[SpringsSong]

Mirua.  Human form.

Mirua sat on the edge of the fountain in Aldrect, a perpetual scowl on her face.

Whatever in the name of the Triumvirate had her friends been thinking, setting her up on a blind date?  Honestly, her work at her boutique had her tied up well enough, especially since leaving the boutique that she worked in before in Nabias.  And then, there was the fact that she had only just barely settled in after her move from the Barakkan continent back to the Lambastian continent... and her mother and stepmother were practically breaking down doors to know when she was going to visit them again.

So, she sat there, shaking her head as she sighed, waiting for... whoever it was to show up.

[SpringsSong]

Rorin.  Human form.

This is bad, Rorin thought as he left his shop, locking the door and checking the handle at least three times before he was satisfied.  I can't believe I forgot what time that blind date I got set up on was...

To say that Rorin was a nervous wreck was an understatement.  He wasn't usually one for going out on dates, especially not with women that he didn't know.  He made his way to the location he was told that she would be at, trying to spot the woman.

[SpringsSong]

I guess that's him, Mirua thought to herself as she rose from her spot at the fountain.  After all, he's the only person that seems to be looking for someone else.

She began to walk towards him, but when she finally got a good look at him, she stopped dead in her tracks.  Was it...?--no, it couldn't be, could it?  Could he really still be in Aldrect after all these years?

[SpringsSong]

By the Triumvirate, Rorin found himself thinking as he saw the woman rise from her spot at the fountain, and walk towards him.  When she stopped, so did he--and his eyes widened in recognition as he closed the distance between them, taking the woman into an embrace.

"Mirua," he said, taking a step back after a few moments.  "I-I didn't... I mean--when... when did you get back?  T-to Aldrect, I mean; I thought... your family moved to Medicai?"

[SpringsSong]

"Rorin!"

Well, that was unexpected.

Okay, knowing Rorin, maybe it wasn't so unexpected.  But, nevertheless, the hug took Mirua completely by surprise--and before she could return the embrace, he retreated, and asked when she'd gotten back.

"Oh, I... well, after I graduated, I... actually had moved to Barakka.  Nabias, actually," Mirua said, shifting slightly.  "I moved back here about three months ago, when I heard that a shop here in Aldrect was for sale."

[SpringsSong]

"Nabias?  That's such a long way away," Rorin said, his voice distant.  "But... three months?  How did I not know about this?"

You know exactly how you didn't know she was back, he told himself.  Aside from never writing, you've been busy cataloging antiques that have been coming into the shop.

He shifted slightly, giving a nervous chuckle.  "Well... I wonder which of my friends I have to thank for this.  Ournelo?  Nelai?  No... most likely Iseol..."

[SpringsSong]

"I've been busy setting up shop," Mirua said.  "Running a boutique isn't exactly like play-shopping, like we did all those years ago, remember?" she asked, smiling.

When he asked which of his friends he had to blame, Mirua had to laugh as she shook her head.  "Blame all of them.  Skokara, Aetlina, and Eodeva--their girlfriends--have been trying to set me up on blind dates for weeks.  Apparently, socializing with what few customers I do have at the moment doesn't count as having a 'social life'," she said.

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"Well, I'll have to stop by sometime--when I'm not... busy at my antiques shop," Rorin said, offering a nervous chuckle.  "Remember that little stone statue we found when we were kids?  Apparently, it was really valuable--and I found more when I would go out digging," he said, his eyes gleaming with excitement.

When Mirua revealed that some of her friends--the girlfriends of his friends, no less--had been trying to set her up for weeks, he couldn't help but laugh as he offered a shrug.

"Well, if it's any consolation, apparently my friends think that I'm too tied up in my work and that it's 'bad for my health'," he said.

[SpringsSong]

"You're kidding me," Mirua said, laughing incredulously.  "That little hunk of rock that we thought could've been a figurine of Sa'ouna?  It... it was actually a figurine of Sa'ouna?" she asked, her eyes glimmering slightly.  When he made the comment about how his friends felt that his work was in the way of his social life, she smiled.

"Well, here we are--two old friends who never thought they'd see each other again, and when our paths do cross again, we discover that we're both pretty well buried in our work.  What are the odds?" she asked, laughing.  "But, speaking of this whole 'blind date' thing... did you have anything planned?"

[SpringsSong]

"Some would argue that the odds were against us, especially since we never... y'know, wrote to each other after you moved," Rorin said, rubbing the back of his neck as he offered a sheepish smile.  "What even drove you to move in the first place?  Do you know?"

It was a long shot, at best; he knew that--they had been so young, and the move had been so sudden--only he and the Arkuhna who was raising him knew that her mother and stepmother were uprooting the family (well, okay; the teachers from their school likely knew about it as well, thinking back on it).  But when she asked about the date, he offered a smile.

"Remember that restaurant we would always end up passing by when we'd be adventuring through the city?" he asked.

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"Mother said that it was something to do with Mama's old fiance or something," Mirua said, offering a shrug.  "Neither of 'em said much about it, and my three half-sisters and I knew better than to ask questions about it," she said, and when he mentioned the restaurant that they used to pass by, her eyes widened.

"You mean... the one that serves the different flavors of crème brûlée, and the delicious fish and chips, and... oh, Yepha above, that steak that Mother used to go on and on about..." she half-asked, half-said.  "Mother always said that it was a good restaurant, but not really for kids--good thing we were friends with one of the chefs' daughters," she said with a wink.  "You must remember Vala, yes?"

[SpringsSong]

"Of course I remember Vala--and Aeridela, and Vianetto," Rorin said, laughing.  "I actually... pulled some strings with them--they all took positions at the restaurant on the cooking staff--to get in there tonight.  They asked if I wanted the chef's table, but... when I explained the situation, they said they'd get us the next-best thing," he said.

Here, he offered his arm to Mirua before he walked toward the restaurant, and once they arrived there, he stopped at the hostess' station.

"Rorin, party of two," he said, and the hostess nodded.

"Right this way, sir," she said.

[SpringsSong]

"Somehow, I'm not surprised that they all ended up chefs," Mirua said, laughing.  "I'm willing to bet that Vala's the head pastry chef, isn't she?  And Aeridela and Vianetto are just beneath her?"

She took Rorin's arm when he offered it to her, and once they were inside the restaurant and seated, Mirua smiled across the table at Rorin, with soft, classical music drifting across the room.

"So... I'm guessing that there hasn't been anyone special in your life, then?" she asked, her voice uncertain.

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"Anyone spec--no," Rorin said, tapping a finger against the table lightly as he offered a slight shrug.  "No, there... hasn't been anyone special in my life, at all.  I... tend to be a bit of a recluse at my shop, and not many women want to trek into the forest or to the site of an abandoned temple to look for artifacts, let alone catalog them--in fact, you were the only one who even seemed interested at the time."

"Good evening," a waitress said, coming up to their table.  "My name's Jayna, and I'll be taking care of you this evening.  Is there anything I could get started for you two?  Maybe some drinks or an appetizer?"

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"I'll, uh, start off with ice water, if you don't mind," Mirua said to the waitress, offering a smile.  "As for an appetizer... might I request a chef's recommendation?  I've never... been here before, but I know three of the chefs."

"Which three, ma'am?" Jayna asked.

"Valania, Aeridela, and Vianetto," she said.  "If they ask who's asking, tell them it's Mirua."