Chapter 23 - Atowable
12.22.1204 - Wednesday (Roer Stopover Day)
After liberating Roer from the Noble Alliance, Towa had ordered everyone on board the Courageous to to enjoy themselves for the day. Just like in Celdic, Towa had planned to stay onboard the Courageous to look over some things. But much like Celdic, someone pressured her into joining everyone outside in Roer. Much to Towa's disappointment however, it wasn't Rean who had escorted her outside again. Instead it was the recently recruited Angelica. Not that Towa minded, she was looking forward to getting to spend time with Angelica again after so long.
Once outside, Towa and Angelica wondered what to do.
Upon entering Roer they spotted some of the crew around the city. They saw Elliot playing music outside the cathedral, Machias and Jusis racing two toy cars together as Millium cheered Jusis on (much to Machias' entertainment and Jusis' annoyance), they saw Alisa walk Princess Alfin inside the Reinford Group Building, and they spotted Fie entering the RF Store.
Towa was a little disappointed when she couldn't spot Rean, but she did her best not to let Angelica see it. The last thing she needed was Angelica to start teasing her again, especially after what had happened outside Celdic a few days ago.
"So, do you have any plans?" Angelica asked.
"I did, but you're the one who brought me out here." Towa responded.
"Yeah, but those plans were to work while everyone's out here relaxing. Come on, follow me." Angelica retorted.
Even though Towa didn't know what Angelica had planned, she followed her friend.
After a quick walk, Angelica and Towa arrived at their destination.
It was a small boutique hidden in between a few other stores. Once inside, Towa questioned how in the world such a nice store could be so hidden.
"What do you think? This is the place where I got this black leather suit you see me wearing all the time and that dress from the school festival. I did say that'd take you clothes shopping a while ago didn't I?" Angelica informed Towa.
"W-Wait you're not buying me an expensive dress are you!? Angie, you don't have to do that, trust me." Towa responded.
"Don't worry, I'm not buying you a dress. I'm buying you some new clothes. I've known you for over a year, and day in and day out you're always wearing that dull Thors uniform. You do realize second-years don't have to wear their uniforms right? George and I did after all. Trust me, if you really want Rean's attention then you'll need something that compliments your figure. You know, something that shows off your womanly charms." Angelica revealed.
"Show off my w-womanly charms!? A-Angie!" Towa yelled.
"Plus, as a representative of the Rogner family, it's up to me to help stimulate the economy. Come one, let's get you into one of the changing rooms. I'll go call up an employee." Angelica said as she led Towa into one of the changing rooms.
After measuring Towa, the employee went to check in the back what outfits they had in her size in the back.
As they waited for the employee to return, Angelica walked around to see if they had any other items for Towa. Meanwhile, Towa waited inside the changing room with the curtain closed.
Soon the employee returned with a short stack of petite outfits and handed them to Towa.
The first outfit Towa put on was a frilly light blue dress with a black ribbon.
After a few minutes Towa opened the curtain to show Angelica how she looked.
"Wow, it looks as if you came out of a story book in that outfit!" Angelica complimented.
"Thank you. According to this tag it's based on the main character of the Alice in WonderWorld book series." Towa responded.
"I always knew that you'd make a good heroine." Angelica teased.
"I don't know though. It's a bit too frilly, and I'm note sure I want to be dressed as a fictional character when outside my uniform." Towa admitted.
With that Towa closed the curtain and changed into another outfit.
After a few minutes Towa opened the curtain to reveal a frilly light green dress and a veil held together with multiple (fake) flowers.
"Gorgeous, I forgot how great you look with your hair down! The green really matches your eyes. You look like the personification of spring itself." Angelica complimented.
"Angie, you flatter me." Towa responded.
Angelica suddenly caught a glimpse of the dress' tag and questioned if Towa had seen it before putting it on.
"Uh, Towa… you did read that dress' tag before putting it on right?" Angelica asked.
"No, why do you ask?" Towa asked nervously.
"You might want to read it." Angelica informed Towa.
Towa quickly read the dress' tag. She could feel her face turn red upon realizing that she had put on a wedding dress.
"I uh… had no idea you and Rean were that close." Angelica teased.
Towa quickly closed the curtain and changed into the next outfit in the pile.
So far all of the outfits were nice, but she wasn't sure if any of them screamed "Towa".
Towa's next outfit was a little bit more simple. She was glad that it seemed a bit more casual, but still had a sense of professionalism to it. The glasses that came included were also a nice touch, even if her eyesight was good enough without them. For whatever reason, when Towa put back on her light blue ribbon she also decided to move her ponytail over her shoulder instead of letting it stay behind her like she usually did.
Towa loved the outfit once she saw herself in the mirror. It was a dark blue dress with white trims. It also had a small white shirt that went over it, and with a small red ribbon to keep it all together.
"Yup, now this outfit screams 'Towa'." Towa thought to herself.
She also checked the brand name. If it wasn't that expensive maybe she could look at other things the brand sold. After reading the name "Kokonoe" Towa realized that it must've been an import from Calvard.
"I guess I'll have to keep an eye out around import clothing shops." Towa thought to herself.
Towa proudly opened the curtain to show Angelica how she looked.
"So how do I look?" Towa asked proudly.
Much to Towa's disappointment, Angelica's only response was to start laughing hysterically.
"W-What's so funny!?" Towa yelled as she felt herself getting flustered.
"You look like a teacher dressed in that!" Angelica explained while laughing.
"A teacher!? W-Well what's wrong with that? I-If I recall correctly, you had nothing but high praise for Instructor Sara and Instructor Mary our first year at Thors." Towa responded.
"If you want that type of high praise, then go on a date with Rean dressed like that. He seems like the type of guy who'd really like seeing a woman in uniform, especially if it's you." Angelica teased.
In response to Angelica's teasing, all Towa could do was immediately close the curtain and hide how red her face had gotten again.
"First the wedding dress, now this." Towa thought to herself as took off the dark blue dress.
Now only one outfit was left.
Towa slowly changed into her final outfit, hopefully her blushing would stop when enough time passed.
Compared to everything else, it was the most simple.
It was a light green sundress.
To Towa it seemed as if she saved the best for last. It even came with a purple ribbon.
Once Towa was ready she opened the curtain to show (the now calmed down) Angelica how she looked.
"Well?" Towa asked nervously.
"You look great!" Angelica complimented.
"Thanks Angie!" Towa said.
"Well then, which ones should we buy?" Angelica asked.
"I mean for starters, the one I'm wearing right now." Towa said.
"Going to wear it the rest of the day?" Angelica asked.
"Yup. Oh and despite your teasing, I still want the one I wore before. E-Even if it makes me look like a teacher." Towa informed Angelica.
"You know if you really want to wear something that Rean would like, might I suggest wearing this? Luckily, they had a set in your size." Angelica teased while holding up something she found while Towa was changing.
Immediately Towa felt her face getting red again upon laying eyes on what Angelica was recommending her to wear. It only got redder when she realised that Angelica had gotten it from the adult undergarments section.
"A-A-A-Angie!" Towa screamed in embarrassment.
"Alright! Now that's a whopper!" Rean said as inspected his catch. After recording the fish in his student notebook, Rean released it back into the river.
"Man, Angelica was right. This river's a gold mine for catching a variety of fish." Rean thought to himself.
Rean had spent most of the morning talking with Valimar, and organizing a meeting for later that day between him, George, and Professor Schmidt. Despite helping the Noble Alliance design their Panzer Soldats, Professor Schmidt was willing to possibly help onboard the Courageous. With his schedule being free until the late afternoon, Rean started to wonder what to do until then.
He originally planned to take Towa outside with him so they could explore Roer together, but Angelica stopped him before he could ask Towa. Apparently, Angelica and Towa had already made plans.
Rean was a little disappointed, but he was glad to hear that Towa was taking time to actually relax and have fun.
Although, Angelica did tell him about there being a river outside of Roer that had a large variety of fish to catch.
That was all Rean needed to hear before he started preparing his fishing supplies and orbal bike.
That had been a while ago. Maybe it was because he'd been staring at fish for an hour, but he could hear his stomach growling.
"Wow, settle down boy." Rean jokingly told his stomach.
He suddenly recalled that Angelica had recommended a restaurant. Apparently, they had a discount if a customer entered the diner specifically at 1:28 in the afternoon. After checking the time on his Arcus, Rean figured he'd be able to make it in time if he got on his orbal bike right that second.
Thus off Rean rode back to Roer for a quick bite. He was still not sure what he was going to order though.
Angelica led Towa to their next location.
After what had happened in the boutique, Towa refused to look or even speak to Angelica for a few minutes.
"Why did you buy that for me? I was perfectly fine with this sundress I'm wearing and the dark blue dress." Towa asked.
Angelica could sense Towa's dark aura beginning to appear, and attempted to defuse the situation she put herself into.
"I couldn't just buy you that dark blue dress, it's so plain. You don't even need glasses." Angelica explained.
"That dress screams 'Towa'!" Towa responded.
"Trust me. With the other thing I bought you, Rean will be the one screaming your name." Angelica teased.
Angelica realized that she might've crossed the line (again) once she sensed Towa's dark aura behind her.
"Ms. Rogner… as you may know I am the captain of the Courageous, so I get final say on most decisions. And as much as I appreciate you joining us, I might have to order you to stay behind and look over Roer." Towa threatened.
"H-How about we go have a meal? There's a nice place nearby?" Angelica offered.
Towa immediately returned back to normal.
"Sure. It's so kind of you to buy me a meal, I am rather famished. It is 1:25 in the afternoon, and I haven't had anything since this morning." Towa responded after checking her Arcus for the time.
"Fine, I'll buy a meal too." Angelica said.
With that Towa's dark aura disappeared.
"Yup, this is going exactly as planned." Angelica thought to herself.
In less than a minute, Angelica led Towa to a local diner.
Once inside, Angelica and Towa decided to sit at a table in the back.
"Alright, should we make our orders now?" Towa asked as she picked up her menu.
"Actually, before that…" Angelica said before standing up.
Before Towa knew it Angelica had walked past her and undid her ribbon, and as a result all her hair fell down.
"Uh… did I tie my ribbon wrong or something?" Towa asked, unaware of what Angelica had planned.
"Nope, you tied it as you usually did. I just figured you'd look better for your date with your hair down." Angelica answered.
Before Towa could process what Angelica said however, someone else entered the diner.
"Wow, the food here smells great. No wonder Angelica recommended it." Rean said upon entering.
It only took a few seconds before Angelica saw Rean and Towa lock eyes.
Rean wasn't that surprised to see Angelica and Towa there. After all, Angelica was the one who recommended the place. However, he was caught off guard by Towa's new look.
Towa could only watch on in horror as Angelica invited Rean to sit at their table. She then made him take the seat in front of Towa. Towa slowly realized what Angelica had meant by date.
Angelica was ecstatic that her plan worked after all. She was cutting it close with the clothes shopping. She had expected the boutique to carry more outfits in Towa's size, but there were less than expected. She had to find something that could distract Towa for a few more minutes so that they'd all arrive at the same time at the diner. Luckily the undergarments she found did the trick.
Once Rean took his seat, Angelica pretended to receive a call on her Arcus.
Once the "call" ended Angelica broke the news to Towa and Rean. "Sorry guys. I know I brought us all here, but my dear-old dad needs my help with something. Feel free to eat whatever you want, it's all on my tab! Enjoy yourselves, you two!" Angelica yelled as she ran out the door with not only the ribbon she stole from Towa, but also her bag of clothes.
Towa and Rean quickly realized that Angelica had set them up.
Towa and Rean sat silently for a few minutes contemplating what to do.
Neither wanted to make the other feel awkward, but neither wanted to be the one to leave. Mainly because they were both really hungry.
In the end, they both stood up at the same time and tried to excuse themselves. Unfortunately, before either could come up with an excuse one of the waitresses dropped off food on their table. The smell alone was enough to convince both of them to sit back now.
"Angelica told us to serve you two this in case neither of you ordered anything." the waitress informed them before going back to work.
Seeing as it would be rude not to eat their meal, both of them quietly started eating their food together.
It wasn't anything fancy, just a bowl of soup with bread. Despite the simplicity, both noted that it tasted quite well.
Once they finished their meal, Towa and Rean started to chat. It would seem the food was more than enough to make them forget the awkwardness of the situation they were in.
"S-So how's your day been Captain Towa?" Rean asked.
"It's been fine. I originally planned to stay onboard the Courageous and look over some things, but as you can see Angie dragged me outside." Towa answered.
"Dare I even ask what she made you do?" Rean joked.
"Not much. She took me to a boutique and I tried out some outfits that she bought me. As you can see, this sundress was one of those outfits. I really liked one that was dark blue and it had a white shirt go over it. Although, I had to force Angelica to buy it, and in the end she bought it with something else she found for me. I'm telling you though that outfit screamed 'Towa', but she said it made me look like a teacher." Towa confessed.
Towa was surprised that Rean didn't immediately burst out laughing like Angelica did.
"Wow, honestly that sounds rather fitting." Rean commented.
"What do you mean?" Towa asked.
"I don't know, but for some reason I can see you being a pretty good teacher." Rean answered.
"I'll take that as a compliment." Towa responded. She wasn't sure if Rean was making fun of her or not.
"I meant it as a compliment, don't worry." Rean cleared up.
"T-Thank you then." Towa responded.
With that cleared up they ordered some refreshments. Even though Angelica was the one paying, they decided to order some cheap water.
The two waited silently for their drinks to arrive.
Towa then realized that Rean had been staring at her hair.
"He's been doing that for a while now. Does he not like it? I mean he's only ever seen me with my ponytail or twin tails, so I suppose this must be unusual for him. It does feel nice to be the center of his attention though." Towa thought to herself.
Rean was well aware that Towa had caught him staring at her hair, but he couldn't help himself.
"All right Rean, calm down. Elise did say that girls like it when guys compliment their hair. But how do I phrase it without sounding rude or weird? I mean she already looks cute with her usual ponytail, and I could say the same about that time she had twin tails. I never realized just how long her hair was. Alright, just tell her that she looks great. That shouldn't sound too weird right? If I say something like adorable, cute, or beautiful she might think that I'm ogling her. Oh wait, she said that outfit she liked screamed 'Towa', Maybe if I say she looks very 'Towa' with her down she'll see it as a compliment. Yeah that sounds good, now all I have to do is tell her that she looks very 'Towa' and I should be good-" Rean thought to himself before getting interrupted by Towa.
"S-Say Rean, how do you think I-I look with my hair down? D-Do you like it?" Towa asked shyly as she started to avoid making eye contact.
Rean frantically tried to think of how to respond before answering. "Remember Rean, tell her that she looks very 'Towa'. Don't say something weird like adorable."
It took all his courage, but he nervously answered Towa's question. "I-I uh… I l-love it, i-it makes you l-look very a-atowable..."
They both immediately froze once Rean's words escaped his mouth.
Rean immediately started kicking himself. He wanted to leave so badly and lock himself in one of the Courageous' sleeping cabins. He felt his face get warm upon seeing Towa make eye contact with him.
"He what!? I need to calm down. All he said was that he l-loved my hair when it's down, but what in the world does 'atowable' mean!?" Towa nervously thought to herself as she felt her face get warm.
She tried looking to see if Rean was making some sort of joke, but all she saw was Rean's face getting just as red at hers.
"Why didn't you two order some water earlier, you both look on the verge of catching on fire." one of the waitresses teased before handing them their water.
In an attempt to calm themselves down they both started chugging their water.
Rean immediately started choking on his water however.
"Rean! You need to be careful!" Towa told Rean while scolding him. She also got up and started patting Rean on the back to help.
"T-Thank you Captain Towa, it seems the water is out to get me." Rean joked.
The whole water incident was enough to make them forget about Rean's 'atowable' comment, or so Rean thought.
They had begun talking about their plans once they graduated.
Towa had seemingly had a basic outline of what she wanted to do once outside of Thors, but hadn't really finalized anything yet. With so many different offers being made her way, Rean couldn't blame her.
Rean was the complete opposite. Towa tried to assure him that most first-years shouldn't even be making those types of plans yet anyway. In typical Towa fashion, it was enough to lighten Rean's mood.
Towa decided to have some fun by teasing Rean about what he said earlier. "So Rean, what does 'atowable' mean?"
Rean froze in his seat. It seemed Towa still remembered what he said after all. He knew better than to try and dodge her question, and decided to just think of a proper definition for "atowable".
"W-Well the dictionary definition of 'atowable' is something or someone who expresses the qualities of Towa Herschel." Rean explained.
"What exactly are my qualities?" Towa continued teasing.
"Well, what can I say that I haven't before? You work hard, you're a great leader, if you see someone in trouble you never hesitate to help, and so much more I can list off, but we'd probably be here all day if I tried. It's no wonder why Viscount Arseid and Prince Oliver made you the captain of the Courageous. I couldn't name a better person to call my captain and to be serving than you Captain Towa." Rean elaborated.
"T-Thank you, but how exactly does that relate to my hair?" Towa asked nervously. She could feel herself getting a bit flustered by having Rean's focus be solely on her.
"W-Well I suppose it's so 'atowable' because… it belongs to the most 'atowable' girl I know." Rean answered shyly.
Luckily for Rean, his Arcus started ringing before Towa could ask him to elaborate even further.
"Hello, Rean Schwarzer speaking." Rean answered.
"It's George, just calling to remind you about our meeting with Professor Schmidt. Can you make it to the Roer Institute right now? Professor Schmidt finished his work early and is willing to hear us out right now." George asked.
"Oh, uh sure I'll get there as soon as I can. See you in a minute." Rean answered before hanging up.
"I'm so sorry to leave you here alone Captain Towa, but-" Rean said before getting interrupted by someone entering the diner.
"Don't worry about our dear Captain. I'll take it from here." Angelica said as she took a seat next to Towa.
"Thank you Angelica. Take care Captain Towa!" Rean yelled as he made his way outside. He didn't really question how Angelica returned at the same time he was about to leave.
"You were listening in to our conversation from outside weren't you?" Towa asked.
"Of course I did, how could I miss out on such an 'atowable' couple?" Angelica teased.
"W-We're not a couple Angie. I still haven't really told him how I feel yet, b-but I plan to soon." Towa responded.
"Oh, so when is 'soon'?" Angelica asked.
"I told him that either when the Noble Alliance stops having the advantage or this war ends will be when I tell him how I feel. I also may have given him a hint." Towa answered. She felt her face get red upon remembering what had happened in the woods outside of Celdic.
"What was the hint?" Angelica asked.
"I might have tried giving him a kiss on the cheek." Towa admitted.
"Tried? What happened?" Angelica inquired.
"W-When I tried to kiss his cheek Rean sensed an animal behind me and turned around, so instead of his cheek my lips wound up on his lips accidentally." Towa shyly revealed.
It took every ounce of strength Angelica had to not burst out laughing, but she knew better than to anger Towa even more after everything she did that day.
"Well… nowhere else after that but up right?" Angelica said while trying not to laugh.
"D-Don't ask me! I know how Rean feels about me, and I know how I feel about him. But he's from a noble family, and I'm not sure his family will be all that fond of their son getting into a relationship with a commoner like me." Towa responded.
"Yeah, it can be quite difficult for nobles and commoners to get into a relationship. I'd need at least three hands to count how many commoner girls I've brought home that my dad didn't give me permission to date. Not that it stopped me. Still, I'm sure Rean's folks like you at least. They did thank you for keeping an eye on him when we all went to Ymir. Who knows, maybe your chances are better than you think." Angelica said.
"I have my doubts." Tow responded.
The mere thought of walking up Baron Schwarzer and Lady Schwarzer to ask for their blessing to be able to start a relationship with Rean was enough to send a shiver down Towa's spine.
Author's Note
I hope you all liked the references to Akatsuki no Kiseki and Tokyo Xanadu!
Here's hoping I can write more "date" chapters in the future.
Preview - "Well? Are you and my son more than 'just friends'?" _ _ cheerfully asked.
