The Fox and The Girl's First Date~ [Private][W/ Spring]

Spring blushed as James tilted her head back to look at him. The feeling of his hand on her cheek was nice, incredibly nice. It wasn't just the physical contact though, it was also the emotion that it conveyed. For just a moment, Spring felt important. She felt like she mattered, like she meant something. And as quickly as it had came it was gone. Reality was hard, and she lived with it every day. But it was better than sitting in her room all day and crying.

Spring jumped along with everyone else, as Aubrey called out from the back. Though in Spring's case she literally jumped, clinging to James due to being startled. Her eye locked on the woman as she came out of the back and approached. Before she could fully comprehend what was going on Spring found something in her hands and was being pushed towards the changing room. Luckilly she was so startled that she didn't freak out from being touched. Nervously she entered the changing room and closed the curtain. Hanging up the bag on a hook inside she looked over herself in the full length mirror.

With a gulp she opened the bag and saw black fabric on a hanger in side. Slowly she removed her school uniform down to her purple stripped underwear. Once again she looked over herself in the mirror and immediately wanted to hide. The scars than ran across her left side were horrid. If it weren't for those wretched things maybe she would be worthy of this date with James... but no.

Shaking her head she pulled out the dress. It took her a while to figure out how to put it on, considering she had never even worn one before. Eventually she figured it out and was fairly certain that it was on right. Once it was on she put on the other two items that were in the bag and turned to look at herself in the mirror. The sight brought tears to her eyes. She looked.... almost gorgeous... She could almost imagine that she was a normal girl. She reached up to her hair and adjusted it so that it covered the left half of her face. Like this... everything was covered. It was... perfect... save for one little detail.

With a deep breath Spring opened the curtain and stepped out. On her form was a jet black dress that hugged her form and flared out slightly half way down her thighs giving her room to walk.  A black collar connected down to the rest of the dress by the single black sleeve on her left arm, wile her right shoulder was entirely exposed. The sleeve on the left arm went down just above her elbow where it flared out. Continuing down her arms she wore a pair of black silk opera gloves that came up past her elbow, completely covering her scars. Above her chest the dress plummeted down just enough to show off several inches of cleavage and around the waist was a thick band of glistening silver that matched with the sparking silver hem just above her ankles.

With how she had moved her hair the entire left half of her face was covered, hiding the bandages and scars underneath. The only sign of her deformations now was the strap from her eye patch on the right side of her face and the dangling fabric of the left glove where her fingered ended prematurely.  Spring blushed hard, and had to stop herself from activating her semblance as she stood there, clutching her hands together in front of herself nervously. The only thing she was missing was a pair of shoes to go with her dress. “Um... um... um... h... h... h... h... how do... I... look?”

Truly, he had no words to describe exactly what had happened. His longtime friend suddenly came bursting out of the backroom with some kind of clothing in her hands and started to push his date towards the changing rooms. After Spring closed the curtains on the room, the elder owner latched onto his left arm and grinned brightly up at him before leading him closer to the room and pushing him down onto the chair that was suspiciously placed in front of the booth that Spring occupied. With a light sigh, he accepted his faith and settled in, anxious and excited for the moment that sheet of fabric would open to reveal his girl.

"So, why did it take you so long to find the clothes? You never take as long as you did earlier."

The secret artist turned huntsman voiced his thoughts to his companion, shifting his gaze from the room to look up at the still-grinning owner. In response, the woman laughed softly, cupping her own cheek with her hand. "That's because I didn't exactly look for it~" The boy looked her, confused as he could clearly recall the words she had exclaimed upon reentering her shop. "But you specifically said you found it. How could you now say you didn't exactly look for it?"

"That's because I found most of the things. The ones I couldn't..."

She grinned down at her confused friend.

"I made~"

Before he could give a proper reply, his attention was drawn back to the changing room as the sounds of curtains opening filled his ears and his jaw dropped at the sight presented before him. There, standing before him, was a woman who looked like she came straight out of a painting. There, clutching her hands in front of her, was Spring. His gaze remained locked on his scarred partner as he stood from his seat and walked towards her - his stride slow and careful. Once he came close upon her, his eyes trailed down her figure and back up to her face as he smiled brightly and wrapped his arms around her waist. "You look gorgeous, princess.. Like straight out of an artwork.."

Spring's nerves were at an all time high. Even by her own admittance she looked pretty good, but even a really nice sword could be made out of really bad materials. There she stood on display for James, her face stayed locked on him, as she tried to not to look down between her feet. Even as she watched James she did notice several of the other shoppers stop in awe as they looked at her. It was odd, it was nice. For the first time in years she felt normal. She felt good about herself. She felt right. The look of wonder on the white haired fox's face only made it better.

As James approached, Spring didn't feel her usual urge to retreat. His touch around her sent a wave of confidence over her. The words he spoke brought tears to her eyes. Not tears of sadness, no for the first time in her life she cried out of joy. Joy... an emotion she hadn't felt.... since the fire.

“James.... thank you...” Spring said, her single working eye making contact with his pair. She didn't know how to thank him for this properly. This was better than she could have ever imagined. There was really only one thing missing, a pair of shoes to go with the dress. Sneakers didn't really go with such a nice dress. “Um... I think I need shoes...” Spring said pointing down to her bare feet.

It was like a dream come true. She truly felt like the name James had been using for her. A princess. It was perfect, no it was more than perfect. Maybe she wasn't the confident huntress fighting grimm or the gorgeous actress in the gold dress, or the curvy model who turned heads as she passed. But right now she was a princess, and James was her strong and handsome knight.

The exuberant owner smiled softly at the scene playing out before her. In all the years of being the young hunter's friend and employee, she was absolutely thrilled to be able to see him in such a heartwarming situation. She truly was happy for him finding a girl that was certainly very special to the fox. It was certainly worth coming into the store today and busting her back finding that dress and making the accessories. Though as she watched the two, she started to feel a little uncomfortable with witnessing such an intimate scene. Her eyes quickly drifted downwards and realized the poor girl was still without footwear. Making a quick assessment of the outfit as a whole, she quietly slipped away to look for a pair shoes, unaware that her friend's date had made the same conclusion.

The snow fox looked down at his date's bare feet and smiled lightly before looking back up at her with a teasing grin. "I don't know, princess. You have some really pretty feet. Would be a shame to have them covered up by shoes." He chuckled awkwardly at the strange statement. "Sorry, I'm sure that must have sounded weird." He shrugged lightly as he tightened his hold around Spring's waist. He gave a quick kiss on the cheek and continued to admire his date's appearance. Certainly, black suited her well - even better than the royal blue, loathe he is to say.

Aubrey was still the better fashionista than he was.

Of course, just as he had this thought, said woman came striding back with a box in her hands. Obviously, she knew what the dilemma was and returned with a pair of shoes. What kind, however, remained a mystery as the container gave no clear description as to the package inside. The woman grinned as she approached the couple, proud of her selection. Once she got close to the two, she stopped dead on her tracks and removed the lid of the box to reveal what laid inside. Inside was a pair of simple, but delicate flats. Black in color, the same shade as the dress, it slipped onto the foot with relative ease before being fastened tight with a buckle and a strand that went around her ankle. The front of the show was a solid black, hiding the toes of the wearer while the sides stretching from the ankle to the toes were made of a sturdy lace material, with intricate designs of flowers and the like, spread across it. "Hopefully this will solve this little dilemma~?"

The singer gawked at his friend before sighing and shaking his head with a light smile. Truly, she was the better fashionista.

"How much?"

"Free of charge."

"You're lying."

"Not at all. Dress is free too."

"You're unbelievable."

"I know. Just tell me the details of the date later~"

The two bantered back and forth with smiles tugging at their lips. Their friendship was an odd one, but one that ran deep. Looking back at the girl currently wrapped in his arms, he tilted his head towards the shoes in the shop owner's hands. "What do you think? Take it or leave it?"

Spring didn't really notice when Aubrey left them. She was too focused on James, and her own feelings. Following his gaze down to her feet. Honestly she never really thought about them that much. The only time she actually saw them was when she took a shower, other than that she usually wore socks. James' comment on her feet was a little strange, but it still made her feel good inside. A stray thought drifted into her head, and she shoved it out before she could keep going down that path. No she couldn't think like that right now, they were only on their first date. “No... it's fine. I... I'm glad you like them,” She says as she wiggles her toes.

Next thing she knew the owner was back, with what looked to be a shoe box. Silently she wondered what kind of shoes were in there, and hoped they weren't heels. She had never worn them before, and they looked uncomfortable to wear. As the lid was removed Spring's fears were put to rest. Looking over the shoes her eyes went wide. They were beautiful. Just like her dress. Nervously she took the box and sat down on a nearby bench to put them on as James and Aubrey spoke. They weren't that hard to figure out and she quickly had them on her feet properly.

“Um... th... th... th... th... thank you, Ma'am,” Spring said as she walked back over, the shoes on her feet surprisingly comfortable despite their small sole.

The auburn-haired woman waved her off. "Bah, think nothing of it, sweetie~! Consider it a consolation for having to put up with the prude kit over there!" She snarked good-naturedly at her dear friend, who jokingly growled at her words. "I resent that! I'm not a kit anymore!" She shrugged off his words and ignored him completely. She leveled a grin at her latest customer and spoke to her with a bashful laugh. "And please, call me Aubrey! Ma'am makes me sound old.." She put a hand to her cheek as she pouted at the two. While her age was certainly not too much of an issue to her, being regarded as some old maid was not high on her list of things to do.

The fox boy grumbled to himself at the dismissal of his complaint before rolling his eyes at the ridiculous comment made by his friend. Yes, he understood that she was still relatively in the early years of her prime, but the whole title thing was silly.

Take the name and move on.

Now that Spring had proper footwear on, the artist took a step back and regarded her new look as a whole. The shoes made a perfect match for his date, pairing well with everything else she was wearing. He felt that flats made the better choice as he figured that heels were not something she would have been used to. "I take it you like the shoes then? They match well with the dress - surprising, considering who picked it out for you." He shot a teasing grin which earned him a slap on the arm from the jokingly fuming woman.

“O... o... oh...” Spring said, not really sure how to answer what Aubrey had just told her. Honestly she liked being around James so it wasn't like she was dealing with him. Wait... was.... was that a joke? Oh... of course it was. She still took a while to catch on to some of the more subtle nuance of interpersonal interaction when she was actually a part of the interaction. “Um... o... o... okay.... um.... I... I... will,” Spring said to the store owner. This had to have been one of the longest conversations she had ever had with someone she had just met in.... years.

As James stepped away from her Spring jumped a little and turned towards him. She nervously gripped the front of her skirt while going back and forth between looking at the ground and up at him. Deep down she hoped that she was at least half as worthy as she should have been to be treated like this. To be taken out on a date by such a wonderful person. “Um.... I... I... I... I do... Um... th... thank you....” Spring said, her gaze now solely on the ground.

A thought popped into her head. “U... u... u.... um.... James.... um.... wh.... wh.... where..... are.... we.... um... go... go.... going..... if.... I... I.... I.... need to be... um... dressed.... this.... n... n... n.. nice?” Spring asked looking further down and gripping her dress tighter.

The snow white fox started to fall into his thoughts before he was quickly roused back to attention upon being questioned by the scarred girl. He blinked lightly as various unrelated ideas faded away to make room for processing her words. Once it did process, a grin worked its way onto his face. "Why, my dear, we're going out for dinner!" Oh, he was certainly excited for this. A romantic dinner for a first date seemed right up there on dreams. He just hoped it would be hers too.

"I made reservations for two at this nice restaurant just a few blocks down. While I would have certainly not minded you in your normal clothes, princess, I was thinking we can be a little fancy for tonight." He checked his scroll for the time and noted that their appointed time was steadily approaching and he still needed to go home to change. It should not take him too long to get there and back. Knowing the city like the back of his mind, he could take a couple of shortcuts through the alleys.

It seemed as though the momentary boost in confidence that the dress had given Spring had finally worn off. She still looked beautiful, but she no longer fully let like it. If nothing else she was glad her hair was long enough to pull in front of her face to cover her bandages. The stark white fabric that covered her scars was an unsightly contrast to the gorgeous black of her dress. With her eye still trained on the floor she listened to James' response. Immediately her gaze shot up to his face. “D... d.... d... d... dinner?” Spring asked, slightly shocked. If she was wearing something this nice that meant that wherever they were going for dinner was likely expensive, very very expensive.

Both flattered and slightly worried Spring wondered how James could even afford to pay for dinner, and how had he planned to pay for the dress? It took her a couple seconds before remembering that James was a famous idol. Just imagine, her going out with a famous singer. It wasn't even like she was a normal girl like in the books either. No she wasn't anywhere near material for something like that.

“N... n... nice restaurant....?” Spring quietly questioned, more to herself than to James. Once again her imagination went wild. Her and James at a nice candle lit dinner, simple conversation over elegant food. Though for once her dream wasn't shattered by reality. With how she was dressed, and how her hair was done, her scars were entirely hidden. It wasn't until one little detail brought her back to reality that her dream was broken. Her left hand. In her mind it was whole, but in reality it was broken and not really good for anything.

Of course as she came back to reality she realized something. Spring was all dressed up, well save for hours of makeup since she couldn't afford it. But James was still in his regular clothes. He did say they could be fancy tonight and not just her. So was he going to buy something here or....? “U... u... u... um... James... wh... wh... what about you? I... I mean.... I'm all... dressed up... so... a... are you going to.... wear something... um.... nice... too?”