[attr="class","aurelie"]

[attr="class","aurelie_body"]"Jack! You didn't even guess!" Aurelie exclaimed with mock indignation, the merry sparkle of her eye belying the playful pout of her lips. Oblivious to Jack's aborted grab for his knife, she leaned eagerly into his kiss, rising reflexively on tiptoe to make it easier on his neck and give him even better access to her hips and bottom.

When he pulled back, so did she, rather unsteadily. At his question, she flushed crimson and cleared her throat. "Um, right, so, what I meant to say was... Surprise!"

She hastened to explain, "I was delivering an order to a business located on Route 117 and decided to...what's the phrase?...pop into town and pay you a surprise visit. We never did get together on Palentine's Day, so I thought I might whisk you away for a romantic Friday night."

Aurelie awkwardly dropped her gaze at this point, imagining just how idiotic she must sound right now. Sinking slowly back onto her heels, she scrambled to pull her phone out of her pocket and show Jack the list of date ideas she'd cobbled together off the internet.

"So...what I was thinking we might be able to do is visit that little sculpture garden at the local park. It looks really pretty and nice," the redhead began, biting her lip. "Or I saw a cute restaurant where couples can cook dinner together. You know I'd be all over something like that!" If anyone knew how much she loved both food and cooking, it'd be Jack.

A grin broke across her face as she concluded, "And of course, there's the hiking trail that goes up...what's it called? Oh, right, Corona Hill, where I read that the view of the sunset from the top is absolutely spectacular. 'The best place to hold hands and take photos in all Verdanturf,' the article said.

"So, what do you think?" she asked. "Does any of that sound good to you?"

As a cold breeze gusted past, she pulled her jacket tighter around her and tilted her head back to look up at Jack, wondering what he thought of all this. Would he be excited by all this? Or at least pleased?

Or—the thought chilled her as much as the brisk wind—would he smile, shake his head, and say in that courteous yet crisp Galarian way of his that he'd had a long day and all he wanted to do was take a hot shower, eat a sandwich, and have an early night?

Pushing that thought away for now, Aurelie leaned her head against his shoulder for a moment. "Oh, by the way, I think you smell great," she murmured, her lips curving back into a contented little smirk. "There's a reason I didn't get you cologne for Palentine's Day, though I did like the perfume you sent me—or Ignace, I guess I should say."

[attr="class","cred"]VEL OF PIXEL PERFECT

[attr="class","aurelie"]

[attr="class","aurelie_body"]Leaning gently into Jack's brief kiss while he was weighing their options, Aurelie frowned slightly as her thoughts started to drift toward the cause of his sweaty condition. He was a Ranger, after all, and one that she had seen in action more than once. She couldn't help suddenly envisioning Jack vengefully pursuing other Rocket poachers the same way he went after her and Xiura Balfaltin for the Gardevoirs.

But then she shook her head as if to clear it of distracting thoughts and gave a mental shrug. We were careless, the redhead reminded herself, and we learned from it. If anyone else is as careless as we were, they'd deserve to get chased after or caught too.

With that thought in mind, Aurelie was able to summon up an answering smile when Jack agreed to the plan of hiking up Corona Hill for a view of the sunset. "Then it's a date," she cooed.

Taking his hand, she pressed kisses along the tips of his fingers while hurriedly pulling up a walking map of the shortest route to the hill. "Oh, thank Arceus, the base of the hill isn't all that far from here," she sighed in relief. "Come on, let's go!"

A twinkle of amusement brightened her eye as they walked along the increasingly busy and lively streets of Verdanturf as the afternoon deepened toward evening. "I almost wonder if it's not a coincidence the Rangers' office is so close to the prettiest, most scenic area in town," the redhead teased, curling one arm around Jack's shoulders and pulling him close.

Looking up at him through her lashes, she asked laughingly, "Do you Rangers go up there during your lunch breaks, maybe? And make out with each other at the summit?"

It certainly made for a more charming mental image than Rangers throwing pies at each other, which she remembered hearing they'd done at one point.

"Ugh, it certainly is getting crowded around here," Aurelie commented aloud as they drew closer. It seemed like they certainly weren't the only couple with plans to hike to the top, even though it was well after Palentine's Day when the area was supposed to be busiest. "But oh, look!"

She pointed toward a row of food trucks parked along the foot of the hill and grinned playfully at Jack. "We should pick up some food and make a little picnic out of it. Just like old times, right?"

[attr="class","cred"]VEL OF PIXEL PERFECT

[attr="class","aurelie"]

[attr="class","aurelie_body"]Aurelie broke into a lighthearted chuckle, followed by a mock-disappointed groan, when Jack jokingly bemoaned the lack of make-out partner selection among his fellow Rangers. "Oh no! Though I guess I can sympathize, with my workplace," she sighed, mentally picturing her own solitary workshop.

The corner of her mouth tingled pleasantly after he kissed it, and the talk about make-outs had Aurelie sneaking a peek at his lips and speculating if she should just make out with him right now. They were in such a busy area, though, and Jack was talking again. She forced herself to focus and listen.

"Aww, I had no idea you hadn't visited this area before!" she replied, smiling softly. Contenting herself with pressing a lingering kiss to his cheek, the redhead added, "There's a lot of places in Lilycove I haven't visited either, so I understand that! Maybe the next time you're in town, you can return the favor and we can go to one of those places."

When she heard his stomach rumbling, her lips curled into an amused grin. The expression faded slightly when she noticed the lines stretching from most of the food trucks, though. Aurelie shook her head and sighed again.

"As much as I love your enthusiasm—and the plan not to sit anywhere I could fall into the ocean—I think if we tried to get one of everything again, we'd be here all night," she responded pragmatically. "Then neither of us would make it to the hill!

"So, let's just get..." Pausing for a moment, Aurelie looked around rapidly and picked a truck with a promisingly short line. "Some tasty curry or noodles!"

They waited in line for a few minutes, while more people joined the crowd either queueing for food or climbing up the hill. When their food was finally ready, Aurelie let out an impressed whistle when she saw how colorful and appetizing her curry looked and how prettily it was plated in the container.

"This looks fantastic! I guess we got lucky with this one," she marveled aloud. Letting out a laugh, she pulled out her phone. "I guess the cool thing to do these days is take a photo of your food, right? And make everyone else envy your feast."

As little attention as Aurelie usually paid to social media trends, she nevertheless positioned her phone over her paper container. Just as she was ready to click the button, though, someone's shoulder jostled her arm. She nearly dropped her food, and the photo ended up a blur of strangers' shoes and pants.

[attr="class","cred"]VEL OF PIXEL PERFECT

[attr="class","aurelie"]

[attr="class","aurelie_body"]Aurelie gratefully relinquished her container of noodles and curry into Jack's more capable hands, letting him balance it neatly atop his own without faltering. Instead, she hurried a few steps ahead of him and assumed the role of guarding and guiding them all safely up the hill. Any tourists who pressed too close courted a sharp elbow or shoulder jostle.

Pocketing her phone, she laughingly remarked, "Clearly, blogging isn't for the faint of heart! Who knew you need nerves of steel to take a good food photo?"

At his suggestion of taking a cute noodle-slurping photo, Aurelie clapped her hands with delight. "Yes! Absolutely! I love that. It'll be so cute."

She started immediately looking for picturesque spots to take the photo as they neared the top of the hill. Unfortunately, it was still buzzing with tourists and Pokemon, especially as the sun slipped further below the horizon and the sky shimmered in pearlescent, pastel hues of mauve, apricot, and rose. It was a truly beautiful day, which was probably why half of Verdanturf seemed to be up here.

"So, where should we sit? What about there, near that group of ferns?" she started to say, only to groan when another couple settled right on top of it.

"Or that side over there...oh, come on, where did that Snorlax come from? It's blocking out the whole view!"

The redhead shaded her eye from the slanting rays of sunlight, before shaking her head and chuckling. "You know what, let's just settle right here. It seems quiet enou... Ow!" She glared at the passerby who'd just trodden heavily on her foot.

Then, she looked back at Jack's profile, clear-cut and handsome, silhouetted against the deepening blue of the evening sky. Aurelie's spirits rose almost despite herself. A smile stole over her face as she snuck in a kiss while picking up her container of curry.

"I'm worrying too much," she sighed, plumping herself down on the grass and sliding closer to him. Deftly, she opened the container and picked up a small clump of noodles with her chopsticks. "What matters most is just relaxing and enjoying ourselves, right?

"Want a taste of my curry?" Aurelie cheerfully offered him some of her food, blithely oblivious to any double entendres she might have just unthinkingly uttered.

[attr="class","cred"]VEL OF PIXEL PERFECT

[attr="class","aurelie"]

[attr="class","aurelie_body"]At Jack's wink, Aurelie burst out laughing as she recognized his question for the double entendre it was. She couldn't help smirking as she belatedly realized he was responding in kind to her own question. An anticipatory twinkle lit her single eye as she leaned closer to Jack.

"I would love to taste your noodle, Jack," she all but purred at him, reaching forward to stroke his cheek and slide over his mouth, lingering slyly on his bottom lip.

Then her hand dropped lower—and picked up the fork lying atop his open container of food. Glancing downward, Aurelie gathered up a small forkful of noodles, brought it to her mouth, and parted her lips just wide enough to admit one noodle. Meeting his eye, she began slowly, luxuriantly sucking the single slender noodle into her mouth, inch by inch.

It was meant to be a seductive little performance for his benefit, and perhaps it would've been. Except just as she'd gotten about a third of the noodle into her mouth, another couple rushed behind Aurelie and jostled her. The redhead went unceremoniously sprawling forward, nearly crashing into Jack.

"Ack! Crap!" she gasped, straightening up and narrowly missing bashing the back of her head into his chin. "Did I stain your shirt... No, thank Arceus. Ugh, I nearly spat out that noodle right on you!"

Somehow, she'd managed to keep the noodle in her mouth. Thankfully, the fork had fallen neatly on top of Jack's container, so only a few drops of curry sauce had fallen onto the grass. Aurelie embarrassedly began to pick up the end of the noodle with her fingers, before noticing her phone was starting to slide out of her pocket.

"Actually, maybe this is our opportunity for that photo you suggested," she exclaimed around the bit of noodle still in her mouth. "And the sun's even just right for it..."

Scooping up her phone, Aurelie carefully picked up the other end of the noodle and planted it in Jack's mouth. The sun had dipped about halfway below the horizon by now, sending slanting rays across the hilltop. Squinting her eye, she managed to position her phone so that the selfie function captured both of them.

Quickly, she snapped the photo.


I think it turned out rather well, she congratulated herself. Then she leaned in toward Jack again. Time to make the rest of this date go a little bit better...

[attr="class","cred"]VEL OF PIXEL PERFECT