( From @lily-of-the-linkon )

"Then maybe that's what I'll do with my weekend." She hummed happily, leading the way down the road to the mini-park she'd mentioned.

His comment made her cheeks flush, but she didn't falter as she smiled towards him. It touched her to know that he cares so much, even if she isn't sure how to verbalize the same sentiment. How much she trusts him, and would follow him in turn.

"You're so sweet to me." She hummed apprecitively, walking beside him again as she faced forward. "It's more fun spending time with you anyways."

After spending the morning doing research on places in Linkon City that offer milk tea, Lily finally found a place that seemed like it would be a nice place to visit and had the coffee milk tea that Xavier mentioned. Plus it wasn't far from a few good places to eat so they'd have options based on what they were feeling up to without having to go all the way across town. Perfect.

Lily finally sent Xavier a text in the late morning.

'I found a place that has that coffee milk tea you mentioned! And it has really good reviews.'

After a moment of thought, she sent another text as well.

'And thank you for walking me home last night. I really appreciated it. It was nice, looking at the stars with you.'

If not for the sporadic texts, Xavier would still be asleep. Outside the birds that often bickered over his balcony were squawking at a volume loudly. The combination of factors is enough to stir him, just barely. He knows its her before having to unlock his phone.

↪[ Audio: I'm awake. I'm up. I'm coming. ]

↪[ It was nice. Let's do it again sometime ]

In a flash he rinses off, takes care of basic hygiene, and is donning a favored hoodie in spite of the weather.

By the time he gets downstairs, he's already rubbing his eyes again as he knocks on the door.

Despite trying not to be too obvious with it, his insistence that he won't go falling asleep during the race still made her giggle to herself, ducking her head slightly in an attempt to hide it.

Though, when she noticed him select the wrong floor, her amusement faltered, replaced with concern. Was he that tired? Maybe they should go with a movie or something instead so he could rest... She found herself reaching out to select her floor at the same time as him, accidentally bumping his hand in the process with a small "Oop, sorry!" before letting him press the button.

His request earned a nod, since that's a good point, even if she ended up a bit flushed again when he pointed out how warm her cheeks had been earlier. "That's a good idea. I have plenty of water and juice and stuff, so we have options."

After spending the morning doing research on places in Linkon City that offer milk tea, Lily finally found a place that seemed like it would be a nice place to visit and had the coffee milk tea that Xavier mentioned. Plus it wasn't far from a few good places to eat so they'd have options based on what they were feeling up to without having to go all the way across town. Perfect.

Lily finally sent Xavier a text in the late morning.

'I found a place that has that coffee milk tea you mentioned! And it has really good reviews.'

After a moment of thought, she sent another text as well.

'And thank you for walking me home last night. I really appreciated it. It was nice, looking at the stars with you.'

If not for the sporadic texts, Xavier would still be asleep. Outside the birds that often bickered over his balcony were squawking at a volume loudly. The combination of factors is enough to stir him, just barely. He knows its her before having to unlock his phone.

↪[ Audio: I'm awake. I'm up. I'm coming. ]

↪[ It was nice. Let's do it again sometime ]

In a flash he rinses off, takes care of basic hygiene, and is donning a favored hoodie in spite of the weather.

By the time he gets downstairs, he's already rubbing his eyes again as he knocks on the door.

Lily hummed happily as she ate her pizza, a much slower eater than him but certainly not hiding her appetite either. At his admission, she flushed light pink and hummed appreciatively. "I see. Well, you don't have to go such round about ways to ask me to hang out." She teased affectionately.

At the question about the pizza, she hummed thoughtfully. "It's a really good one, for sure! Not overly greasy, and a good flavor." She mused, putting genuine thought into her little 'review'. "I'd definitely add them as an option for dinner when I'm too lazy to cook." She concluded, turning her attention to him. "What do you think?"

After spending the morning doing research on places in Linkon City that offer milk tea, Lily finally found a place that seemed like it would be a nice place to visit and had the coffee milk tea that Xavier mentioned. Plus it wasn't far from a few good places to eat so they'd have options based on what they were feeling up to without having to go all the way across town. Perfect.

Lily finally sent Xavier a text in the late morning.

'I found a place that has that coffee milk tea you mentioned! And it has really good reviews.'

After a moment of thought, she sent another text as well.

'And thank you for walking me home last night. I really appreciated it. It was nice, looking at the stars with you.'

If not for the sporadic texts, Xavier would still be asleep. Outside the birds that often bickered over his balcony were squawking at a volume loudly. The combination of factors is enough to stir him, just barely. He knows its her before having to unlock his phone.

↪[ Audio: I'm awake. I'm up. I'm coming. ]

↪[ It was nice. Let's do it again sometime ]

In a flash he rinses off, takes care of basic hygiene, and is donning a favored hoodie in spite of the weather.

By the time he gets downstairs, he's already rubbing his eyes again as he knocks on the door.

Lily immediately flushed at his question, even the tips of her ears turning pink as she shook her head. "I should be okay to at least get to my apartment." She reassured, almost feeling bad that he even had to offer.

"I do appreciate the offer though. You spoil me." She teased, not wanting to even risk him thinking she doesn't trust him or anything. She just doesn't want to inconvenience him after he's undoubtedly had a busy day!

Plus she's pretty sure she'd combust if he picked her up, at this point, no matter how tempting it is for her to agree.

❛ you shouldn’t be out here by yourself. ❜ 

Send me a prompt!

~

Normally, Lily tries to be fully aware of her surroundings. Working as a Hunter means she shouldn't let her guard down, especially when by herself. Who knows what threats are just waiting for a chance to strike, after all?

Though normally, Lily doesn't have to resort to late night walks to try and clear her mind so that she can sleep.

Suddenly hearing a voice nearby startles her out of her own thoughts, immediately setting her on alert. Her head whipped around towards the source, her posture tense and ready for a fight. Once she finally recognized Xavier, she let out a slow breath that ended in a sheepish laugh.

"Xavier!" She half-greeted, half-scolded.

Once she finally processed his warning, she offered what she hoped came across as a reassuring smile. "I know, I know. But I'm a big girl, I can handle going for a little starlit walk before bed." She teased, running her fingers through her hair in an attempt to calm herself down further so her heart wasn't pounding so hard in her chest.

"What about you? You're out rather late too."

“In their defense,” Lily started through snickers, “most recipes assume that the person reading them has either baked at least once before in their life with someone else, or follows directions to the letter without assuming any steps are missing. They don’t think they need to state that once the oven is pre-heated to the desired temperature, you don’t touch the temperature unless otherwise specified.”

His genuine befuddlement and interest in something she always thought was common knowledge made her hum affectionately. It also serves as a great reminder that she shouldn’t just assume people know the things she does, even if she thinks they’re better than her in most every way.

“I set it to pre-heat it when I finished cleaning, so that it would reach the right temperature by the time we were done prepping the batter.” She explained, nodding to all of his questions. “And yes, we can put them in since it’s done pre-heating, and the consistent heat will bake them faster and properly, so they don’t risk getting burnt so long as we set a timer.”

[Phone call, Xavier's voice sounds urgent] "I'm in great danger I need you to come downstairs right now. Please! You're the only one that can help. In fact, the entire complex may be in danger if you don't help me stop this right now."

As soon as she registered the urgency and he mentioned 'upstairs', Lily was rushing out of her apartment, only sparing enough time to grab her guns as a precaution.

"I'm on my way!" She reassured as she hurried upthe flight of stairs between them. Her thoughts were already racing a mile a minute, wondering what could possibly be causing Xavier of all people to struggle and call for help, especially without causing much of a ruckus.

By the time she reached his door her heart was pounding and she was braced for a fight.

"I get that, trust me." Lily reassured, shaking her head with a chuckle. "I can't count the number of times I've defaulted to neutrals for others, but it hasnt failed me yet!" She snickered.

With the questions, she nodded with a sheepish laugh, putting her hands of the white jacket. "Mmhm! It's really comfy and not too heavy, but it's not trapping heat as well as it used to, and the pockets are hanging on with a prayer." She admitted, even showing her.

Kaia's offer for company earned another nod of agreement "Sure, I don't mind!" She answered easily. "Plus then we can both tease the person who oh-so-cruelly abandoned you in the middle of the store." She teased lightheartedly.

"Oh, wait! Before you leave, what color do you think the jacket should b—" Not looking away from the clothing rack in front of her, she grabs the sleeve of the person nearest to her without thinking, and realizes a little too late that it felt... Different. She turns, blinking; the person she'd been talking to had left, and beside her instead was...

"Wait, you're—! Lily?! You're Lily, right?! Oh, my god, I am so sorry, I totally thought you were someone else! Gosh, and this is the first time I'm actually talking to you, too..."

—&&. @kaiakaya 🤍

Lily was more than a little startled to suddenly feel her sleeve grabbed while she was looking for a new jacket to replace her favorite one that has... been through it. It's getting a few small holes in it but she's already mended it so many times it's time to retire it.

She blinked in surprise at Kaia for a moment before she started laughing, keeping it relatively quiet for the moment so they don't draw too much attention.

"Yes, I'm Lily. You're Kaia, right?" She asked, hoping she doesn't make a fool of herself.

At Kaia's concerns about how this is the first time they're speaking, she shook her head with a smile and waved a hand dismissively. "It's alright, don't worry!" She reassured easily "Do you need help finding the person you're here with?" She offered, tilting her head slightly.

"At this rate you'll be able to bake on your own in no time!" Lily beamed, honestly proud of the fact. As much as she enjoys spending the time baking with him, she has a feeling that he'd enjoy being able to make things on his own without her supervision as well.

Making no attempts to stop him from tasting it, she watched him closely for his reaction. Nodding approvingly when he seemed to like it, she got him another spoon to use for actually icing.

"No, I didn't resonate with you," she reassured with a small laugh. "It's a pretty simple recipe to make red velvet icing. And we'll just spoon it on, like this," she explained before demonstrating by gently smearing some of the icing on top of one of the cookies from the first batch.

[Phone call, Xavier's voice sounds urgent] "I'm in great danger I need you to come downstairs right now. Please! You're the only one that can help. In fact, the entire complex may be in danger if you don't help me stop this right now."

As soon as she registered the urgency and he mentioned 'upstairs', Lily was rushing out of her apartment, only sparing enough time to grab her guns as a precaution.

"I'm on my way!" She reassured as she hurried upthe flight of stairs between them. Her thoughts were already racing a mile a minute, wondering what could possibly be causing Xavier of all people to struggle and call for help, especially without causing much of a ruckus.

By the time she reached his door her heart was pounding and she was braced for a fight.

He's an idiot, but he's our idiot :P

I'm at least good about making sure I get my work done at a reasonable pace still! So then I get to go home and scroll on my phone in the comfort of my couch!

Lillllyyyyy. God, can you please tell Xavier to stop spamming me pics every time he wins you a plushie. I get it.

He's what?

Xavier- ugh. Sweet of him to be so excited, but I'm sorry he's dragging you into this >//~//<

I'll see if I can get him to stop spamming you so bad.

On the bright side... At least he wants to share his successes with you? Maybe? ^-^"

His answer prompts her to tilt her head as she looked up to him. "We don't have to if you think it would taste bad, of course." She reminded gently. "Just because we want to try something new doesn't mean we have to completely forgo all preferences, after all."

His suggestion to eat outside earned an eager nod in response. "I think eating outside is a great idea! We could eat at the park, maybe?" She hummed, trying to think of any other places that might be a good place to eat and people-watch.

After spending the morning doing research on places in Linkon City that offer milk tea, Lily finally found a place that seemed like it would be a nice place to visit and had the coffee milk tea that Xavier mentioned. Plus it wasn't far from a few good places to eat so they'd have options based on what they were feeling up to without having to go all the way across town. Perfect.

Lily finally sent Xavier a text in the late morning.

'I found a place that has that coffee milk tea you mentioned! And it has really good reviews.'

After a moment of thought, she sent another text as well.

'And thank you for walking me home last night. I really appreciated it. It was nice, looking at the stars with you.'

If not for the sporadic texts, Xavier would still be asleep. Outside the birds that often bickered over his balcony were squawking at a volume loudly. The combination of factors is enough to stir him, just barely. He knows its her before having to unlock his phone.

↪[ Audio: I'm awake. I'm up. I'm coming. ]

↪[ It was nice. Let's do it again sometime ]

In a flash he rinses off, takes care of basic hygiene, and is donning a favored hoodie in spite of the weather.

By the time he gets downstairs, he's already rubbing his eyes again as he knocks on the door.

DON’T BE SHY, SEND MY MUSE SOME NOSEY ANONS!

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