isleofavalon | Birthday Not-Date (That Totally Is a Date)

🧙 WHO: Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd, Jean Gunnhildr, and maybe a cameo from a third party
⚔️️ WHAT: Jean's birthday was March 14. Dimitri wants to treat her to a meal as a gift now that the weather is getting nicer.
🕒 WHEN: Late April - early May
🗺️ WHERE: Patio dining at a nice restaurant
⚠️ WARNINGS: Dorks

[Now that the weather had gotten much nicer, it was time to finally make that dinner out with Jean he promised for her birthday a reality. He and Jean picked out a date and time, and Dimitri placed a reservation at a fine restaurant with patio seating. He also bought some new clothes for the occasion -- navy blue dress pants and a matching jacket, with a white shirt underneath. It had taken him some time to find something nice that would also fit over his muscular form, but in the end he managed to get something that fit comfortably. No tie, though. He couldn't stand it.

Dimitri happens to arrive at the restaurant first. Realizing he was still early, he chooses to simply wait outside the entrance for his date -- sorry, his friend -- to arrive.

For some reason, he feels nervous. And he's not really sure why.]

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[She shouldn't be being this nervous over dinner with a friend, should she? It would be like having dinner with Kaeya or Diluc back in Mondstadt. Instead, she found herself overthinking everything from her outfit to how she wanted to wear her hair.

Finally, she shook her head, as if to get rid of her nerves and decided on a dress the same blue as her summer outfit. Her hair ended up in the same ponytail as always, more for simplicity than anything else.

With her familiar floating in tow, she headed to the restaurant and waves at Dimitri as she walks in.]

Oh, I'm sorry if I'm late.

[From his vantage point, Dimitri can see Jean coming his way for about half a minute before she enters conversation distance. He smiles and waves back, standing up to pull out a chair for her as she arrives.]

Not at all. You picked the perfect time to arrive.

[He'll just leave out how long he's been waiting. And he'll try to ignore the butterflies in his stomach.]

Thank you.

[She says as she takes a seat, trying to be as polite as possible. She was still dealing with a king, after all.]

So, how did you find this place? It looks really nice.

[Small talk, small talk.]

[Once Jean is in her chair, Dimitri lets go of it and takes his own seat, listening to Jean's question.]

Ever since getting here I've spent a lot of time meeting with other people from Fódlan over tea. This was one of the locations I met someone at.

[He gestures toward the interior of the place they're at.]

The tea here was divine when I had it last. I thought to try their entrees to see how they fare in comparison.

I'm glad you have friends here. Most of the people I know of from home... Well, they're not around now. I think they went back. [She misses them, but she would rather they be safe at home, then in Avalon.]

That sounds like a plan to me. [And a smile.]

Yes. I know that feeling.

[Dimitri's expression changes. There's a look of melancholy as he thinks about the friends he had from back home who have disappeared.]

Some of the people I knew from Fódlan have likewise disappeared. I can only hope that they're safe. But there are still some here.

[Not as many as Dimitri realizes, though. He has yet to learn that Byleth and Edelgard have both disappeared. As far as Fódlan goes, it's only him and Claude left here now.]

It was good to see them, though. It does my heart well to see that they've been able to prosper, even if they didn't hail exactly from the Fódlan I knew.

I'm sorry to hear you've gone through the same thing.

[She pauses a moment.]

At least it seems, when they return they'll return to what they remember. Nothing will have changed as if time stopped. Maybe that's good to remember.

I can testify to that myself. I've been told -- and have seen evidence for it -- that I was here previously myself. That being said, I have no memories of my prior experience here.

[He still remembers the dagger that Jade had shown him. Even if she's gone, he's not going to forget that any time soon.]

Either way, I'm going to do my best, for them. As long as I'm here, I'll give as much as I can to ensure that things continue as if they've never left.

[He miiiight be biting off more than he can chew here.]

Interesting. I wonder if anyone who comes back from home will be in the same situation. [She takes a moment to pause.]

That might be a big undertaking for one person. But, I'll help you with things, if you'd like.

To be honest, I haven't spent any time looking into it. So I don't know what is or isn't the case -- just my own.

[Here, Dimitri pauses. Fortunately, this is when the server arrives to take their orders. Dimitri places his, then uses the time to think. His initial impulse is to insist he doesn't need the help. But that attitude was a problem, and contributed to his past traumas. He's not alone at all, and should be willing to accept some help every now and then.

He speaks again when the server leaves.]

I would appreciate that. I think I might actually like that, even.

[Jean places her order when the server stops by, waiting until after Dimitri does. She was half expecting him to reject her offer, as it was something she would have done herself, especially before arriving here.

She was pleasantly surprised.]

I'm glad. [And she smiles.] I look forward to spending more time with you. [//////]

[Seeing Jean smile like that flusters Dimitri a little bit. He tries his best to not show it, but he can't stop at least some color from flushing into his cheeks. The bigger effect is the butterflies in his stomach, but he keeps his mouth shut about those.]

A-ah, yes. And I with you.

[He clears his throat as he tries to think of something else to say. Too bad Byleth isn't here to provide him with subjects...]

So, ah. Has there been anything new in your life as of late?

[She shakes her head.]

Not as of late. I've mostly been keeping to myself, especially since most of my friends went away.

I do need to find more things to do, being so sedentary is getting to me.

[She looks at him again.]

How about yourself?

[Dimitri develops a look of concern on his face at the mention of Jean's friends disappearing. That's not an easy thing to cope with. It eases, though, when she mentions getting more active. He could certainly help with that.]

Mostly work and training, though I'm still taking time to study. The blacksmith I was working for also disappeared, but I've been able to continue weapon appraisals on my own. Admittedly, I've also had a lot to think about regarding information about my own home -- but I can only do so much about that here.

Birthday Not-Date (That Totally Is a Date)

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