For Halcyon (Vainglory)

Special: Red Lantern

Valentine's Day

"Just walk up to her and ask, Do you want to go on a date with me Koshka?" Petal said to Taka. "How hard can it be?" she added and clicked her tongue.

Valentine's Day is tomorrow and Taka thought that it's finally the time to try asking Koshka out on a date. He thought it will be a breeze but as soon as he sees her, all his courage gets flushed down the drain. He tried seeking some advice from Ringo but the man was too drunk to even form a sensible sentence. Ardan was out so he couldn't exactly ask for an advice from him. Adagio on the other hand just brushed him off and flew away. Taka almost went to the girls for advice but his ego took over so he scratched the idea off. He was almost out of choice except for one... Although a female, Petal is still a creature so Taka chose to go to her. Which he seems to be regretting now.

"If I was a boy I would sweep Koshka right out of your arms. Do you know how much she likes you? I doubt she would turn you down!" she rambled. "I can almost hear the wedding bells!" Petal clapped her hands excitedly. "You should dress nicely! Oh! And don't forget that it should always be the lady's choice."

"Petal."

"Be sure to have a dance with her and bring her to a romantic spot which is totally not the Kraken's Lair."

"Petal."

"Buy her flowers!"

"Petal."

"Oh wait—a gift is better."

"PETAL."

Petal stopped the moment Taka raised his voice to catch her attention. "Oppss! Sorry I got carried away." she giggled.

"I'm not here to relearn what every man knows already about date etiquette. I'm here to ask for advice on how I can properly ask her without stuttering or feeling like backing out." Taka said and scratched behind his ear.

"Oh right! Well, like I said... Just ask her like how you ask us if we want food. Be causual!" Petal said and smiled flashing her two large front teeth. "It's really not hard to ask a girl out, you just have to be clear though; cut the crap out and be straightforward. If you play with your words then you'll probably get rejected cause the message wasn't clear."

"This is harder than I thought." Taka groaned.

"It's not, why don't you try practicing what you're gonna say right now?"

"Right now?" Taka thought for a minute. "Okay, how about this?" the fox cleared his throat. "Hey Koshka, so... there's a festival going on in town and I was wondering if you wanted to go there with me as my date?"

"Sure. I'd love to."

Taka immediately turned around and saw the feline standing there with a smile on her face. The fox turned red from his face down to his neck. "K-Koshka!" he exclaimed.

"What? Why do you look like you ate something spicy?" Koshka laughed.

Petal who the whole time knew Koshka was approaching coughed and excused herself. "Well, I gotta run! My munnies need to be fed." she said and began hopping away with her munions tailing after her.

Koshka watched Petal hop away before turning back to Taka. "So, when are we going?"

"I... I-ah.. I was hoping we could go tonight." Taka said. "If you're not busy of course." he said then scratched the back of his ear again. The fox was thankful that Koshka isn't able to see him blushing because of his face mask. "W-Well, I gotta go. I'll pick you up at seven?" he asked.

"Sure." Koshka replied and smiled widely. "Take care!" she said before the fox ran and disappeared.

Later that evening Celeste and Skye came barging in to Koshka's tent with a pile of clothes in their arms and giddy looks on their faces. It was already six in the evening but the feline was still in bed relaxing.