The restaurant that Kass suggested was only a few blocks away from the dungeon plaza. The outside of the building was made of fancy, blue rock, and most of the customers seemed to be fairly well dressed, so I felt a little out of place. Kass didn’t care, she pulled me right inside.

“I have a reservation, under Bloodtide,” Kass told the woman at the tiny desk inside. I couldn’t help but glance in her direction. “What?” she asked.

“When did you reserve a table… also, your last name is Bloodtide?”

“I come from a noble naga house,” Kass said with a blush, “I don’t like to talk about it much, it’s not something I’m particularly proud of.” I wanted to ask a follow up question, but before I could the woman came back, and started guiding us to a table.

The interior of the restaurant was even nicer than the outside, private tables and booths, fancy chandeliers, and no bar. It was very different from the places I was used to. I noticed a couple people glance in our direction as we walked by. I wasn’t sure if it was because we were famous, or underdressed, but I felt very self conscious either way.

Thankfully our table was out of the way, near the back. The waitress placed a couple menus on the table, before stepping away and giving us some privacy. “So… when did you reserve a table here?” I asked again as the two of us took our seats.

“Last week,” Kass replied shyly. “I brought you to the plaza to waste some time until the reservation. I didn’t expect that meeting people at the plaza would wear you out that much, sorry about that,” I think Kass realized she was babbling, just a little, so she paused and took a deep breath before continuing. “I just figured you needed a break after the battle, and I wanted to treat you. Besides, I wanted to ask you something…”

“What?” I said, looking at her quizzically.

“I'll tell you in a while, figure out what you want to eat first,” she said, passing me a menu. For some reason she didn’t want to meet my gaze right at that moment, so I just took the piece of parchment from her, and browsed the selection.

I thought the menu was in a foreign language for a minute, since at least three quarters of the dishes had names I could barely read, nevermind pronounce. By the time the waitress came back I had to select a random dish with ‘Chicken’ in the name, because it was the only thing I recognized.

Once she took our orders, it was just Kass, George and I. While we waited Kass fidgitted, drumming her fingers on the table, and shifting in her seat. I’d never seen her so agitated. “So, what did you want to talk to me about?” I asked.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

“Right, that, so…gods, I’m so bad at this…” she mumbled before clearing her throat, “Talia, I like you. I’ve liked you ever since you came to the manor, and I’d like to spend more time with you.”

I nodded, I knew that. It was only after George stomped on my foot, that the full understanding of what she was saying hit me.

“Ohhh… really?” I stammered. “Ummm… Why?”

“Why? Because you’re cute, smart, and we get along really well,” Kass said quietly. She was blushing in embarrassment.

“Thanks?” I replied.

There was a momentary pause, “Just thanks?” Kass asked.

“No! Sorry, don’t take that the wrong way. I’ve just never had anyone confess to me. It’s a lot to take in,” I replied quickly. “I’m not quite sure how to react.” I sat back in my chair, and the two of us stared at each other for a minute.

“I’m not going to lie, I’m not very good at this either, but I’d like this to go one of two ways” Kass said gently. “Either you accept my feelings, and we explore a relationship, or you decline, and we continue as friends.” I noticed how she refused to look at me, and instead concentrated on her balled fists.

“Of course! Did you think I’d shun you if you confessed?” I asked, gently placing my hands on her balled hands.

“A little. I may make an effort to appear confident while in the dungeon, it doesn’t mean I don’t get worried sometimes,” she said, finally looking up at me with a small smile. “So… what do you think?”

“I’m willing to give it a try.” I told her, matching her smile. “You’ll have to help me though. As I said, I don’t have any experience with this sort of thing. Pretty much the only real relationship I had before this is with George.”

“That’s fine!” Kass said, sitting up straight, her smile widening. “I’m not exactly that experienced either, as you might have guessed. We can start slowly, and figure things out together.” She unclenched her fists and slowly grabbed my hands.

I nodded, my brain short circuiting momentarily as she gently caressed my hands.

Unfortunately, the situation was interrupted by our waitress, who brought out two exceptionally fine plates, covered with carefully arranged food. As soon as the plates were placed down, I passed a chicken leg under the table to George, which earned me a disapproving look from the server, but she didn’t say anything.

After she left, I cleared my throat. “So… what happens next?” I asked.

Kass, who was enjoying some sort of fish dish, smiled, and finished a bite before putting down her fork. “Tonight? We enjoy a good meal, and each other’s company. There’s no reason to rush everything. We can discuss things tomorrow, or later this week, and take things slow. I certainly don’t want to screw things up by rushing, do you?” she asked, with a slight smirk and raised eyebrow.

I didn’t quite know what to say, so I just rapidly shook my head. I wanted to hide my face, because I could feel a slight blush forming. Thankfully Kass just laughed. “Good. Now eat your food. This place has quite a long waiting list, and it would be a shame to let it go to waste.”

I nodded this time, and slowly ate the delicious meal. The two of us made small talk, content to slowly work on our burgeoning relationship, together.