Private Meet the Family, Day 1: Surprise!

[Brutus Dahlgren]

"Yup." Olivier quipped. "Meet the Family," the not so giant would continue, ignoring the sullen twink's hand on his shoulder as he beamed at Nao, who had taken a couple steps back and buried half of her gorgeous face under her steepled hands. He would shrug Theo's hand off his shoulder, taking a step through the threshold and closing the gap between him and Nao. He would reach forward slowly, grabbing her wrists and stealing her hands in his.

Thump Thump Thump Thump Thump

"I'm sorry about the surprise but at the same time." He would raise an eyebrow and smirk slightly. "It was infinitely worth the look on your face Honey Bun." He would pull her forward while taking a step closer and plant a kiss on her cheek. He would then turn to everyone and reintroduce them. "That's Jin," he would say pointing to Theo. "That's Fiora," pointing to the pink haired woman. "And that's Yugam, but he still looks like him." He would release her hands and give her some space, not wanting to overload her all at once. "Yall, this is Nao!"

Gods above, for a moment he wished the others weren't here. He'd be big smoochin on her right now, cockblocking motherfuckers.

"I suppose this goes without saying, but may we come in?"

@Toko

 

[Toko]

.

.

Badump...! Badump...! Badump...!

Instinct had caused Nao to take a couple of steps back as the door failed to close, her hands reaching up to cover her nose and mouth as a soft gasp escaped her lips. It was then the door slid open once more, the very familiar voice of Olivier carrying it clearly as he spoke.

"Meet the Family."

Her eyes would move from Olivier to the taller figure that introduced himself as Theo, a confused look on Nao's face as she struggled to place from where she—or Ollie—would know him. "H-Hai, kon'nichiwa...?" It was then another black haired figure would step forwards, a peace sign over his head and a familiar cheeky smile... it only took seconds for Nao to recognize the Hemomancer.

"Yu-chan!"
"Hey bun-bun, I'm the badass italian blonde... That ain't blonde right now."
"Ah, Fiora-chan too!"

It was then Olivier stepped closer, his hands grasping her own before he leaned forward to press a soft kiss on her cheek. "Moooh...! For a moment I thought the heat had me hallucinating things!" There was an initial pout on her face, before it quickly gave way to a smile as everything finally clicked into place.

Wait... that's Jin?!

There was a look of surprise as she stared at Theo specifically, before the Japanese woman finally snapped out of it as a hand waived to the group in greeting. "Ah, hai...! Haitteh kudasai!" She would motion for the group to come inside, the other hand still held in Ollie's own giving his a soft squeeze before finally letting go as she stepped up and into the house to give the group extra room.

"Please be sure to take off your shoes before stepping inside... and you can leave the suitcases here for now."

Her hand would motion to a shoe rack first, mostly empty except for a pair of sneakers and some sandals, and then to an open space in the foyer where the suitcases and bags could be piled up for the time being.

@Jin

 

[Jin]

The others seemed to entirely dismiss his worry and Theo felt the cold sweat on his back. If someone had thrown their foot between a door in Philly, there would have been sirens blaring and probably some gunshots popping. Especially in the neighborhood where he grew up. The youth was prepared to turn on his heel and try his luck literally anywhere else in Japan, on his own, with exactly as much money as he had to his name. He opened his mouth to casually say "I don't know these people, I'm not with them" when Nao finally expressed recognition of the group and became welcoming.

Crisis averted. For now. Something in the way she reacted and the way she still seemed reserved told Theo that perhaps Olivier had vastly misinterpreted his situation. He wanted to warn the man that, hey, this is a different culture and perhaps he was being a bit too forward, but...

...the others were already being incredibly supportive of his boisterous and lovestruck behavior.

"This was not your best idea," Theo muttered beneath his breath toward Ari, who was already happy to be invited inside and out of the heat. It seemed like even the one person who might listen to him was already disinclined to do so. With a sigh, he started to grab the mess of luggage that each of the others left outside when prompted and pulled them closer to the house. If nothing else, it was better to not clutter the lane.

He bowed his head to each of the bystanders in turn, watching still because their small town was unused to this kind of hustle and bustle. One after the other, they turned away when they realized that everything was (relatively) normal, and there would be no need to call the police. Or at least, that was what Theo assumed while he waited for their attention to disperse.

The others were already inside before him, and he wasn't in any hurry- he'd join them momentarily.

@Yugam

 

[Yugam]

Per Aspera

Ad Astra

Ah the classic jack-in-the-box middle finger trick. Timeless. Ari attempted to stifle a snicker like he was some juvenile delinquent as Nico flipped Theo off, thankfully recovering before either Olivier or Toko had noticed them acting like children.

After everyone had introduced themselves (and then been reintroduced by Olivier) they were all finally invited into the home. Slightly cramped in the entryway with now five of them slowly making their way in, Olivier entered first, and Theo stepped to the side to let the rest in ahead of him.

"This was not your best idea," Theo whispered as Ari passed. The dark-haired man paused just long enough to whisper, "Trust me," before entering.

Ari, having seen enough anime to know this, kicked off his shoes and put them neatly to the side before stepping forward and...bowing. As soon as Ari had performed the action he paused as realization dawned in that tiny, pea sized brain of his. "This isn't a dojo..." he stated, as if he were simply observing a fact. The man, without another word, rose and straightened his back, stepped into the home, and chose to forget that any of that had just happened.

Standing a little off to the side of the hallway to allow Nao to direct them wherever it was that she wanted the unexpected party to go, the man stood by her, leaning over slightly. "I did promise that I'd come visit," he whispered quietly to her. "Sorry for the surprise but," his eyes darted over to the others, "I thought you might like some company."

@Fiora Di Angelo

 

[Fiora Di Angelo]

.

With the woman of the year finally on sight (Nao herself that is), Nico finally got to appreciate... Just how damn fine she is, and now she could understand exactly why Not!Brutus was so hopelessly in love with this woman. How old is she even? Twenty five? Twenty six? No way she's older than that!

"Hope you got a lotta space for the misfits!" She smiled, most likely this was the case. Just from outside the house was a marbel, way bigger than what she expected for being in the middle of nowhere, two steps to the left.

Finally they had their way in, a double introduction and the familiar insides almost reminded her of her youth, back when she used to play house-modelling inside those corny games with real life mechanics and stuff. Let alone how anime this all felt. Ari seemed to be a weeb right on spot with how quickly he got his shoes off, and she followed along with the usual traditions depicted on her cartoons, leaving her with her stripped, pink hello kitty socks.

Until Ari decided to make a fool out of himself and bow down, and she just couldn't hold it in anylonger as she laughed, obnoxiously loud for a second at that. "Sei un deficiente..." A smile left on her face once Ari had to pull grade A comedy right on spot. "Dude, you clearly are a newbie weeb if you don't know that, I thought being friends with Edgy McEdgelord himself would net you some culture." Fiora remarked by bobbing her head on Theo's direction.

She took her chances to slide closer to Olivier, leaning a bit closer as if to try and keep Nao and the others out of this loop. "Big guy, question: What's the plan for food? We probably shouldn't eat through whatever she's got around here, there might not be enough for all of us." Concern... Born out of her own hunger

@Brutus Dahlgren

 

[Brutus Dahlgren]

A lot of shit was happening at once, and Olivier was beginning to realize that perhaps he had bit off more than he could chew. Perhaps he had shoved a little more than Nao could handle down her throat. A pang of guilt crossed his gut, without his hypersense it was hard to track just everything that was going on, and nigh impossible to gauge where his lover was at emotionally. Was she as nervous as him? He couldn't hear the thump of her heart and he couldn't keep an eye on the children as they already began to misbehave.

Oh fuck oh shit oh fuck.

He took a deep breath trying to steady his nerves. What the fuck was he thinking would happen? He would come in here and sweep Nao off her feet? That he could keep the chucklefucks from chucklefucking? Who the fuck did he think he was?

We're Brutus Fucking Dahlgren.

He would blink as Nico asked him about food.

I'm fucking sorry?
You sure are you fucking sissy
Excuse you?
Turnabout is fair play. If you get to bother me when I'm behind the wheel, I get to pester you when you're behind the wheel.
This cannot be healthy, I should talk to a shrink
Talk to your fucking friends and stop panicking. You've fought demons bugs and hordes of goblins and punched sharks in the nose. This is literally childs play in comparrison.

He would blink once more, snapping back to his senses and looking to Nico and would furrow his brow. "Didn't we just eat like, two hours ago? How are you hungry already?" This would prove problematic, the last thing he wanted to do was to eat Nao out of house and home. He would step out of his own shoes, peering down at Nico's pink socks and raising an eyebrow before turning to Nao.

"That raises a good point Hun, you probably weren't expecting guests. Sorry bout that. Do you have a local grocery store nearby? I would hate to put you out more than we already did by suddenly showing up at your door." He would have to leave making things up to her for a moment where he had her ear in private. There had been assumptions made, and the last thing he wanted to do was to have a repeat of the club incident and have her hate him.

Remember to breathe you Dork.
Easy for you to say, you hulking mountain of machismo.
I'm literally just you minus the bullshit anxiety
You're also handsome as fuck
Have you looked in a mirror as of late? Get the fuck over yourself. You're not the same dweeb who got swirlies in highschool anymore. Breathe.

And breath he did, steadying his heart. His alter ego was right, it wasn't like he was going to die or anything. He would just need to play it cool, and keep himself in check. He couldn't control the others, how they acted, how they reacted, or what they thought. All he could do, was keep calm and do the best he could.

@Toko

 

[Toko]

.

.

She couldn't help but glance at the back of the group to the one person still outside, watching as Theo gave a bow to some of the passing people as they walked down the road. He was certainly not what Nao had expected Jin's player to actually look like, but she was appreciative of his efforts to smooth things out with her neighbors. Yugam soon stole her attention away however, the boy making quick work of removing his shoes before he stepped onto the wooden flooring... and then bowed?

"This isn't a dojo..."
"Pffft...!"

Nao couldn't help the small chuckle that escaped her, a hand raising to cover her mouth before she gave Yugam an apologetic smile. "I honestly didn't think you'd follow through with that promise... thank you, Yu-chan." A soft little bow was given back to the raven haired boy, her way of conveying gratitude, before Nao's eyes turned to the rest of the group.

"Hope you got a lotta space for the misfits!"
"Of course~ Please, make yourselves at home."

The stripped pink Hello Kitty socks caught Nao's attention as Nico stepped inside next, her hands clasping together softly as a soft "Kawaii~" escaped the woman's lips. Perhaps it was no surprise that Nao seemed to like them, considering the CinnamoRoll slippers that the woman was wearing in turn.

It was then she heard a faint but sharp breathe inhale, her attention turning to look at Olivier for a moment, but before Nao could consider approaching the man Nico was already leaning in his direction... it seemed like the pink haired Italian was getting hungry, but before Nao could figure something out her boyfriend was already stepping up to the plate with an idea of his own.

"Ah, h-hai! There's one not too far from the Community Hall... they should still be open for a little while longer. I can take you all over if you'd like?"

@Jin

 

[Yugam]

Per Aspera

Ad Astra

Nodding in return to Nao, Ari was glad she was still happy despite the group being completely uninvited. For having been only a half planned out, everything had actually gone fairly smoothly, in large part thanks to Theo, who had done far more than Ari had expected...which, honestly, Ari had been surprised the man had even packed for the trip, so as far as Ari was concerned, Theo had gone above and beyond.

As Nico stepped inside and took off her shoes, Ari couldn't help but notice the socks she was wearing. Pink, striped, big Hello Kitties. Ari looked up at Nico. Then back at the socks. Then back at Nico.

"Do you have a local grocery store nearby? I would hate to put you out more than we already did by suddenly showing up at your door."

Oh thank god, a topic that meant Ari wouldn't have to make a comment about Nico's choice of footwear.

"There's one not too far from the Community Hall... they should still be open for a little while longer. I can take you all over if you'd like?"

"No, no, no, no, no," Ari cut in between the two. "You two stay here, Theo and I got food covered for tonight, alright?" Ari looked over at Nao putting a hand on her shoulder, and one on Olivier's. "We're dropping in uninvited so the least we can do is make sure everyone eats well tonight, and you two," Ari looked at Olivier, eyes locking onto his, drilling his message into the man's mind via the telepathy that Ari did not have, "take the time to enjoy meeting in person for the first time. We'll take Nico with us. Don't worry, we won't burn the grocery store to the ground, promise."

Ari then stepped back into the entrance, and began to pull on his shoes, "C'mon Nico," the man said, before walking out of the building and slapping Theo on the back lightly. "Yo, you and I, and Nico, I guess, if she can cook, are cooking tonight. Let's go, we gotta get groceries."

The three walked off, leaving this thread for a moment, and entering another one: Meet the Family, Day 1, Part 2: We Can't Cook Japanese!

@Toko

 

[Toko]

.

.

As soon as Nao had floated the idea of taking them over to the grocery store Ari had quickly interjected, his hand resting on both Nao's and Olivier's shoulders as the man gave them—well mostly to Olivier really—a serious look as he insisted they stayed back while the rest of the group figured today's dinner plans out.

"H-Hai..."

She could see there was no stopping the younger man, a soft sigh escaping the woman before she nodded in acceptance with a small smile. "Here, write down my cellphone... and call me if anything comes up, okay?" She wasn't sure how well they'd do on their own—making sure to also mark on Google Maps the grocery store in question for Ari—before Nao watched as the trio eventually departed right through the very front door they had come through just moments before.

Which now left her alone with Olivier...

"F-Follow me, then..." The green hand towel had long since been removed from her shoulders and was now held on her hands, before the woman motioned for Olivier to follow her down the hall and towards the left where the kitchen was located. "I was going to get a snack anyways, so we can share it together while they come back—"

Grrmmmmrmmmmrrr...!

Her words were suddenly cut short as a loud grumble originated from her stomach, causing Nao's cheeks to instantly turn bright red in embarrassment... perhaps skipping breakfast today hadn't been such a smart idea after all.

@Brutus Dahlgren

 

[Brutus Dahlgren]

Thump Thump Thump.

Unfortunately Olivier couldn't read minds, he didn't have that mastery or any latent ESP powers of his own, so instead he would have to rely on raw deduction, and he was guessing it was along the lines of "Hey dumbass, take it slow."

Any input on that one chadbrain?
Once bitten twice shy, you remember the club
And who's fault was that
Hush. Breath and play it natural. Let her come to you.
Like fighting a goblin?
Exactly like fighting a goblin

He was thankful to have the dumbasses gone, but now that it was just him and Nao he could only feel the tension in the air. He would follow after her, walking slowly and trailing just ever so slightly behind her, taking in the ambience of her home. It was...remarkably gorgeous all things considered. "A snack? That sounds wonderful hun." He would ignore her growling stomach, and he would simply glance around the kitchen.

"Sugoi Nao Chan, you have a beautiful home." He would lean against the counter slightly as he watched her prepare whatever it was she had in mind with keen interest. Once she was done they would both take a seat at the dining room table, him across from her as he gave her a bit of breathing room, idly twiddling his thumbs as he shot her a nervous smile.

...

Oi, Dumbass, say something.
I thought we were letting her come to us?
Yeah but you still have to start the encounter!
Souka

"Hey uh..." The rate in his thumb twiddling would increase, a blush forming across his cheeks. "Sorry for uh, coming on a little strong there. I was..." he paused. "Excited to see you and let myself get a little carried away with the...theatrics"

He didn't think that would quite do the trick, but maybe it would start the conversation a bit. They'd already made a bit of a scene, and Nao's neighbors must think she associated with some weirdos now, and she might hate him. Or maybe she didn't and he was too in his own head, it was impossible to tell with so much going on at once. Add in that Nao, the woman he'd spent the last month or so constantly texting and calling and admiring from a distance was sitting across from him and it made it hard to think clearly.

His eyes would widen a moment.

"Shit, actually, speaking of theatrics I have something for you!" He would exclaim, reaching into his backpack which he had dropped. After some shuffling around he would pull out a small black box roughly 16cm by 15cm by 5 cm. "So uh...to make a long story short there's a tradition in Southern Scarborough that the grand champion of the Tournament gets to name a lady of the faire, it's supposed to be this whole chivalrous romantic symbol that they're the one the were fighting for. You weren't there to see it, but when I explained my situation to the organizer he let me have this so I could give it to you in person"

Upon opening the box, Nao would find herself presented with a plan silver tiara with several small rubies embedded towards the front. The discerning eye could tell the silver was real, but the gems were simply dyed glass.

@Toko

 

[Toko]

.

.

She had visibly stiffened shortly after her stomach had decided to vocally complain, perhaps bracing herself for whatever taunt or tease Olivier would decided to throw her way, only to be surprised as the man actually allowed the opportunity to pass him by instead.

"A snack? That sounds wonderful hun."
"H-Hai… well, it’s nothing complicated really—but I hope you like it."

The hand towel she had been using to dry her hair had been left behind in the small laundry area as they had made their way to the kitchen, before Nao moved to gather a few ingredients to prepare their midday snack. The tuna mayo sando she prepared were simple in their confection, and it only took a few moments for the woman to prepare two of them, before she quickly chopped up a pair of apples into usagi slices to accompany the sandwich. Olivier had actually taken the initiative then, grabbing the plates as he carried them over to the table—before Nao joined him with two glasses of water, one placed besides Olivier, before sitting down across from the man.

"Sugoi Nao Chan, you have a beautiful home."
"Ah, arigatooh. It’s been in the family for generations, though most of the decor was by Obaachan."

The various plants around the place were also those that her grandmother had grown too, Nao having taken over the task of watering and keeping them alive ever since the older woman had eventually passed on. "She really liked collecting little things and trinkets, as you can probably tell by the many things around." Her own hands had never really let go of her glass of water, nervously fiddling the the condensation droplets that formed on the surface as Anaí tried to think of what to do or say.

It was then her boyfriend decided to speak up first, and upon properly looking at Olivier as he spoke Nao noticed that he seemed as nervous—or perhaps even more—as she herself felt. "Ah, i-iie nandemonai… I was just surprised to see you—and the others—here so suddenly. After all, it’s not like Japan is a small d-drive away from where you all live." She could feel the heavy doki doki of her heart, her gaze choosing instead to focus on her glass once more as Nao took a few sips.

There was a momentary pause as an awkward silent settled between them once more, but before Nao could think of breaking it Olivier had exclaimed having forgotten about something before he reached down to the backpack that now rested against his own chair. "… eh?" A puzzled look was given by the woman as she watched him pull out a flat black box, watching Olivier fiddle with it for a few moments before he properly explained how he’d come to possess it in the first place.

"I s-see… it’s really surprising how much attention to detail goes towards that event."

It always felt as if she was learning something new whenever Olivier talked about his troupe or the medieval fairies they re-enacted back in America, and today was no exception. He’d mentioned the tournament quite a few times the past few weeks, and he’d even sent her various pictures and videos of the preparations as well as Tony and himself dressed up for the actual event once the day had arrived. What he certainly hadn’t mentioned was the particular silver tiara circlet that he suddenly presented Nao with, a soft gasp of surprise escaping the woman—before her wands moved to cover her mouth—as Olivier finally opened the lid of the box and presented it to her.

"Oh, Ollie…!" There was a look of surprise in her eyes as the woman visually examined the delicate tiara, the item not something Nao herself would’ve ever found herself looking for personally, as she admired the attention to detail and craftsmanship that had probably gone to create the delicate circlet. "… it’s very pretty, truly."

@Brutus Dahlgren

 

[Brutus Dahlgren]

"I mean, a journey out this far to see you is nothing." The not so giant would smile warmly. "If you lived on mars I would hold Isaac Clark himself at gunpoint to get onto one of his space shuttles to see you." Alright, that might be a bit much, but he was being romantic so overt bombastic declarations were sorta his style. "I wanted to tell you, but the surprised look on your face was worth more than anything."

He would gently take one of the Sando quarters and nibble into it delicately. Watching her react to his gift with a level of surprise that he'd hoped for. "I know you're probably not much of a tiara gal..." He would blush a bit scratching the back of his head nervously. "But like...it's more about the message I guess?" He would glance back to her, trying to get a gauge on her reaction.

"I uh...normally scrub out early in these sorts of things. Take a clunk to the head too hard, or too many technical points get snatched and I spend a lot of time sitting on the sidelines watching Tony and the gang do their thing. But like..." He would struggle to find the words to describe himself for a moment.

"I thought about you..." he gulped. "When I was fighting. I imagined you were like...watching me. And that gave me...more strength? I thought about you cheering me on, or ragging on me for losing in some uncool fashion and that helped me win the day... And like-" He would hold his hands up a bit, reflexively. "-I know this is a lot to unpack, especially since we started dating recently and if that makes you uncomfortable I'm sorry it's just like uh...that whole point of the circlet is to present it to the maiden you were fighting for and..." motioning to the circlet and then to her, he would stumble over his words nervously. "We've been through a lot, as Brutus and Toko I suppose, and I know that Nao and Olivier are two different people with different lives but like, we both lived those things y'know? Everything they did we experienced, the good and the bad. And all of that time spent fighting alongside you and struggling and growing...it makes me feel like I've known you a lot longer than I have? If that makes any sense...." He would trail off.

"But if that bothers you just let me know and I'll like...slow my roll because the last thing I want to do is make you uncomfortable."

He would finally look up to her after stammering and stuttering like and idiot, his heartbeat thump thump thumping in his chest.

@Toko

 

[Toko]

.

.

His comment about stealing a space shuttle to visit Nao had she lived in Mars earned Ollie a soft chuckle from the woman sitting across, a rosy coloration remaining on her cheeks even as he admitted that her surprised look had apparently been worth the trip for Olivier. "Bikkuri shitah,I never imagined you’d just show up suddenly one day… much less with Fiora, Yu-chan and Jin." That last one especially had been quite surprising… both because Nao would’ve never thought that Jin’s player would be the type to sign up for surprise travels, but also because of how different he seemed from his TS avatar.

"I see…"

She would listen carefully as Olivier began to elaborate more on the tiara, the meaning behind it, and how his normal participation in such tournaments from the past had gone—an occasional nod or verbal confirmation given to show that she was indeed listening, while her hands carefully picked up the tiara in question for a closer look. "You know I wouldn’t ‘rag on you’ for losing… so long as you actually gave it your best, of course." A soft smile remained on her lips, her hands carefully placing the circlet back in its box once Nao was done before carefully placing the lid back on.

"Doomoh arigatoo, Ollie… for everything."

She could tell he was probably as nervous as she’d been feeling, perhaps even more given his stammering and rambling—though Nao had to admit it was rather endearing. After all this wasn’t a side she personally got to see from Olivier before; in-game he was confident—to a fault at times—and boisterous, even in messages and texts he’d always seemed to have everything under control most of the time. To see Ollie stumble over his words, and even the ocasional stutter, was something Nao hadn’t previously seen much… but she was glad to have the opportunity to share that experience with him now.

"For the trip, the tiara," A hand carefully patted the top of the now closed black box, before Nao reached over to give one of Ollie’s hands a reassuring squeeze with her own. "… and for everything you’ve done for us inside the game, too. Hontoni, I’m happy that we got the chance to meet thanks to it."

Nao would’ve never imagined that a single person on the other side of the world would come to mean so much for her in a short amount of time, but perhaps it should’ve come as no surprise given the high level of realism the game offered… once she had time to internalize the surprise the woman had realized his presence here didn’t feel as strange as Nao had originally expected it to be.

"That said… I’d like to take you up on that offer, if possible, and take things a little bit slower.” She gave him an apologetic smile, hoping that Olivier wouldn’t take her words the wrong way, before her hand softly pushed the plate with the apple slices closer to his side. "Here, they’re Aomori apples… I’m curious to know what you think of them~"

With that Nao picked up one of her sandwich quarters, biting into it before a soft hum of delight echoed from the woman. Tuna mayo sando were always so delicious…

@Brutus Dahlgren

 

[Brutus Dahlgren]

"Sure thing Honey Bun." He would give her a soft smile, matching her gaze as she gave his hand a gentle squeeze. "I'll let you set the pace on how this goes. If you want to hold hands, my hand is yours. If you want to smooch, my lips are ready." He would squeeze back, his heart slowing down to a manageable pace as he realized wasn't cross with him or anything. A smirk would bloom across his lips, the same playful grin that he often gave her as Brutus. "Anything you want, you just need to ask~"

Good shit?
Good shit.

"My choice in company wasn't really me own. Ari had mentioned wanting to visit you and next thing I know I'm in a group chat with the other two. They're..." he would chuckle softly. "Characters alright, and I hope letting them loose in your village without a chaperone won't cause too much of a ruckus." Hopefully Theo could keep the troublesome twins at bay while they worked out what they were cooking and acquired the goods.

When she took her hand back to eat, the not so giant was reluctant to relinquish it, but would do so and take one of the apples she had offered and began to nibble on it slightly. Aomori apples? He wasn't quite sure he'd heard of them before. His teeth sunk into the flesh in a crisp bite, releasing sweet juice and a satisfying crunch.

"Holy Sh-" He would pause, catching himself. "This is really good love." He would gently munch on it, making appreciative munching. "Same with the sandwich." He would add, motioning to the quarter on the plate before him. "It reminds me of when I was little. My mom would make tuna sandwiches and sit with me while I ate lunch and she would tell me stories about how she met my dad..." He would frown, but for a moment, before shaking his head, banishing the memory and some of its more unpleasant implications before looking to Nao.

"Do you think those goofballs are getting along all right?"

@Toko

 

[Toko]

.

.

A sigh escaped her lips then as Nao released a breathe she hadn't realized to been holding, before she gave Olivier a smile as he verbally agreed to the proposal... before the blush on her cheeks deepened considerably as Olivier snuck in a little tease. "T'taku...!" There was a soft whine from Nao in response, though the smile on her face showed she wasn't really angered at the French man... after all it wouldn't really be Olivier if he didn't found a way to tease her now and again.

"Eeeh... I'm honestly surprised this was planned, especially considering Fiora punched Yu-chan in the face."

There was also the matter of Jin, Nao still hadn't figured out how Theo had gotten mixed into the group. She would've never guessed Jin to be into group road trips... especially ones that took you halfway across the world, though overall Nao wasn't complaining—after all these were people she enjoyed playing with in TerraSphere, so she was excited to meet everyone in the real world.

"I'm sure it'll be fine... if anything this village needs a fresh breath of life blown into it." Thankfully her house was pretty out of the way from others too, so even if the group was loud and rambunctious Nao was sure they wouldn't bother her neighbors too much for the time they remained here. "So, how long were you all planning to stay in Japan for?"

She continued to munch on her sandwich, watching Olivier intently as he finally reached for the slices of apples she'd offered. At first he hadn't seemed too interested, but shortly after the first bite his face seemed to light up in response. "Desho? Their apples are my favorite, and you guys got here at a good time since the harvesting period just started at the beginning of this month." She was on her second quarter piece now, delighted by the subtle crunch and freshness the cucumber slices added to the tuna mayo mix, before a concerned look crossed Nao's face as she watched Olivier frown across the table.

"Do you think those goofballs are getting along all right?"

He'd quickly moved the conversation before Nao could ask if he was alright, nodding in response as he voiced a small concern over the trio that had left to go grocery shopping instead.

"A-Ah, uun, I'm sure they'll be fine... after all they looked very excited and into the idea of cooking this evening."

@Brutus Dahlgren

 

[Brutus Dahlgren]

Her face would ignite into a flood of red, but he could tell from the tone of her voice and that smile that betrayed her words. A flood of confidence surged through him, pushing his grin to maximum overdrive. He was tempted to push his luck, maybe reach and grab her hand, see how that made her-

Then Nao hit him with a verbal sock to the jaw, wiping the grin from his face.

"I'm sorry she did what?" Olivier raised an eyebrow. "How the- why the-" He would pause. "God damnit that explains so much of the bullshit that went on in the fucking airport. Fucking-" He would pause for a moment as his mind did the math. Right now they were behaving because he'd asked them to behave in front of Nao. But right now they were not in front of Nao, and all bets were off. "Hun! We just sent a timebomb walking down-" His heart immediately spiked into a not okay pace, but not because of his lovers presence, but the idea that those idiots were going to create a scene. He'd almost risen to his feet to run after them, but Nao's calm demeanor was infectious.

He would blink as she mentioned the village needing some CPR and would stop mid getting up, taking a deep breath he would plop down into his chair and chuckle. "If you say so, I'm going to trust the you that trusts in Yu." If they got stopped by the cops he would just let them rot in jail for a little bit, enjoy his time with Nao and focus on romancing her the traditional way. Who needed flight through the sky and exotic hot springs when you could sit at a table across from this gorgeous woman and make small talk.

You know, domestic shit.

"Harvesting season? So these suckers are not only in season, but pretty local so they're like...super fresh." If she wanted to talk about apples he would talk apple with her. He would muse the apple slice and take another bite, letting out grunts of approval before turning and looking to her. "Mmm~ Ringo wa oishii!" He managed in passable Japanese.

@Toko

 

[Toko]

.

.

"I'm sorry she did what?"
"She—well, her game avatar—punched Yu-chan in the face... oh, did I not tell you about that before?"

At first Nao had been confused by Olivier's initial reaction, before a lightbulb int he back of her mind lit up. It had been one of the nights that Olivier hadn't been logged into TerraSphere, no doubt stuck doing something with his troupe, and Toko had endded coming across Yugam by chance. It had lead to quite the wild adventure too.

"We had just finished fighting a weird black sheep in some Bone Woods or whatever..." Certain details of it all were a bit sketch mostly because the event is still ongoing shhh, but she certainly remembered that happening. "We came across Fiora knocked out somewhere else and, after waking up, she started verbally fighting with Yu-chan." Nao still wasn't clear why they had been at each other's throat so quickly, especially since each claimed that the other was wrong in said reason. "Before I could react she punched him in the face, though I was able to pull him back enough so it wasn't a fully direct hit."

"Hun! We just sent a timebomb walking down-"

His concerned alerted Nao somewhat, her head tilting to the side in confusion; had she maybe overestimated the friendliness of the group? Surely not, after all there was no way anyone would yeet halfway across the world with people they disliked... right? "I... I'm sure they'll be fine. Besides, they're all adults anyways...?" Her voice betrayed Nao for a moment, a small hint of uncertainty now present... maybe she'd check in later with her neighbors, just to make sure they weren't blindsided if anything happened.

"Mhmm~ These are a very early pick from the very beginning of July, so they're still somewhat tangy since they're young apples." She had just finished her own portion of the tuna mayo sando, her hand now reaching for one of the apple slices as she shared what she knew about them absent mindedly. " The real start of the season though would be in August, and that will usually last all the way until mid November or so—and they tend to get even sweeter as the season progresses~"

She took a bite then of her own slices, a happy hum escaping Nao as she enjoyed the sweet and tangy flavors, before Ollie's own impersonation of Nao's reaction to apples caught the woman's attention... promptly causing Nao to giggle in amusement after she had managed to swallow her bite.

"Mhmm, oishii dess~"

@Brutus Dahlgren

 

[Brutus Dahlgren]

"They'll behave." Ollie would reach over and place a hand on hers. "They promised me they would." He would give her a warm smile and a gentle squeeze. After listening to her ellaborate, his blood pressure would spije but he didn't let it bother him.

Ah fuck now she was nervous.

He would reach out with his other hand and hold hers in two, relishing in the simple intimacy of it for a moment. "And if they don't Ill sort them out."

That threat aside he would release her hand and move to finish his snack lovingly crafted by Nao. Between the Tuna Sando and the apple slices he was baggining to feel spoiled.

"Jesus, so you're telling me they're gonna be picking these for almost another six months?" He would raise an eyebrow. "Jesus, I dont even know where Ill be in november..." He mused aloud. When he was finished, he would rise from his seat and begin to clean up from their little meal, when suddenly a funny thought crossed his mind causing him to turn to her as he finished cleaning up any dishes.

"You know..." He would pause to get his giggles in check. "This just reinforces the notion Id had about you being an amazing wife." He would pause "not that you'll catch me getting down on one knee any time soon. unless you wanted me too" he would utter the last words inperceptably quietly.

@Toko [sorry short phone post]

 

[Toko]

.

.

"R-Right…"

She had been startled at first when one of his hands reached for her own, shortly followed by his other hand before Olivier attempted to reassure Nao that the trio would be fine on their guardian-less expedition. The touch still felt foreign to the woman, though she allowed herself to give one of his hands a soft squeeze of recognition and thanks in return before Nao soon had her palm back on her side of the table.

"Well, yes… not all the trees bloom at the same time, some varieties will bloom earlier or later in the season, and even among the same kind they’re not one hundred percent in perfect sync."

As the topic returned to that of apples the woman felt herself relax more, picking another apple slice and munching on it before she continued.

"Different apples also mature at different rates, and some trees might not even bloom until the next year—if I’m remembering right apple trees in particular tend to be bi-annual bloomers a good amount of the time…"

She was musing on that last thought for a while, after all it had been a while since she had a conversation revolving around plants—they had been quite common while her obaachan had been alive, of course—when Ollie’s voice carried over from the sink.

"You know… this just reinforces the notion I’d had about you being an amazing wife, not that you'll catch me getting down on one knee any time soon."

The color on her cheeks quickly rose as the meaning of his words registered in the woman’s mind, the blush on her cheeks now very bright and even spanning to the top of her ears, before Nao turned her face away from the direction Ollie was at while she took a sip of water from her glass.

"U-Urusai na…!"

Honestly… was he trying to actively give her a heart attack? ‘cause that’s what it felt like as the doki doki feeling in her chest vastly increased.

No super bunny hearing though, so his last words went wholly unnoticed.

@Brutus Dahlgren

 

[Brutus Dahlgren]

Olivier watched as Nao turned bright red, grinning fom ear to ear as he returned to the table, this time sitting adjacent to her. Keeping a tangible amount of space between the two, but reducing it nonetheless.

"If I'm not teasing you how else are we gonna spend the time mon Amor?~" He would mix it up with a bit of french. "By my reckoning, its about a forty minute round trip to the grocery store. Add in like....fifteen minutes to shop and at least another ten as wiggleroom for antics and that means we have..." He'd check his phone and tut a bit as he did the mental math.

"Twentyish minutes before the gang gets back?" On one hand, their return would herald an end to their undupervised romp through the village. On the other, it would end any alone time the two had for a while, not that they were doing anything they couldnt do while the gang was here, it'd just kinda kill the vibe.

"Any ideas on how to kill em, the time that is."

@Toko