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[Right! Well, Rei will slide on in, fingers curling around Gwen's as she does.]

Yes, I think so. Just a bit, at the bottom. Not enough to drown them.

[She offers that advice of helpfully. Courtesy of one Makoto Kino from home.]

They'll stay fresh for a few days. Or, they should if you make sure to keep them watered.

Cool.

[ Gwen lets go of Rei's hand and goes to find an empty jar to use as a vase. She puts a little water in, like Rei said, then sets the makeshift vase down on the kitchen table. ]

Perfect. That looks great.

[ Now that Gwen's come back inside, Jeff wanders his way out of his little bed by the couch and comes to sniff at Rei's ankles. ]

[Rei watches, but stoops reflexively the moment Jeff meanders up, giving him a chance to sniff her hand and decide how he feels about her before going to rub around his dorsal fin.]

I think so. Those flowers are some of my favorites.

[ Jeff gets really into the fin rubs, his little leg kicking happily. ]

Are they?

[ And here Gwen thought they were just pretty. ]

Do they mean anything in particular, or do you have some sort of history with them?

[What a good shark boi.]

They're associated with celebrations and happiness.

[She gives Gwen a long look, accompanied by a smile that...definitely shows what she thinks might be making her happy. Given how sappy that sounds.]

My mother used to give them to me on my birthday. And my grandfather, too, after she passed. But it's my turn to give them away this year.

Oh, that's great. That's a nice tradition. They only thing my mom gave me every year on my birthday was she would make rugelach. Her mom's recipe.

[ Gwen looks back down at the irises fondly, then moves to pull Rei back to a standing position so she can hug her. ]

Thanks, for giving them to me. It means a lot, now that I know the history behind it.

[Rei nods her approval at the talk of tradition, and blushes slightly (well, not so slightly) as she's pulled into a hug. Standing this close to Gwen when they're both dressed up like this is a reminder of what tonight is meant to be. And...oh...is it warm in here?]

You're welcome, Gwen. I'm glad to share that tradition with you.

[She hugs back, even though she's a bit flushed.]

...Ready to go eat?

[ Gwen pulls back from the hug, giving Rei's shoulders one last squeeze before she moves to pull her jacket on and head for the door. ]

Yeah, let's go.

[Rei slips out as well, and leads the way to the car. With a final pat for Jeff.

The drive over is nothing dramatic, it's even easy to find parking! Lucky for them, it seems that luck-focused o-mamori she has dangling from the rear-view mirror seems to be working, because their reservations haven't even been lost.

Rei is glowing, and the local owner seems pleased that she's wearing a cheongsam, so they're even seated quickly!]

So...have you ever had a hot-pot like this before?

[ Gwen slips ahead to pull out Rei's seat for her-- after all, she is the birthday girl-- before going around the table to seat herself. ]

Not in a really long time, actually. I didn't even know Deerington had hot-pot.

[Oh! How gallant.

Rei settles in and sets aside her purse, scooting her chair forward and studying the menu quickly.]

It wasn't here when I first showed up. I just saw it when I was out driving and investigated. It's pretty decent. I made Mami come with me to try it out the other day.

[When Mami had helped her pick out clothes for this date, in fact.]

Do you have a preference for what kind of meat? Or...actually are you vegetarian?

Oh, huh. Well, I guess the town's always changing.

[ Maybe the restaurant will go away next month. Gwen hopes not. It would be nice to have somewhere that could be Their Place™. ]

No, I definitely eat meat. No real preference, except I'm kind of sick of the smell of fish after feeding Jeff so much of it.

Good. Then...

[When the server approaches, Rei orders in Chinese. Beef that's not too spicy, and the server nods and slips off.]

...We'll get beef. It's a bit richer, but...this is a birthday thing. So, we should go all out.

[Scooting a little closer, she takes a quick glance around the room to make sure they aren't being watched by the horrible locals, and slips her hand to Gwen's under the table.]

Thanks for this, by the way. I don't have many birthday traditions, but dinner with someone I...think is important...is one of them.

[ Gwen's eyebrows raise. Since when does Rei speak Chinese? Will the wonders never cease?

But then they're holding hands under the table, and Rei could be speaking Klingon for all Gwen cares. She's just so happy. ]

Well... I'm glad you think I'm important enough to warrant rich beef.

[ Is she blowing it? She's probably blowing it. ]

[Since she was little. Rei's a polyglot, Gwen. The wondrous little talents she has may be a steady source of surprise.

Fingers tighten in a reflexively reassuring way. Gwen is not blowing it.]

You're more important than any beef.

[She's happy too. If the unreserved smile is any indication, probably happier than she's been in a long while.]

Deerington is a horrible town, but since I came back, you've been a reason to not feel bad about being here.

[Is she being too sappy? She's probably being too sappy.]

But...hey do you have any traditions for your birthday? And when is it?

[ As Rei's fingers squeeze her own, Gwen squeezes back. Her girlfriend(???) is officially too smart and too nice and too cool. ]

Oh, you actually, uh. Missed my birthday. It's in December. But the only traditions I ever had about it were sort of New York centric. Going out to see the decorations in Central Park, getting some sushi or pizza from our favorite places on the Lower East Side.

[ She smiles. ]

I wish I could show you authentic New York pizza. You're probably used to much better sushi than New York has, but the pizza is... [ chef kiss gesture ] ...unbeatable.

[Her girlfriend(!) is just trying to keep herself from smiling so hard her head starts floating away. Gwen's little articulations are honestly kind of adorable. Almost like someone out of a comic book.]

Well, maybe we can find a recipe and try and make our own. It's still authentic if a New Yorker has a hand in making it, right?

[Just a thought!]

Honestly I don't think I've ever had good pizza, though, so I wouldn't know the difference. I know a lot of people love it, but it's not easy to find good places in Tokyo.

[She doesn't look terribly hard though. It is also a radically different culture.]

Man, I haven't tried making a pizza from scratch in a really long time... Yeah, we could try that! If we mess it up we can just order from Pete's. The pizza there's not New York pizza, but it's not bad for dream Maine.

[ Not nearly floppy enough pieces to be called New York pizza.

The server comes back over to serve them some drinks, and Gwen slips her free hand to take a sip, keeping her other hand holding Rei's under the table. ]

Are all our dates going to involve food? First a picnic, then hot pot, now pizza?

[Rei takes her own drink, sipping it and laughing softly.]

They could. Now that you point it out, we've definitely talked about food a good bit. Though, I suppose that may be because food is an easy thing to discuss. And I have no problem admitting I'm a little nervous.

[It's safe, everyone likes it, and everyone needs it. And they have preferences, too, which makes it universally simple.]

I'm certain we'll find other things to do. I mean, we can always go hiking together out in the national park, or swimming. Or just stay in and play games or something. So long as we're together...

[Her head droops a little, but her smile remains, even if it turns a bit sheepish.]

Honestly, I'm not sure what people do on dates. Do you have ideas?

Hiking yes. Swimming, maybe not. I, uh... [ Man, this is an awkward way for this subject to come up. ] I sort of have metal bones now?

[ Might as well just say it, get it out in the open. ]

But I dunno. Any of those ideas sound like fine dates to me. I just like spending time with you.

oh? Like Logan? That sounds helpful.

[Awkward? That doesn't sound too awkward to her. Rei is happy to learn it, and so smiles.]

And I agree. I'm not the biggest fan of swimming anyway, it was just a suggestion in case you did.

[She looks down at their hands with an embarrassed smile, happy but unsure.]

Honestly the activities don't matter. You're fun to be around.

[ Gwen's face lights up. ]

Oh, hey! I didn't know you knew Logan. But yeah, exactly like him.

[ She shrugs. ]

I could take or leave swimming. Don't really miss it now that I can't do it.

Oh. I knew a Logan from before. He's not here anymore. I have met another Logan here. But we aren't as close.

[Rei laughs softly. That had been a silly conversation. And shifting to talking abouta friend was good.]

The one I knew before taught me about tracking and hunting. And...some other skills that aren't so nice. Things it's good to know when you can't use your powers.

There's actually two different Logans here now. Same guy, different universes. Different points in the timeline.

[ She shrugs. Just more Creepsville weirdness. ]

That's definitely a big Logan thing to do. He's real nice, once you get past his grumpy exterior. He gave me a hug, when I arrived on Krakoa back on Earth-616.

Yes I met one of them. He's not the one I met before. He seemed about the same age, but I know he's...well, I know he's old.

[Very, very old. Interesting, that. He'd been nice though, and his Japanese had been impeccable.]

Are you on the same...superhero team? That is how things work in your worlds right?

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