Bloody Dahlia: Kurapika x Original Female Character (HxH)

VI. Fluorescence

Kurapika accompanied Dahly with pleasure as he promised her. After finishing the ice cream sundae that was way too sweet to his taste, she gently pulled on the sleeves of his shirt and visited stalls after stalls

They first arrived at a vegetable stand. Boxes of produce on display shined like emeralds and rubies of earth with water droplets garnishing them like crystals. Although the two teens were impressed by the superior freshness, it was not grand enough to subdue their playful spirits. They joked around the more interesting looking greens while picking out the regular vegetables.

It all began when Dahly smirked at the spiral looking roman broccoli. She held one hand over her mouth but failed to contain the giggles, saying the pointy vegetable reminded her of the Kurapika she first met, spiky like a hedgehog. To which, Kurapika rolled his eyes. But before he could counter, she tempted him to try some seemingly harmless peppers.

Knowing Dahly too well at this point, Kurapika would not budge. There had to be a catch, so he insisted on them trying together. Sure, he could sacrifice for a laugh, but no way he was going to leave Dahly off.

Luckly, the unpersuasive girl conceded because the fruit stand owner next door exposed her plot. He saw the stupid game of the two and burst out laughing. He complimented Kurapika for being smart because the heat of those colorful peppers could certainly bring a big man to tears. 

Kurapika darted a look at Dahly, and the unsuccessful trickster played innocent, swearing she did not know they were chillies. He did not buy that excuse. 

Kurapika would have roasted her more if the fruit stall owner did not snitch away the opportunity. Unfortunately, the big guy was laughing way too loud. Hollering how he liked young couples, he patted hard on Kurapika's back and wanted them to taste some extremely rare fruit. He promised it was going to be super duper magnificent and surely, definitely, undeniably the most delicious fruit they ever would eat. As the business man popped more fancy words, a few strangely patterned peaches were pulled out. 

The silver tongue kind of forced Kurapika and Dahly into accepting the offer, but the peaches were truly big and sweet. While they ate, the fruit stall person kept emphasizing how much a rare-find the peaches were. According to him, they were imported from the outlands, so it was their one and only chance to get some. Although Kurapika believed that it was mostly marketing and fluff, he still paid for them because Dahly was having fun with the excessive amount of adjectives used.

After they bid goodbye to the fruit stand, they shopped for meat and fish. On the way, they also stopped at a few interesting antique stores.

To Kurapika's surprise, Dahly did not react to strangers very much. He carefully sought out the least crowded routes, and she just followed closely. Nonetheless, her slender hand never once left his sleeves.

It was getting close to noon when they bought some just-out-of-oven croissants. The baker lady generously gave them some apple pies to try, so Kurapika suggested a lunch break near the stone bridge where there were benches to sit. Dally happily agreed and thus they walked back to the canal away from crowds.

Under the warmth of the sunshine, they ambled naturally. Kurapika led the way, and Dahly trailed close by. Birds scattered around as they approached the waterfront, leaving feathers everywhere on grass.

"I can't believe that the bakery gave these pies away just because they are testing products." Sitting down, Dally opened a package and rejoiced, "Lucky!"

Kurapika smiled with the chirpy girl, and he also took some food. Right away, he realized that it was not a traditional pie but a modified sweet sandwich with pastry sheets wrapped around. The new design allowed one to consume with just a hand, perfect for people on a go. Upon examination, he took a bite, and a mild cinnamon aroma filled his mouth instantly. It was lightly flaky, buttery, and perfectly balanced between sweet and tart.