First Steps

Ari flipped the menu back to the beginning and began to go through it again, weighing his options. The restaurant chosen by the Church of Sulfur for today’s blind date was a bit fancier than what he would normally choose, causing Ari to do some mental math about what else needed to be accounted for before his next paycheck. I’m lucky imps don’t have to eat…

At the very least, Ari was glad he’d taken the time to dress up. Looking good always helped to negate his anxiety, after all. He’d paired a pale pink turtleneck with thigh-high boots the same colour, all the pink split up by a black skirt that was just long enough to cover the top of the boots. Miira had been annoyed when Ari moved her out of his jewelry box earlier, but Ari felt that the gold and pink heart-motif rings he’d picked out completed the otherwise quite simple look. 

Ari pulled out his phone, humming along gently with the restaurant’s background music, and took a couple pictures of how the table was set up to show his roommate later on. 

~~

Sebastian has been on his way towards the restaurant, occasionally checking his pocket watch that he would pull out from his vest pocket before tucking it back away safely. He was not looking to be late, and he had made sure of it. 

But you can’t control traffic and somedays, it was nothing but a pain in your rear end.

He hadn’t been a huge fan of the whole ‘blind date’ thing. Especially after his first one, meeting a much larger gluttony bun who was a bit too loud for his taste. But that was not the date he was on now.

“A lust bun with dark iris’s” Was the description he was given, and he had hoped the description given to the other wasn’t just ‘a blue greed bun’.

His hoofed foot stepped past the doorway, fixing his sleeve as his cane softly tapped the ground of the fancy restaurant. On time, or well early by 2 minutes but he didn’t know how long it would be to find the other bun. Hoping with a quick scan of the restaurant he could find the other, or they could find him and wave him over.

~~ 

Ari heard his name - a name, at least, as he’d told Oleander to put him down as ‘Reverie’ - and looked up from his phone to see the hostess who had seated him. Ari glanced towards the front door of the restaurant and spotted a sophisticated Greed bun who matched the description he’d been given for his blind date; a description he’d passed on to the hostess. Ari thanked her and asked her to bring the bun over, casting him a charming smile and waving as he tucked his phone away.

The bun waiting at the front door was dressed very formally: dress pants, dress shirt, vest, and a translucent blue cape. He had gold jewelry on his horns and tail, as well as gold accents on his clothes and the elegant cane that he carried. 

In other words, he looked expensive. 

In other other words, he was gorgeous. 

~~

While Sebastian gave a quick glance to the restaurant, he took another look at his watch. Checking the time once more just to be sure he was on time. A worry wart he was.

His worrying was stopped though as the hostess returned from her walk, having seated another table, and was directing him towards his own date with a smile.

A gentle smile formed on his lips as he followed her, tucking the watch back into his vest as he followed her to the table he had been assigned to by the church. Never truly one for the dating game, finding it quite hard with his own morals, but he wasn’t about to pass up meeting new people.

Maybe he could meet a few more buns to fund.

Finally his date came into view though, having to fix his glasses over his face to get a clearer image of the lust bun. Very pink, though he had no reason to judge as a very blue bun himself. Though it was definitely a funny encounter with their vastly different dressing styles.

“Well, sorry to be a minute behind here. Normally I try to be early.” He spoke out, his voice gentle as he bowed his head in a soft apology towards the other bun.

He gave a soft thank you to the hostess, finally taking a seat across from the other bun. Thankful to get off his feet finally.

~~

Ari made a dismissive gesture with his hand. “Oh, don’t worry about it ~” He tilted his head, openly admiring the other bun’s flawless brown skin and startling golden eyes. “I think the Church forgot to give me your name. I’m Reverie.” 

He’d met buns that dressed like this before. It was usually hit or miss. Some of them just liked to dress sharp, while others, like a Pride bun he’d had the misfortune of meeting recently, dressed like that to prove they were ‘a cut above’. Ari was starting to think he should’ve worn something a bit fancier, but it’d been a busy day at work and he’d prioritized being a bit more comfortable instead of going all out. 

Well, time to see which branch this one falls under. Ari extended his hand, as if inviting the other bun to shake it. Let’s see if he even touches me. 

~~ 

He gave a soft laugh as the other bun mentioned the lack of names, he assumed it was the churches doing. Not knowing the names of the other buns forces them to talk and get to know each other, to him it was a little smart but a bit of an extra step in his opinion.

He knew a few other lust buns like the other, but the one he knew the most was the… not best example of one.

“Ah, nice to meet you Reverie.” He responded back as his hand outstretched to take the other buns hand, giving a soft shake to it.
“My name is Sebastian, you may call me Sebastian or Seb. Whatever works for you.” He added on as he took his hand back and set it on the table.

~~

Okay, good start. 

“Hmm, Sebastian for now then.” Ari smiled playfully at him, loosening up the slightest bit. “You look good. Do you always dress like this, or am I something special?”  

~~ 

The greed bun just continued to smile softly, his hand reaching for the menu to give it an open and skim before answering the other bun,

“This is how I commonly dress. It’s a personal thing for me, I over-dress for everything but I don’t mind how everyone else dresses.” He answered him before looking back at him.

“Style is a personal thing, mine just is fancy.”

~~

“It suits you,” Ari purred, mimicking Sebastian and looking back down at his menu - which he realized was still open to the desserts page. Slightly embarrassed at the thought of the other bun having seen, Ari quickly flipped back to the main section of the menu and peered down at it. 

He still had no idea what to get. And he realized the longer he looked at the menu, the more words stood out as unknown to him. Ari stifled the frustrated sigh that threatened to come out. 

“Have you been here before, Sebastian? Do you have anything you’d like to recommend?” 

~~~ 

Sebastian couldn’t help the soft laugh that bubbled in his chest as the other complimented him, never one to flirt as he wasn’t looking for a relationship. Not yet at least.

“Well, no need to flatter me now darling. But thank you, you look nice yourself. I think next time you should try to add on a necklace or two though, I saw a couple in a nearby shop that would fit you perfectly. I’ll have to get them for you, as a gift.” He commented.

As he looked at the menu, it was nothing new to him. He’s been here once or twice, but it wasn’t one he preferred. He liked the classier ones, or the less classy even. This was the weird in between, not one he liked to go to often. It wasn’t bad, Sebastian was just… picky.

“I have darling, I have. I have come here a few times with another. I believe last time I was here, I had gotten a simple pasta dish. I’ll have to find it. However the other I was with had gotten a much bigger meal… I believe it was… perhaps the steak. We also got the appetizers, all of them are quite good. And a few desserts and wines. All the food is relatively good.”

The green bun rambled, a rarer time he would speak a ton. An opinion on what was good, when to him everything was.

~~

Darling? Ari blinked. Gifts? Ari was so taken aback by those choice words that he almost forgot to listen to the actual answer to his question. The answer which ended up being something along the lines of ‘I dunno, it’s all good’. That sigh came back, making itself known in the back of Ari’s mind. 

“You say I’m flattering you, but you’ve already picked out some stuff for me to wear for next time?” Ari kept his body language light-hearted, bordering on blasé at the implications Sebastian was laying out, but the instant familiarity had him a little on edge. “A man with your taste, who would I be to say no?” 

Ari grabbed the separate wine menu and pushed it closer to Sebastian’s side of the table, ‘accidentally’ brushing his hand with his own. “Could you help me pick out a rosé?”

~~ 

If the words were said aloud, Sebastian would have dialed it back. A problem with the greed bun was the fact he was so use to casual dates, however these dates were commonly with the few sugar bunnies he had. So he was defaulting, something that was hard to break from.

But the words that followed were enough to cause him to raise his eyebrow at him, golden eyes scanning the other before setting his menu down.

“Next time as in, if we have one. I should probably clarify.” He started as ge reached towards his neck to quickly fix his tie.

“I commonly spend my days on smaller dates with others, and I just tend to fund them. Spending money on others is kind of my regular. As I said, I've been here before so it is my deepest apologies for my words. It seems I’ve taken to my ways of thinking of spoiling. It's a habit, not a bad one, but I understand it can be concerning for some. Well I can’t stress enough, it's not as bad as it seems.” He told him, his hand giving an animated wave as he spoke, the stars around his head giving a slight shimmer as the embarrassment of his words benign taken wrong hit him.

“Ah, as for the rosé. I’d suggest the third one, last time we were here that was by far the best. In my opinion, my taste is a bit peculiar.”

~~

Sebastian seemed to have sensed Ari’s discomfort, and his rambling apology showed some vulnerability in the insofar perfect bun. Ari realized he’d been holding his tail stiffly, so he put conscious effort into relaxing, letting it curl delicately at his side. 

“Oh Sebastian, I didn’t mean to offend you.” Ari continued to keep up his act of gentle sophistication. “I’m just not used to people caring enough to do something special for me, so it caught me off guard.” 

Ah. 

I definitely didn’t mean to say that. 

Ari took the wine pamphlet back, looking down at it to hide his mortification. 

~~

“Not offended.” Sebastian quickly corrected, holding his hand up to attempt to stop that from going on more. Just not wanting to hear him feeling like he had.

“I understand where you are coming from. I am observant, as people say, and while I didn’t need an explanation. I appreciate it.”

He listened on though, listening to the words leave the other buns mouth and raising an eyebrow for a moment. A want to point it out but he could tell the other was just getting more uncomfortable by the minute.

So his mouth shut, instead pulling his menu towards himself.

“So, Reverie, what do you do for a living?” Redirection, trying his best to move on.

~~

Ari glanced up at Sebastian through his lashes, still keeping his face tilted towards the table. There’s no way he didn’t hear me… Ari’s heart began to slow it’s anxious thundering as he realized Sebastian must be ignoring his comment on purpose.

“Oh, I…” Ari cleared his throat, doing his best to push any residual discomfort off his face and giving Sebastian a neutral smile. “I’m a host at what you could call a ‘character cafe’. We all have a persona that we lean into, for the sake of making it a unique experience.” Ari calmed down further, now that the conversation had moved to a point of comfort for him. “The menu itself is pretty simple; teas, pastries, sandwiches, stuff like that. The real reason people come, and keep coming back, is to hang out with the waitstaff.” Ari’s smile edged a little closer to genuine, but he left out a crucial detail that he normally wouldn’t hesitate to bring up. 

~~

The other bun seemed to take the chance, ignoring the fact he may as well be purposefully ignoring his comment. And he was glad.

Sebastian never wished to make him uncomfortable, and with each word that ebbed out of the lust buns mouth, it seemed to cause the other to relax again. Something he was far more fond of then the tense air that had covered them both.

“Ah, a character cafe… Never been to one, never thought to. I may try one, maybe. I’m not a huge fan of trying things alone.” He responded back, not knowing in truth what else to add on. Sebastian has always been a listener, not a talker.

“But I’d maybe drop by yours if I ever get the chance, I tend to be a little busy from time to time as well. Is that all you do? And maybe I could find out which type of ‘character’ you play.” As he spoke, he lifted his hands up, making the quotes in the air as he didn’t like the word itself. He didn’t like most acting but that was a personal thing for him.

~~

“If you come by while I’m working, you should order one of my ‘sweet endings’; every host has one ~ ” Ari blinked, realizing that he’d fallen into ‘advertising-mode’ without even thinking about it. He laughed softly at his own expense, then continued. “My ‘character’,” Ari copied Sebastian’s air-quotes, “is one of the more realistic ones. I’m not a butler, or a princess, I’m just Reverie.” 

~~

For a moment the other greed bun couldn’t help but blink a bit at the offer, not needing a map to find out where the ‘sweet ending’ ended up.

“I’ll have to think about it.” He mused, giving the other a smile back before returning to his ways of listening.

Not a butler or princess, just himself. What a way to describe oneself.

“Well then Reverie, it would be nice to know you outside of work then. Who is Reverie out of your character cafe?”

~~

It had been awhile since another bun had struck him silent, and it wasn’t the easy consideration of his sexwork that did it. Ari’s mind raced, trying to find some sort of pre-scripted answer, before realizing that he’d been staring at Sebastian for a solid thirty seconds at least. 

“Who am I… Outside of work?” Ari thought for a moment, then closed his mouth, then tried again. Then he sighed, throwing caution to the wind, and just said the first thing that wanted to come out. 

“Nobody, really.”

~~ 

Sebastian wasn’t trying to confuse the other, or dig up more stuff he didn’t or shouldn’t know, but it seemed he did. Watching the other struggle to find the right words. Until they finally left his lips.

“Well then Reverie, who would you like to be?”

~~

What is it about this bun that’s throwing me off my game so badly? 

Maybe it was his honesty, the way he seemed to mean every word he said. Unlike me… 

Maybe it was just that Ari’s shift had been especially tiring today.

Or maybe it was the fact that Sebastian genuinely seemed interested in getting to know Ari, without intended for it to give him any sort of advantage. 

He wasn’t able to maintain contact with Sebastian’s gleaming gold eyes any longer, instead looking down at his menu, physically seeing it but not registering a thing. “Ari,” He mumbled.

~~ 

Sebastian couldn’t help but watch every move of Reverie, watching him fidget and the gears tear in his head. It was like Sebastian to never hesitate, never lie, be honest and always look for that true ones self.

But the word was mumbled and his star motes practically dances at the name to show his interest.

“Ari?” He questioned, a sweet and playful tone in his words as his smile never faltered, “Well then Ari, a true pleasure to meet you.” 

~~

Ari couldn’t remember the last time he’d introduced himself as somebody who felt real. “I… I like chocolates, and gold jewelry, and my imps, and… And botany, and…” Ari cut himself off, inhaling slowly in an attempt to calm down. 

He reached out his hand to Sebastian, another handshake that doubled as a test, but this time the test was for Ari. “My real name is Ari and… It feels nice to be met…”

~~ 

“Botany! What a lovely practice, I love to care for plants as well. Though I’m more of a book nerd as some say.” The greed bun couldn’t help the laugh that left his lips before he reached his arm outwards, taking the other buns hand again.

A second chance, a new chance to get to know him.

“Well Ari, I appreciate the chance to meet you. I was on a date with this other bun named Reverie but I think I much like this new bun, Ari. Seems to have similar interests to me.” He couldn’t help but joke, try and ease the last of the tension.

“Now I’m not huge on chocolate, but that's cause I have a very small sweet tooth. And if it's not already obvious, gold jewelry is a favorite of mine. And for imps, I own a Gargowl. A lovely imp, maybe if this date keeps going so well. Maybe you can meet him.”

~~

Ari smiled shyly, finally looking up at Sebastian again. He squeezed the other bun’s hand in silent thanks before letting go and grabbing his phone. Ari opened the album where he kept all the pictures of his imps and held his phone over the table so Sebastian could watch as he slowly flipped through the album. 

“Miira was my first,” he paused on a picture of a Ryuudra curled up in a jewelry box, “Then my two Sweetineas. Trinket, my Ribbow, is a bit of a menace, but I support women’s wrongs so I don’t mind.” Ari laughed as he swiped through multiple pictures of a Harpup being stuck in weird places. “Fjord is probably the stupidest creature I’ve ever met, but I love him anyways.” 

Ari looked away from his phone, and back at Sebastian. “I would love to meet your Gargowl, if you were serious about that…” 

 ~~ 

The other bun squeezed his hand in comfort, understanding his vulnerability and how it truly was an honor. Before taking it back so he could readjust his glasses as he looked at Ari’s phone. He smiled a bit more at the sight of all the imps, 

“I only have one, I had thought about adopting a rabebe, but it feels… a bit wrong to have my gargowl and then a little rabebe.” He explained before looking back at the other instead of his phone.

“My offer still stands, I’d love to have you come by. No other motives, just to meet my imp. Perhaps another date, but I get that jewelry I suggested previously.”

~~

Ari nodded at Sebastian’s reasoning, glad all his imps got along well enough. “I’m off tomorrow, so if you didn’t have other plans for tonight, we could…” He trailed off, internally cringing at how desperate he sounded. All it takes is one guy to show interest in something other than taking your clothes off and you fall apart? “I - uh - unless you wanted to be alone tonight, obviously. No pressure.” Ari could feel an embarrassed blush starting to spread across his face. 

~~ 

He didn’t have many plans for the night actually, just the date and then whatever to do at home. So at the offer, his smile grew wider and he gave a soft nod.

“No pressure at all, I’d love to spend some time with you afterwards.” He agreed to the offer, a gentle laugh following his words as he watched the others skin turn a warmer shade. 

~~

“Okay, cool…” Ari gave Sebastian what was probably his first genuinely happy smile of the night. He looked up and realized that at some point during their conversation, the restaurant had gotten much busier, which explained why nobody had come to check on them yet. 

“Honestly, Sebastian, I still haven’t decided what to get… Maybe we could get out of here? Head back to yours - “ Ari blushed harder, somehow more embarrassed by the thought of going to another man’s house just to see his imp than by other reasons he’d done so in the past. “Maybe order something to eat?” 

~~ 

He had not realized the state of the restaurant this whole time, the blue buns focus solely on the other across from him. Finally zoning out to realize it though at the mention, he gave another laugh at the realization.

“To be quite honest? Neither have I. So if you don’t mind,”

He started to speak before his cane hit the ground in a soft tap, helping him up to his hoofed feet before he offered his hand towards Ari. This time to take.

“I’d love to take you to my home, on the way we can stop by that shop. Maybe another, get a few new jewels for Miira. There was one that would fit her perfectly there. I’ll order out for us afterwards, all on me.”

~~

Ari took Sebastian's offered hand, letting the other bun help him out of his seat. "That sounds great, Sebastian." He looked down at their joint hands, suddenly hesitant to let go. "Maybe I'll be able to come up with more things to tell you about myself... We have all night, after all.”

~~

The greed bun didn’t let go of the others hand, a moment of weakness as he helped him up and kept their hands linked. Instead he gave a soft squeeze to the others hand.

“You are right Ari, we have all night.” He agreed.

Before leaving though, he tucked his cane under his arm, going through his vest pocket to look for something within it. Finding his pocket watch to check the time before tucking it back in.

“But the night is still young, so let’s enjoy it.”

He placed the cane back to the ground, his other hand placed on top as he took the first steps to lead the other bun out of the restaurant.