A Feather Stolen
Day Off
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Vale's streets were bustling as they usually were for a weekday, citizens going about their daily business as they walked down the main streets of Central Vale.
None of them paying attention to the fourteen-year-old and fifteen-year-old teenage girls holding hands as they strolled from storefront to storefront, enjoying each other's company.
"It's really busy during the day…" Ly commented lightly as her pearlescent eyes observed her surroundings. "I've never seen it like this before."
"Work day, so everyone's out and about," Ano answered, swinging their entwined hands as she looked down the sidewalk ahead of them. "I don't have to, though. I have the day off. So we can be out for as long as you want."
Ly smiled at her as wavy blonde locks bounced slightly with each step she took. "So long as that's okay."
"Don't worry, it's okay, and he knows I'm out," Anoel replied. She quickly donned a reassuring smile as she brushed some of her own raven hair back over her ear, holding it there for a moment beneath the lip of her hat. "Where did you wanna go first? Are you hungry for anything?"
Ly shrugged before nodding a little. "I'm a little hungry, but I've never really been to Vale during the day. I don't know many cafes and stuff, just street layouts."
The young info-broker's interlaced fingers tightened for a moment as Anoel took a step ahead of the the girl, dipping her hat to peer up at Ly before pointing across the street. "Well, there's all kinds of cafes in this district. Bakeries too. We're close to the plaza, so there's a lot of food accessible to-go."
Ly smiled when her eyes followed Ano's finger, their hue naturally switching to a lighter pink as she nodded. "Anywhere is okay, so long as we eat."
"Nope~" Anoel interjected, holding up a slim finger to make a point. "Today's about you, silly. Of course it matters what we eat. It'll be whatever you're craving, and I'm happy to pay for it too."
Ly hummed thoughtfully as she brought a finger up to poke at her bottom lip, considering her options for a second before her hand fell back down to her side and she glanced to Anoel. "Can we try a hotdog? I've never had one before."
Ano's lips quickly curled into a smile and she immediately nodded her head, her next step taking a little skipped bounce on the sidewalk as she tugged Lylac to a distant hotdog stand. "Of course! Do you know what you can put on it?"
Ly shook her head hesitantly, confusion settling in her eyes as she maintained eye contact.
"You'll see, then. They're just condiments, and it's all optional stuff too," Anoel replied quickly, smirking back at the girl. Before long, Ano's small boots came to a stop shortly in front of the targeted stand, her bright eyes peering up at the vendor happily. "One hotdog, please! Aaaaand-"
Anoel whirled around, keeping her fingers locked comfortably in Ly's grasp as she nudged the girl toward the stand a little.
"-this pretty little lady's gonna pick the condiments," Ano declared. "You can choose whatever you think would taste good."
Ly shuffled a little nervously in front of the stand, almost shrinking under the expectant gaze of the vendor. "I… um…"
She paused, reading off of the menu with cautious eyes. "K-Ketchup and… onions, please."
"Sure thing! I'll get the hotdog fixed up in a jiffy," the vendor responded, Ano still beaming up at him as he went about assorting the fast food onto a paper-held bun.
"Sounds good," Anoel chirped in return, turning her eyes back to Ly now as she plucked a few napkins from the stand, knowing they'd need them.
She soon realized something and popped the edge of the napkins between her lips to hold, reaching down with her free hand to pull her wallet out of her boot.
"I hofe you on't mine," she was only slightly muffled by the napkins. Slightly. "I figuref we coul share fo we won't ee too full affer frying it."
"I don't mind sharing but…" Ly paused for a moment, reaching into the pocket of her coat before pulling out a couple of lien cards. "I wanna pay..."
Ano's eyes lifted back up from her separate hand rummaging through her lien, meeting with Ly's again as the girl looked at her. "Fhy?"
"I dunno… I have my own money now… so I just…" The girl trailed off as her eyes fell to the cards she held fanned out in her hand.
Anoel's gaze stayed on Ly's for a few long seconds… It looked like this was just something Ly's always wanted to do someday.
To actually pay for something.
"Ofay," Anoel muffled back, clasping her thin wallet closed again before lifting her leg this time, slipping it into the inner compartment of her boot.
She finally took the napkins out from between her lips after that.
"But I wanna pay for the next thing we get," Ano said.
Ly looked to her with a small smile and nodded lightly before refocusing her attention to the vendor as he finished up their hotdog. It looked like he took his time with it, too.
Did he figure this was a special hotdog order?
The blonde offered the cards to him once he handed it over, and Ano was glad to see a welcoming smile on the man's face.
"Enjoy the hotdog, lassies. Feel free to stop by anytime," he said, moving his burly arm up to tap the back of his finger against his sign. "I'm open mondays to fridays, hours are up top too."
"Thank you," Anoel replied back with a smile and a small wave, offering Ly a few napkins as the two stepped away from the vendor.
The girl took them and pocketed them before happily following Ano to wherever she pleased. She looked more content with having something to eat than anything else.
"Okay, the hardest part about eating a hotdog is not getting anything on your cheeks or nose," Anoel pointed out lightly, eyes casually watching Ly's face and reactions as they walked. "It's harder than it sounds. Especially for me, 'cause I have a small mouth."
Ly giggled to herself a little before nodding. "It's okay, that's what the napkins are for."
"Exactly," Anoel chirped again, part of her wondering why Ly was giggling. "What's with the cute giggle? Did I say something weird?"
Ly shook her head while trying to conceal a smile while dipping her chin. "No… it's nothing."
Anoel hummed as she narrowed her eyes playfully, knowing it wasn't nothing. But with Ly's growing smile, she kept herself from prying.
It was nice seeing her smile and giggle like that.
"Okay then. Do you want the first bite?" Ano asked, her eyes roaming over the treat between them, catching a nod from Ly as she did.
They continued aimlessly walking through Vale taking turns eating their hotdog from different ends, playfully roaming between windows and storefronts to peer inside.
By the end of it, Anoel let Ly have the last bite, her mind already set on trying to find the next thing to treat Ly to as they explored.
"Did you want something sweet this time?" she asked curiously, swinging their held hands again as she brushed her arm against Ly's own.
"We can get some more ice cream," Ly suggested lightly as she wiped her mouth with a napkin. "I want to try new flavors so-"
The girl paused as a startled expression crossed over her face, her eyes darting to her other pocket as she slipped her hand out of Anoel's and pulled out her scroll.
She opened the device, marked with a couple of dents and scratches in it's outdated form. Her eyes began reading the message she just received before closing it and dropping it back into her pocket.
Ly then casually took hold of Ano's hand again, interlacing their fingers once more.
"Ice cream sounds good," Anoel muttered, but she gave in to her curiosity pawing at her tongue and couldn't help but ask Ly about the message. "Was that your cousin?"
Ly nodded as her eyes adopted a pink hue. "Yeah. He was just letting me know that he's ready to leave for the mountains at the end of the week, and that he'll be staying at a little hotel in the meantime."
Anoel slowly nodded her head, her voice sounding impressed as she glanced back to Ly's eyes. "He's already making progress, huh?"
Delicate eyebrows knitted together on Ly's face in confusion. "What do you mean?"
"It hasn't even been a full day and he's already off doing something," Anoel said, lifting her hand to bump her hat up a little to keep her gaze unobstructed. "I'm just saying he sounds super productive. Most people aren't like that."
Ly's eyes widened a little before she smiled warmly. "Oh. Yeah… He's always been like that. He's really smart for his age so he can be independent when he needs to be."
Ano's eyes couldn't help but take in the warm smile on Ly's face, understanding the feeling talking about her cousin brought out.
"How old is he?" she asked, wanting to keep that smile going.
"He's twelve, but turns thirteen in November," Ly replied softly, her pink eyes brightening a few shades. "He doesn't act like it, though. He's really innocent to a lot of things… but excels when it comes to making stuff."
"He sounds like a tinkerer," Anoel figured, looking up at the sky for a moment as her own smile grew softer. "Kind of sounds like my little sister… She turns thirteen in November too. Just two years after I did."
Ly suddenly displayed a lot of curiosity after Ano's statement, looking at her inquisitively. "You have a sister?"
"Mhmm," Anoel hummed in reply, her voice staying light as she brought her upward gaze back down to meet with Ly's again. "She has her own bakery, actually. A nice girl's been helping her run it."
"What kind of stuff does she make?" Ly asked lightly, keeping her focused gaze on Ano as she asked.
A light giggle left Ano's lips as she looked back to the sky, letting Ly look at her like that. "She's still pretty young, but she's been fascinated with bread lately. So right now, her stock involves a lot of stuff that can be made from dough and batter. Like cakes and muffins and stuff."
Ly hummed to herself, letting her smile drop a little. "Sounds like something she takes pride in… if she has her own bakery at that age."
Ano's giggle turned into a little chuckle as she shook her head. "It's her passion, but she doesn't take pride in it. She's just doing it to impress the girl who convinced her to open it. She's the one who's been teaching my sister how to bake, actually."
"My cousin mostly builds complicated machines… and speaks about things I don't understand… and stares at screens a lot," Ly listed off, sounding a little concerned, but still maintaining a little smile. "He's a little strange, but he's really smart."
"He definitely sounds like he is," Anoel replied, her delicate fingers playing a little with Ly's hand as she brushed her thumb over the girl's knuckles. "My sister actually wants to get into that, but she's more focused on baking right now."
Ano's gaze drifted off for a moment as she said that, looking to the sky again. That girl was actually making her sister's life happy… and it kept her distracted from what it used to be.
"You know… I think it'll be fun if you two met sometime," Anoel said, gazing back at Ly with a relaxed, happy smile. "She'll like you."
"I'd like that," Ly replied gently, nodding her head.
"I would too," Ano said back, her smile widening before turning her gaze ahead of them again. Her black hair splayed out for a moment in the wind, but she caught sight of an ice cream parlor nearby. A spike of excitement slipped into her voice again. "Still want ice cream?"
Ly's smile grew into a little grin as her eyes found the parlor ahead of them, nodding again as her face seemed to brighten. "Yeah, let's get some."
When they got inside, Ly was fairly quick to secure them both a booth to sit in, while Ano waited in line to order their ice cream.
Ly already told the young phoenix her order, so Ano was just bouncing around at the back of the line. One large mint chocolate chip ice cream with chocolate sauce. To share, of course.
That's all she wanted to order and pay for.
It was pretty specific for someone who was always going with the flow and had a minimalistic taste palette, but that only excited Ano. Ly knew exactly what she wanted.
Every once in a while, Anoel turned to face the girl sat in the booth, only to receive a cute little smile in return every time she did.
Sure, it was a little crowded in here, so securing a booth was good. But Ano had to admit that she was already getting lonely without Ly at her side holding her hand…
Ano would have to make it clear exactly what she wanted too once they sat down. If she could work up the nerve, anyway.
By the time Ano realized it was her turn in line, everyone in front of her was already taking their seats, the girl snapping her attention forward again when the server cleared her throat.
"Sorry! I was taking in the pretty sights," Ano said, loud enough for Ly to hear her in her seat. The info-broker hopped up to the counter and looked up at the woman serving her, holding up her finger. "One large bowl, mint chip ice cream, with chocolate sauce. And can you stick two spoons in it?"
Anoel's smile was absolutely beaming with excitement as the young woman went about preparing everything, and as she was pouring the chocolate sauce, Ano stole another glance back to the girl hanging out in the booth.
Ly was casually paying attention to her scroll, a small hint of redness on her cheeks as she looked through the device. But as Ano continued gazing at her, the girl suddenly glanced upwards, her pink tinted eyes locking with Ano's for a moment before she gave her a polite smile.
Anoel returned it coyly with amusement in her eyes, knowing the girl heard her comment about the pretty sights earlier. It was only fair, anyway, to get so distracted by the sight of someone so cute sitting in one of the booths.
The tap of a glass bowl brought her attention back to the counter as Anoel's smile widened, the girl placing lien next to the order before making off with their shared ice cream.
And before long, she was carefully sliding into the booth next to Ly, placing the bowl down between them as she settled into place flush against Ly's side.
Ly's attention very quickly diverted from her scroll to the bowl of ice cream before her. The girl slipped her device into her pocket before her hand immediately went straight for one of the spoons in the bowl. She delicately carved a mouthful of ice cream up and brought it toward her mouth.
But as Ano watched, the girl opted to take tiny licks at the spoonful, Anoel's eyes widening for a moment in adoration before quickly lifting a hand to hide away her stupidly widening smile and stifle a little gawked coo.
"Cute." Anoel couldn't help but mutter her thoughts, and went about her own task of taking up her spoon and eating small bites of their treat.
Ly heard the comment, and in response, her cheeks reddened a little as she slightly turned away from the phoenix. "Are… you always gonna say that…?"
Anoel stuffed her spoon in her mouth to lick some of the chocolate off, smirking all the more before taking the utensil out and leaning closer to the girl beside her. "I am, because you keep blushing at it. It only makes me wanna say it more."
Ly's cheeks only darkened when she said that, the girl helplessly trying to distract herself with the ice cream sat between them.
It was too adorable not to stare from that point on.