leetle | INBOX | noctium

[ So here's the thing: Matt suggested this particular outing because of what he knew about Jester's interests. A quest for the best pastries in Sumarlok seemed like a no-brainer. But despite his tendency to over-purchase, whether it's candies or alcohol or herbs for spells, Matt doesn't actually eat that much sugar. Which means that by this point in the pastry crawl, he's feeling decidedly buzzed.

They've ended up at one of Matt's favorite bakeries in the Sapphire District, which not coincidentally is the only one that's open 24 hours. The plates in front of them are a confectionary wasteland, a testament to just how thorough this search has been.

Matt heaves a sigh, satisfied and dazed in about equal measure. ]

So what's the verdict?

[ Somewhere between the eclairs and the millefeuille, he's lost track. There's a bit of powdered sugar in his hair, a smudge of jelly on his cheek, and he's mostly trying to drink water at this point, but he's feeling pretty good. ]

[Improbably, impossibly, Jester has yet to hit her limit. Sure, she's sugared up as all hell, and is definitely going to crash hard later, but it seems her stamina is pretty remarkable for someone so small. She's draped halfway across the table toward Matt, idly nibbling on the corner of something that resembles a Yorkshire pudding, except drenched in chocolate sauce. Behind her head, her tail flicks idly back and forth midair like a contented cat's, and she's got chocolate on the tip of her nose that she's fully aware is there.

She's having a very good time, too, and it isn't just about the pastries. Matt is cute and funny and laughs at her jokes and talks about interesting things. Also, he's one of the few people Jester's flirted with who just...flirts right back. Which is crazy, now that she thinks about it. But all in all, it's been a very nice night.

She giggles, reaching out to boldly swipe the jelly from Matt's cheek, and then in a fit of ridiculousness sticks her finger in her mouth to suck it off.]

I don't know...there were so many good things. I loved those little cream cheese tarts with the plums...or the chocolate-hazelnut croissants...And that last place had that amazing hot chocolate, yum!

[ Matt's mouth drops open in some half-formed thought of protest, but he ends up laughing when Jester wipes the jelly off his face and ferries it straight into her mouth. His grin lilts lopsided as she sucks on her finger. ]

Never let good sugar go to waste, huh?

The plums were a standout for me too, [ he adds thoughtfully. ] Normally I'd say hot chocolate wouldn't count as a pastry per se, but that stuff was thick enough to chew. [ Also, he's not a huge fan of labels. ] Yeah, I think in my mind there's a lot of "goods" and "greats," but everything we tried was trying to be something different, so in some sense it doesn't feel fair to compare them?

Nope!

[She grins toothily at him, clearly tickled that her little exploit wasn’t ill-received. Heaving a contented sigh, she nods along with his commentary, jingle bells jangling from her horns.]

I completely agree. It’s just not fair! But at least we know we’ve definitely tried the best of everything. I think that’s officially the most baked goods I’ve ever eaten in a single day!

[Which is…saying something. This bitch do be eating pastries like it’s her job.]

[ Matt's surprised into another laugh. Against the gentle ching-a-ling of Jester's bells, it sounds almost like some postmodern attempt at a carol. ]

Really? Damn, well in that case, congratulations. [ He reaches for the plate, grabbing a corner of frangipane tart--it's all that remains of the original slice. Matt salutes her with it like it's a glass of champagne. ] You're a record breaker.

[ A self-record breaker, but isn't that what life's all about? Surpassing your previous self, growing every day? ]

... Do you want this?

Thank you, thank you! [Jester eyes that bit of tart a little jealously as Matt picks it up, and maybe he picks up on that on some level, because he's offering it to her. And she's in such high spirits, and having such a good time, she nods.]

Yes please.

[She doesn't reach for it, though, just props her chin in the palm of her hand and opens her mouth expectantly. Just to see if he'll do it, or at least partly that and partly because she's feeling extra flirty and she's tired of only thinking about things like that and never actually doing them.]

[ Matt grins at her. He likes a lady/enby/gentleman who just goes for it. Far be it from him to ignore such a clear (and adorable) request.

Matt shifts slightly closer, positioning his elbow just so. Gently, but unerringly, he brings the bite of pastry to Jester's lips. ]

Tell me if it's good, [ he murmurs. Sure, the evidence suggests that one or both of them have already sampled it, but honestly all previous flavors are a sugared blur to him. Under the table, his foot jitters. ]

[When it becomes clear that Matt is going to actually follow through, Jester's breath catches excitedly in her throat, but she stays right where she is, albeit wiggling a little bit in place like she can't physically contain her excitement.

His fingertips brush her lips as he passes the morsel into her mouth, and a thrill goes through her as she pulls slightly back and lets the frangipane melt across her tongue.]

Oh, right! [she responds, almost surprised, as she recognizes the flavor from earlier,] it's super good. It's so light and toasty! You should definitely try it again.

[ Without a doubt, it's the most adorable hand-feeding he's ever witnessed, much less taken part in. Matt's emotional landscape is a lot like his pastry ranking system: superlatives abound, while academic rigor doesn't so much. But it feels true to him, and in some sense he'd argue it is. Everyone is too important not to occupy their own discrete universe.

At the suggestion that he somehow eat more pastry, somehow, he slumps his elbows onto the table with a groan. He's grinning, though. ]

When I can eat anything again, I will definitely bear that in mind. I feel like my blood is turning into rock candy.

Oh, rock candy blood sounds tasty. Not...that I drink people's blood, but if I were going to...

[Is it a strange thing to talk about on a date? Absolutely. Is she aware of it? No, because she's too busy thinking about how cute Matt is when he slumps over the table like that.]

Well, I guess we're done eating pastries. I'm getting kind of full, too. [Only kind of. Jester folds her elbows flat across the table and leans her cheek across her forearm so she can angle her gaze upward at Matt's from below.] That's really too bad...

[ Matt gusts a laugh. ]

Nothing wrong with blood-drinking, if that's your dietary restriction. Or I guess ... if everyone's into it.

[ Not that he'd know anything about that! ]

Yeah, it's a bummer. [ That their whirlwind of confectionary exploration is winding down, that is. Matt gets a lot more out of eating pastries when it so clearly makes someone he's with happy. ] But you know, it's not our last chance for the rest of our lives. We could do this again sometime.

I've never wanted to try. Maybe if I polymorphed into a vampire bat...

[She's never tried being a bat before. It sounds fun now that she thinks about it now, though. Tuck that one away to try out later, when she's a little more Manna-secure.

Jester's expression lights up when Matt says they could do this again, and she sits back up straight.]

Really? You'd want to? We don't have to do, like, this exactly, obviously...

Oh, sure, I think we can definitely keep our options open, [ Matt answers quickly, ] but I definitely would. You're a lot of fun, and I ... had a lot of fun.

[ He smiles gently Jester's way. Though after a moment, his eyes narrow. ]

But real quick, are you saying you can turn into an animal?

Oh, that's great! [Her fingers drum excitedly on the tabletop, nodding along with him in agreement.]

Me, too. That settles that, then!

[His return to the previous topic pulls a chortle out of her.]

Oh, yeah! Any animal I know of! Want to see?

[ Matt's eyes shoot saucer wide.

Performing acts of shapeshifting and-or transfiguration, the likes of which would be absolutely impossible where he comes from? This date has just rocketed from good to great. ]

I would love to see that, [ he answers, with gravity. ]

[She looks incredibly pleased; any chance to show off her magic to someone with genuine interest is taken with glee.]

Well, then it's only fair that you pick which animal I turn into! But we should probably go outside first.

[ Matt laughs. ]

Oh, uh, yeah, good point.

[ There's a few moments of bill-settling, but then they're bundling out into the crisp winter evening. You would think that this pause would afford Matt enough time to select an animal, but "efficient choosing" is not among his various magical powers. He's drawing a total blank.

Okay. First thought, best thought. ]

Um.

A giraffe?

[Once they're all paid up and back outside, Jester dances excitedly in the patch of snow-covered grass between the bakery and the street. It's late, now, flurries coming down through the buildings to settle in both their hair. His choice in animals has her grinning, tail wagging back and forth behind her.]

Ooh! I've never done that one before! Okay, hold on—

[She pulls her symbol of the Traveler that hangs from her belt, clutching it close to her heart. Green light begins to emanate from between her fingers, the glow extending outward as a nonexistent wind ruffles her hair, catches the bells in her horns. And then her whole form is enveloped in green light, and when the light resolves Jester has been replaced by a pale blue giraffe with deeper blue spots. It's on the smaller side for a giraffe, but still around thirteen feet in height, towering far over Matt.

The Jester-giraffe bends its neck down slightly and sticks out its long, purple tongue, giving him an affectionate lick on the cheek.]

[ Matt watches Jester's every move in fascination, though he realizes pretty quickly he'd never be able to emulate her. It's interesting to see her use a focal item--like Liem's key, almost, the way she wields it--but Matt's academic observations give way to a more gut-level appreciation. A shiver in the wind that isn't, a golden gleam over his skin as the green light flares.

And then, suddenly, Jester is over twice his height and covered in cute blue splotchy spots and oh, God, she's a giraffe. She licks his cheek, and Matt bursts into a peal of laughter. ]

Oh my God Jester! This is incredible! How are you doing this?

[Jester doesn't answer, because she is a giraffe and unable to speak while she's turned into one. Instead, she nuzzles her velvety blue nose against Matt's cheek, and then sort of snuffles her way up to his hair where she...lips at it like it's a particularly decadent patch of grass.

Her hooves, deep shiny navy blue and the size of dinner plates, clomp back and forth in the snow, and she releases her attention on Matt's head to look around at the other passersby coming and going on the sidewalk, most of whom are giving the pair of them a wide berth. Her ears flicker as she cocks her fuzzy head, looking into Matt's face with huge, dark eyes for a long moment as she tries to remember how to be a tiefling again—

—and just as quickly as it appeared, the giraffe is gone, replaced by Jester, who is grinning but looks exhausted.]

Ta-daaa! Pretty cool, right?

[ This is easily the strangest thing that's ever happened to his hair, and Matt's absolutely here for it. He laughs helplessly as a big giraffe snout noses and mouths at him, and he's still giggling when Jester turns tiefling-shaped once more.

In the face of her grin, he beams back. ]

That's more than cool. It's fucking miraculous. [ Though he's still smiling, he's completely in earnest. ] Thank you for showing me that.

[ And, because turnabout seems like fair play, Matt presses a kiss to Jester's cheek. Because he's merciful, he does not lick her face or chew on her hair. ]

[Matt's helpless laughter is a hundred percent worth the energy Jester puts into the spell, and she sighs in momentary relief as he kisses her cheek and a spark of synchrony blooms through her. He smells nice, too, when he gets close, setting off butterflies in her chest.]

Oh, you're totally welcome! And that's not actually wrong, considering I'm using my god's power to do it! Consider it a miracle of the Traveler!

[She wiggles her fingers in their fingerless gloves for effect, but then her brow wrinkles for a moment as she sways on the spot.]

—oof. Leetle bit woozy, though. [She holds out one of her hands toward Matt with a hopeful smile.] Mind walking me home?

Oh. [ Matt's already moving towards her by the time she asks. His hand catches hers, long fingers wrapping around Jester's. ] I don't mind at all.

[ A slight pause, then: ]

Does that take it out of you, using your god's power?

[Jester nods, grateful, letting her arm wrap around Matt's as their boots scuffle through the snow.]

A little bit. When I'm low on Manna or whatever. I'm still getting used to that...I feel sapped way more quickly here than I did at home.

Ah ... you're not the first magic user I've heard say that.

[ Matt, in contrast, feels like his powers have bloomed in a few months in ways that took him years back home. Part of it is the opportunity to practice, and part of it may be that he just generates a lot of Manna in general?

Linhardt had posited there was something else in the mix. That his own propensity for generating magical energy through sex formed some kind of virtuous cycle. Matt's not sure, and with Linhardt gone, he doubts he'll figure out the thermodynamics of it anytime soon. ]

I guess no matter how good your relationship is with your god, the ones here gotta take their share.

action! in medias date

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