Illya was sitting on his black couch that Napoleon affectionately called "The Little Bear" waiting for his dinner guest to arrive. He had jumped up to check the condition of his dinner three times. The last time he did, he forced himself to calm down. Bozhe moy, I am being ridiculous. It is not like she has never been here before and it is not like it is a date. Damn Napoleon! I wasn't nervous until he started teasing me!
"Illya, this meal is foolproof! What do you have in here for the lady to drink?"
"There is vodka, of course. And water."
"You think you're going to seduce anyone with vodka and water? Oh, you foolish, foolish young man. It's a good thing I plan for contingencies." He went to the bags he had brought over that had contained the food that was now in Illya's oven and pulled out a bottle of Grand Marnier. "I have it on good authority that this is her favorite drink to sip."
"This is not a seduction!" the Russian practically shouted, "It is dinner."
"Whatever you say." Napoleon glanced at his watch. "Look at the time! I better go, it wouldn't do for your date to catch me here."
"She is not my date!"
Napoleon was still laughing as he closed the apartment door behind him. That had been an hour earlier. He was getting up to check dinner again when his doorbell rang followed by a series of knocks. He checked his peephole, smiled and opened the door. "April, right on time. Come in, please," he said as he stepped aside.
"Hello, Darling. Oh, I was right; the wonderful smells in the hallway are coming from here!" she declared as she entered and removed her coat after putting down the bag she was carrying. "I brought my own bottle, Darling. I know you usually just keep vodka on hand." When Illya took her coat, she reached into the bag and pulled out a bottle of Grand Marnier. "Oh, you already have one! How thoughtful."
The Russian blushed. "Truth be told, Napoleon left that here to make sure you did not have to drink vodka."
"I'll have to thank him. Did he give you as hard a time as Mark gave me?"
"Not really. He teased me about this being a 'date,' but he does not resent the time we spend together. I am proud of him, April; he has embraced the concept of female UNCLE agents completely and he knows that it is not easy being the first, so he was pleased that you and I have become friendly." He got up to get a couple of glasses from the cupboard. "Would you care for a drink? Dinner will be ready in about half an hour."
"I would love one."
Illya poured two glasses of liqueur and handed one to her. "Dlya drooʐbi! (To friendship!)" he said before clinking his glass against hers. He remembered at the last second not to down it like a shot.
"Illya, how did you handle it when the other agents didn't want to speak to you because you were different?"
"Well, at first…"
They spent the rest of the evening talking, eating dinner, drinking more Grand Marnier and comparing notes on getting by. By the time April went home, they were well on their way to becoming good friends.