[COLLAB] Blind Date Prompt

Noisy, lighthearted chatter fills the room as buns meet and pair off for their blind dates. These dates, courtesy of the Church of Sulfur, give lonely and lusty buns alike the chance at a connection during the most intimate time of year. Arizona laps the salt off the rim of her margarita idly as her eyes scan the duos littered around her. It brings a certain happiness to her heart seeing so many buns enjoying themselves and having a nice time.

Though she may have no need for the service, with her personal menagerie of partners, it is always a delight to meet new buns and bring them into the fold– whether it be a lovely friendship or perhaps something with a bit more intrigue, Arizona considers herself a social butterfly ready to spread her wings to whoever crosses her path next.

The waiter comes by to check on Arizona and her drink, inquiring about an appetizer, and she sweetly orders something to share while she eagerly keeps her gaze focused on the door for her date. A tug in her heart tells her that she will *know* who it is when she sees them.

Dazzles is running late - she earlier decided to take a nap and.. well, it went longer than expected. Despite this, she's really only late by about ten minutes or so - she's never been later than that in her life! She even managed to put on false eyelashes, which she usually got too frustrated with to do.

Before opening the door to the restaurant, she releases a big yawn, and shakes herself, trying to get the sleepiness to go away. For once, she feels energized, and ready for her date. She opens the door, and wanders to the seating area, blinking slowly as she scans the large room. Her mismatched eyes catch a bun sitting alone.. and one totally her type. A small smile appears on her face as she approaches, and sits across from the bun. They're awful pretty..

"Hi, I'm Dazzles! You must be my date... at least I hope you are."

Oh gosh... she hopes she isn't being too forward. No, this is okay..

"What's your name?"

Arizona perks up as the bun approaches the table and joins her. She twists her fingers together, her heart rate picking up a bit as she takes in the gorgeous doll before her. The waiter returns with their shared appetizer-- a delicious sampler platter with plenty of finger foods to dip, munch, and enjoy. It's impossible to tear her eyes away from Dazzles for even a second as she thanks the waiter and shoos him away.

"I'm Arizona," her tone is light and perky. A rosy hue tints her cheeks. It makes her feel a bit better that Dazzles seems equally as nervous and excited. "I knew you had to be my match! We seem to go together now, don't we?"

Arizona gives a soft wink before reaching out to their appetizer. She selects one of the loaded potato skins from the edge, dipping it in the ranch, before popping it into her mouth with a pleased hum. Deliciously greasy, warm, and flavorful.

"Tell me about yourself, sweetie." She flicks her eyes up at Dazzles from beneath her bangs with an excited twinkle.

Not only can she see her date looking at her, she can feel it. Something about the way she's staring, and how she shoos the waiter so they can have peace.. she can't help but giggle softly as her cheeks turn a shade of red.

Arizona.. What a lovely name. She says they seem to go together, and she feels the tips of her ears heat. So.. she got the same feeling, then? Oh gosh.. the way she winks, and then takes a delicious-looking bite of their appetizer. She feels like she's going to fall from her chair! Then, of course, Arizona asks her to tell her about herself. Dazzles ponders for a moment, before speaking up, voice soft and sweet.

"Well, about me... hmm.. I have my own small business I run from home, I'm still trying to figure out what exactly my business is.. because I make clay crafts, resin, jewelry, all kinds of stuff! I like to read, sometimes too much. I stay up waaaaay late a lot... but I take naps to make up for it!"

Arizona bites her lip as she watches Dazzles, there's a certain thrill in watching someone grow flustered. It isn't like she *means* to tease on purpose. Though she can't deny the excited fluttering in her stomach when Dazzles flushes darker. It makes her plum giddy.

"Crafts are incredible!" Arizona throws a hand out with her exclamation. Another pop of food into her mouth and she chews neatly before continuing. "I love crafts, I wish I had more time for them. I like puzzles. Pretty ones of landscapes and clouds and such."

Back in her shared apartment, guests are always amazed at the expansive and intricate puzzles on display. Arizona always take considerable care of her creations, backing and gluing them before finding the perfect frame; they act as better decor than drab store-bought signage that *anyone* can buy thoughtlessly. It's just a bonus that she can talk about the process when showing off her puzzle displays.

"I assume you have an online store? Here," Arizona is quick to pull out her phone and pull up the messaging app. "Put your number in here and I'll text you! I want to see what you have for sale. Maybe I'll find something that I can't live without!"

She slides the phone across the table for Dazzles to create her new contact, smiling all the while.

Dazzles is pleasantly surprised when Arizona throws her hands out with excitement, enticing a small giggle from Dazzles. She sure has a lot of energy! Being around her makes Dazzles feel more awake and alert.. which she enjoys.

She watches as she eats another appetizer piece, and soon, she does the same. A small mumble escapes her, delighted by the taste. Arizona explains her love of puzzles, and Dazzles makes an 'ohhhh' of awe and understanding. If she were to make puzzles, she would probably focus on abstract ones with lots of colors, so she finds it interesting that Arizona likes landscapes. She wonders to herself for a moment, and is about to speak up.. when the other bun asks for her number. The heat in her face grows tenfold, but she relaxes again when she explains what it's for. Right! Her business! They'd just spoke about it, but she almost forgot already. She taps her phone number in, gaze briefly shifting to blink at Arizona, and then back to the phone. Her smile is contagious, Dazzles is wearing a happy grin soon enough as well.

"Only if you text me back some pictures of your finished puzzles..."

Her hand grazes the menu, and she looks down, almost entirely ignoring the food part of the date until now. Except for her one bite, of course. She browses the menu for only a brief moment, before shutting it and nodding to herself.

"I think I know what I want. One of their fancy mini pizzas..."

She takes another bite of the appetizer.

"So you like to do puzzles... but you don't have much time for that. So, what else do you do?"

Arizona twirls her drink in her hand as she watches Dazzles, tucking her phone back into her oversized bag. Pictures of puzzles would only be the start. She sips her drink idly.

"I'll have what you're having!" Arizona swallows her bite of appetizer and wipes her fingers off on her napkin. Soon refills come for them of their drinks.

"I have a part-time job as an imp trainer! It's just kind of a hobby that I ended up getting paid to do," Arizona fights the urge to dig out her phone to show pictures of her dessert-variety ribbow, Cinnamon. Too many pictures and videos for one conversation. "People reach out to me and I do at-home visits. But usually it doesn't take too long, so when I get home I do a lot of house work– it's a full time job!"

Their mini pizzas arrive with a hot waft of steam lifting into the air. Just the smell is enough to make Arizona's mouth water. She smiles sweetly at Dazzles over their meal before continuing.

"My wife Victoria works in an office that pays for our apartment, so thankfully I don't have much to worry about, I just try to repay her how I can! I usually cook for us too but sometimes she surprises me."

Arizona gives a little wink as she picks up the first slice of her pizza.

"You know, you could always come visit us sometime. If you wanted to of course!" She throws up a nervous hand, not wanting to scare Dazzles off with how forth-coming she is. "Victoria and I usually don't have anything to do in our evenings other than watch TV or movies. She isn't much into hobbies, but she loves to entertain."

Her bite of pizza melts delightfully on her tongue.

"Just something to keep in mind, since then I can show you my puzzles in person. Photos don't do them justice." She keeps a slightly flirtatious tone.

As Arizona tells her about her job, Dazzles eyes light with intrigue. Wow.. she has a really fun job! Her soft smile grows into a wider grin, unconsciously leaning forward, gravitating toward the source of her interest.

"Wow! I love imps.. I wish I had one. My apartment doesn't allow imps.. but I'm going to be moving soon! I'm definitely going to have you over to train mine once I get one! I want a lunell, or a freign, or - oh! can't forget about a rabebe."

She starts to giggle as she lists off the imps she desires, finding it amusing that she can't really decide. It's hard to choose.. especially when it comes to things as important as an imp.

Their pizzas arrive, but are much too hot to dig into. Instead, her attention remains on Arizona as she speaks about her wife. Dazzles dreams of one day finding a bun who she wants to marry.. sure, she likes the idea of multiple partners - platonic and romantic -, but, there was something special about marriage.

Arizona invites her over, and it makes her ear tips heat up all over again. She really quite likes Arizona, and it makes her feel fuzzy to know she feels the same - enough to invite her over.

When Arizona takes a bite, she reaches for the pizza, and soon follows suit. It's even more delicious than the appetizer…

"I think I would really like to visit.. I'd invite you over too, but my apartment isn't very interesting.."

She lets out an exasperated breath, slightly irritated as she remembers the dilapidated state of her apartment. She really can't wait to move…

"Oh! Sorry- that was rude. I was just thinking about my stupid landlord.."

The smile that had disappeared reappears now, and she nods as Arizona explains that pictures couldn't fully capture her puzzles.

Dazzles continues to eat her pizza, bit by bit, remaining quiet as she enjoys the food. However, she gets about halfway through before speaking again.

"Back to the imps... do you have any of your own?"

It's impossible to deny the flutter in her heart during their idle chatter and conversations. The waiter comes back to check on their drinks, their quality of their meal, and the like, but neither bun pay him much attention as they are far more engrossed in each other than the world around them. Arizona tucks her hooves under her chair to lean in closer with her chin in one hand, listening intently.

"I do have an imp-- I have a ribbow named Cinnamon. She's a doll." Arizona pulls out her phone and quickly navigates to her gallery where she has endless photos and videos of her dessert-variety imp misbehaving. She shows Dazzles many glamorous shots of Cinnamon; some photos the imp seems to pose, others are more thoughtful and artistic candids. 

"Oh and look at this. She is always getting into mine and Victoria's clothing! Why I had to get rid of a few of my dresses when Cinnamon got ahold of them, the alterations shop down the street is on first name basis with us."

Arizona laughs as she shows Dazzles a video of Cinnamon proudly circling what appears to have been one of Victoria's pantsuits. There are pieces of fabric cut out along the sides to reveal more skin and the legs have been hemmed considerably shorter, nearly khaki length.

"She was quite proud of herself. Imps are a big responsibility but if you ever get your hands on one and need a bit of extra help, I hope you come to me first!"

Around them a few buns slowly begin to vacate their tables. New pairings shuffle in to dine, some buns sit alone looking for their match, and a few seem rather wrapped up in each other much like Arizona and Dazzles.

By now her plate is mostly empty and she puts a hand on her stomach with a light sigh, full of her delicious meal.

Dazzles is absolutely delighted to be shown pictures of Arizona's imp. She is delighted to see any imp, truthfully. As Arizona goes on about the mischief Cinnamon gets into, she giggles and excitedly claps her hands together.

"Wow! Oh trust me, you'll be the first I call as soon as I get one!"

Buns around them are starting to leave, and Dazzles blinks with realization. She briefly takes out her phone, and looks at the time. Although it isn't too awful late, she's still surprised by how much time has passed. A few more bites of pizza, and soon she is in the same position as Arizona. She sighs just as well, but the sound is followed by a gentle laugh.

"I'm just too stuffed for dessert.. but oh, it's been such a lovely time! We'll see eachother again soon, I'm sure of it."

A comforting warmth settles in Arizona's stomach as she takes a moment just to watch Dazzles in front of her. It has been a lovely evening of chatter that only leaves her more excited for what their future may hold.

"Yes-- yes, soon! I'll text you when I get home and let's make some plans to see each other for lunch or dinner or coffee or whatever fits in your schedule."

The two buns stand to leave, rushing in quickly to give each other a tight squeezing hug, before they part for the door. Dazzles turns out one way and Arizona starts home in the other, and as the city of Burrowgatory bustles around them in their own world, these two buns find themselves sharing one of their own.

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