His internal struggles went unnoticed as the two of them continued down the path and Celia kept up her commentary. Celia stopped suddenly and bent over a small batch of flowers. She straightened before Aaron could get a good look, and turned around to give Aaron a flower.

“Look! A Night Wonder! Here, take it and let’s go!”

A Night Wonder. Her own personal name for what most people call a Four O’clock. It was also Aaron’s favourite and he grasped the flower with a gentle grip. He continued to stay in a daze until Celia came back and pulled him by the arm to get him to hurry. They could get in some trouble by plucking the flower from the garden.

“Come on. Don’t just stand there like an idiot.”

If she remembers something like my favourite flower…?

By the time the two of them exited the garden, Aaron was pretty conflicted about how the night was going. First there was the dinner where the main meal was below par. Celia stacked problem after problem into what should have been a good meal based on the reviews. Then the nice waiter gave them a dessert meal on the house which pretty much erased the bad debt of the previous problem. This set the score back to zero for the evening.

The beautiful garden they were to enjoy was next. Aaron had visited the garden a few times and liked it so he thought it would be a romantic way to spend part of the evening. He hadn’t taken into account that most of the flowers bloomed during the day and only a few night ones were grown. The display was much more lacklustre than he had seen before and he distressed over how half-assed he was with everything. Still, she gave him a flower that was his favourite and then proceeded to make a beautiful bouquet that he later received. Was the night going well? Or bad? There was a growing feeling in the pit of his stomach that felt bad and nice at the same time. He really did not want to deal with that side of him at the moment.

Aaron’s thoughts accompanied the two as they made their way to the second last destination of the evening. The night market was only up for the yearly event so every day the wandering groups of couples and children crowded the streets. Young men and women were close to one another and played in the different games and activities that were provided in the shops. Or they went to get their fortunes checked by a few suspicious tents that professed how compatible they were. The married couples wandered from stand to stand with their kids and engaged in the many games the streets provided. The older couples seated themselves on the nearby benches to the side of the streets. They watched the passing young couples with a wistful and nostalgic air.

“This seems a little too busy.”

“Ha~ I agree. Still, this is an event that won’t happen until next year so we might as well have as much fun as possible.”

“Hmph, fine. It will be your task to win me a prize from every stand then.”

“... fine.”

When faced with your wife’s smile as she planned a trap for you, all a husband could do was accept it like a man.

Progressing through the different stalls took a while as Aaron strove to complete the task his wife gave him. Archery: Check, prize was a small straw target doll. Whack a goblin: Check, prize was a small goblin doll. Pie eating contest: Check, prize was a small pie doll. Seeing the inevitable future pattern, Aaron went to a bag making stall and succeeded in making a large bag to store Celia’s dolls. They then moved on.

Cotton candy making, darts, guessing games, card games, arm wrestling (using some strength restricting items of course; how expensive for such a small stall), compatibility tests (scored a 92%), tadpole fishing, (not romantic at all…) and the two of them were currently doing some shirt making for their partner. Aaron struggled with following the tips given on sewing as his rigid hands continued to mess up each stitch and pattern. The needles in his hands shook and he stitched the wrong part of the pattern and looped far too many times to make any sense. When colours were added the problems increased as he alternated between the two and created a mess. He soon ended with a large string ball and felt oddly proud of the result. Checking his wife, he found her leaning on an arm and staring at his progress, a large red and white sweater folded on her lap.

Aaron looked at her sweater, then looked back at his ball. Celia did the same and when they made eye contact they both dissolved into fits of laughter.

“Pfft, were you even trying? How is it even possible to do it wrong?”

“Ha~~ Say what you want. I’m pretty proud of my work.”

“And how will you wear it?”

“... can’t I just say I wanted a random ball of yarn?”

“Pffft, Hahahaha~~”

Celia bent over her chair as Aaron puffed out his chest in pride at his accomplishment. This was maybe the 10th time he ever sewed in his life and the ball was a vast improvement over the other… items. A snort sounded behind Aaron, disrupting the two’s lovely conversation.

“What the hell did this idiot make? A ball of yarn? And he shows it off to the pretty like it’s something to be prowd of?”

“Gents, gents, this lady needs saving from such an unsavoury fellow. Luckily we were ‘ere to save the day.”

Aaron turned around to find a small group of men leering at Celia and displaying their dagger and sword hilts for all to see. They dressed in all black and had their faces covered, but they didn’t seem to notice that they carried a putrid stink around them. A clearing had been made between them and the other market goers. The sweater making stall owner had already closed up her shop when she saw the men. She was almost done collecting most of her items when another black-clad man pushed a hand down on her money pouch.

“This festival is really a nice and rich place. Already went to several stalls and the kind owners donated a few hundred Argentias to us. This seems to be filled with several coins as well. Hope you don’t mind donating it to our good and just cause.”

Ripping the pouch out of her hands, the man shook the coins out of the smaller pouch and into a larger one. It flashed silver and bronze in the torchlight and looked heavy in his hands. While he was doing that, the rest of the men had started towards Aaron and Celia’s spot.

“Hey boss! I know you said we can’t take any women, but can’t you let us off this once?”

“Hrm… alright. What the heck? It’s a festival ain’t it? Have some fun. Only one girl though.”

“Awww, sharing? Whatever. We can take her. Call dibs on being first.”

“You can’t call dibs! I didn’t even get the last girl before you broke her! This time I’m first. When I get her I’ll…”

Aaron’s eyes turned pure red when the man at the forefront of the group pointed at Celia and spoke. Aaron's hand twitched to his side where his sword should have been and grasped air. He then wondered at the lack of attention he was getting. Did the bands already lose power? He had hoped they wouldn’t notice them, but that was a false hope now. He gave himself a curse for not bringing any weapon and took a step towards the group of men.

The men finally noticed Aaron when he stepped forward and they stopped as one. Maybe his band still worked? Did Charm have something to do with it? Nope, they must have thought him beneath their notice. They all drew their weapons and the civilians stepped back further. Since most of them were young, there shouldn’t be many strong fighters among them which made this more dangerous. Aaron breathed out a sigh of relief when the older couples stepped forward from the crowd to protect them. He was a true believer in the idea that age equaled strength.

“Hey, old man! Get out of our way! What are you, her father?”

“Hmph. He has no weapon, we can take him.”

Damnit, she’s only three years younger than me!

The thought had barely passed his mind before his body moved forward and several commands came out of his mouth.

“Title change: Warwalker.”

Title has been changed to Warwalker

[p=left]Master of countless battles and a walking death sentence for enemies.

Strength + 1000

Dexterity + 1000

Vitality + 1000

Agility + 1000

Bloodlust + 500

What idiot would stand before an army and their goal? This idiot.

[/p]

Aaron launched the first blow at the closest man and gave a small chuckle when he saw the man trying to block it with his sword. Idiot.

The man was completely confident in blocking an old man’s strike. Why? Because this fight was between a sword and a fist. Putting the sword in front of him, he already imagined the delicious sight of seeing the fist get split along the sharp blade of his. Once he disposed of the old idiot he could get the group to take the girl and disappear. His confidence in their escaping skills were not unfounded and- What the hell was that noise?

The black-clad men and the crowd watched with shock as Aaron’s fist shattered the steel blade. It continued its path towards the stunned opponent, the sound it made was like an arrow launched from a bow. His punch drove into the shoulder of the man and a loud crack resounded throughout the street as the body flew back at high speed. An old woman in the crowd took out a cane and hit several areas of the approaching body, stopping it in midair. It then dropped to the ground, its constant twitching showed that the man was still alive.

While the black-clad men still looked stunned at the situation, Aaron moved to dispose of them all.

Using several skills took a large chunk of his mana, but they were effective. Stone Skin created a thin layer over his body, allowing him to defend against weak attacks or breaking through things like the low quality sword from before. Adding Body Maneuvering, it became much easier to control his movements and Aaron turned to his next opponent with only a slight break in speed. His next punch had the added effect of Mass Increase which increased the overall force from his attacks. This type of fist slammed against the man, sending him flying without much resistance.

Aaron relied on the older citizens to block the thrown men from hitting the crowd as he wildly played with the group. Without missing a beat, Aaron turned from one enemy to another and hit them only once. All he needed was the one punch to get rid of his foes - he didn’t want to kill anyone on his date.

His attacks stopped and he turned pale when he heard one of the men shout behind him.

“Stop! Stop your attacks, else I’ll kill her!”

... Idiot, I took you guys down so she wouldn’t do so… you should be thanking me…

The man misinterpreted Aaron’s pale face for victory and started to feel up his hostage with satisfaction. Damn the old couple for ruining their night! He decided he would take the woman and use her as much as he-

Only then did the man notice his hands had dropped to the side and his dagger lay on the ground. What was going on? The man’s face showed his confusion as his dagger had before been raised to the woman’s neck. Then he noticed his legs were starting to weaken. What…

Trying hard to regain control over his body, the man couldn’t do anything as Celia strode away from him and then turned. Her eyes eagerly took note of the different symptoms the man was showing and a small bewitching smile crossed her face. It wasn’t every day that she would get a test subject for one of her poisons and she took as many mental notes as she could see.

The man collapsed after losing the struggle for control and his body started convulsing. He would have been screaming if his throat wasn't affected. Not caring about him anymore, Celia turned to the remaining men and took out several vials she had hidden away.

“So. What were you about to do to me? I heard something about breaking girls in? I’ve always wanted to try these potions I made. It supposedly does what you boys described.”

The men looked fearful at the monstrous women and tried to run away. They turned, but found that they were now surrounded by a line of old men and women who all had similar devious smiles. Each of the black-clad men took out a scroll but one of the old men moved his cane and shredded those with ease. Aaron turned away from the unfortunate fools when the screams started.

“I’m sorry for this night.”

Aaron and Celia were walking home when Aaron gave a deep sigh and apologized. Celia only turned a confused look on him, a few dolls swaying on top of her head and on her shoulders.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean… it’s the first date in a while and it got completely messed up. The dinner was badly done; the garden was not as pretty at night; and then at the market... “

The memories of the market were still fresh in both of their minds so he didn’t bother to reiterate what happened. The disappointment he felt inside must have been many times greater in Celia. That was what he thought so he needed to apologize…

Celia’s laugh broke his dreary thoughts and he turned an amazed look towards her.

“You big lug. It wasn’t a bad night. I actually had fun!”

“But-”

“No buts. The dinner was fine, I knew I was being a little picky over the food. Plus the dessert was delicious, you know I can’t make dessert myself. The garden was also very nice since I got to pick and see a bunch of rare flowers that I don’t grow myself. It helped in giving me an idea for an outdoor garden, only one that bloomed at night. And then the activities at the market were good too. Look at all these prizes. And concerning those men…”

At this, Celia gave a devilish smile that caused Aaron’s heart to beat faster.

“It isn’t every day I get to try out my poisons on regular people, and then get praised for it. I don’t know what you mean, I had a wonderful time.”

“...Hahahaha..”

Aaron couldn’t help himself. He laughed as loud as he could and then swept Celia up in a large hug. Celia gave a tiny scream of surprise before bursting into laughter with him. The two of them took full advantage of the empty streets as they swung round and round. They stopped a short while later, both of them wiping tears from their eyes.

“...What brought this around?”

“Hmm, I thought you didn’t feel anything for me anymore.”

Celia gasped in surprise at the statement and slapped Aaron on the arm. Since Aaron switched back to the Restricted title, the slap hurt a little.

“Hey, that hurt! I mean, it seems like you switched targets from me to Michael.”

“... I fought two other girls just to get you, and you think I switched targets so easily?”

“But you seem to pay more attention to him than to me.”

“You’re married to me you idiot. Michael is still a target for other women while you don’t have the balls to cheat on me.”

... True

“So… you still love me?”

“... I still love you. Big idiot.”

Aaron swept the blushing Celia into another big hug and then pulled both of them up to their feet. With one last spin he released her and she immediately went to pick up the fallen dolls that had dropped when they played.

“... I can’t wait to get home. We have the night to ourselves, plus there’s still some of that wine from dinner that I had the restaurant deliver...”

“Ha, I know exactly which part of the night you are waiting for...”

Celia then produced a pair of items from her bag of dolls and Aaron eyed them. Then he started to sweat when he understood how Celia will use them.

“Are those…?”

“Yep, made them especially for today. A little surprise for the end of the night.”

Aaron turned a little pale at the items, but he also felt a slight stirring. It constantly freaked him out during the normal days, but... this time though, he would let it all out. They were still in their prime, they could handle an entire night of… activities.

Hrm hrm. The contest winning canon Side Story for NPC. Since people haven't read it, might as well add it here.

Chapter 8 is complete and is currently being edited and PRed. Childhood Arc Epilogue is the same.

Comments? Just say it. I read it all. I may comment if you ask questions.