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An Hour or Two Later.

Narrator Once the duo make-up and dress for a date, they casually walk out of the manor and down into the town. There's a slight hill that the manor grounds sit upon, a winding path down into town from which the Dragon is probably fairly visible in her approach.

Strolling through town, Rebecca is where most people's eyes go immediately, but Courtney is not immune to the stares. Still, when Rebecca stops at a store to request something, she does so respectfully, and they've found most everyone is rather quickly inclined to help them.

Still, several encounters later, they've gathered up supplies for a picnic, and have now arranged themselves on a blanket in the park with an array of snacks.

Courtney is sitting on the blanket, next to Rebecca's side while the dragon is sort of half-wrapped around the picnic blanket (and coincidentally being protective of the kobold while doing it). The blue kobold in black clothes is busy setting up the... amount of food that would likely be overkill were it not for the dragon sharing the picnic with her.

She spares the occasional glance at the people looking at them, or trying not to look like they are looking at them. It makes the kobold sigh a bit, but at least she's wearing clothes. Better to not focus on that too much. Instead, she turns to admire all that she's put up for the two to eat and drink.

"Alright, that should do it. Glorious snacking ahoy."

Rebecca does her best to keep Courtney out of sight of onlookers, even if they've been mostly respectful so far. She eyes a few people who are staring, making them quickly move along once they notice the dragon glaring at them, then sighs to turn her attention back to Courtney.

"Ah, thank you, love. We might have overdone it on the junk food but... this is a special occassion and all, right? Our first date?" She grins, leaning her head down to 'boop' against Courtney's snout.

Courtney giggles at the boop, then sticks her tongue out: "Yup. Although I wonder how many of these people, like the clerk at the candy shop, think I am your child or something." She pauses, then shrugs, the thought of people misinterpreting their relationship not really bothering her that much.

Rebecca laughs, a few stores where she was too big to enter, resulted in Courtney running in to make a purchase with Rebecca standing outside, making herself rather obvious. "Aheh, maybe? Probably doesn't help the opinion that we bought so much candy there..."

She reachs a claw down to pick up a handful of taffy and pop it in her mouth.

Courtney giggles as she reaches into a bag of candy the size of a football: "They're just jealous. I would be."

Rebecca giggles as she chews, swallowing the taffy after a moment, "Jealous because I have such a beautiful girlfriend, or because of how much candy we bought? Or both? Probably both..."

Courtney smirks, glancing up at her girlfriend: "Mm, maybe. Although I don't know. If there is someone in that crowd that would want to be in my position... well, far as they know, that sort of thing isn't possible and I have no desire to tell them."

She winces a bit. "One friend clocking me out was plenty. At least Suzie took it well."

Rebecca frowns, having wanted to step in to stop that whole interaction, only for Courtney to wave her back after a moment. "That... went well enough, yes? It's sorta amazing she recognized you... considering. But then, I guess those who really care can recognize you through whatever form. I think it's good... if probably a bit painful in the moment. You doing alright after it all?"

Courtney nods slowly, thinking. "Yeah... I'm fine, I think. And like... I shouldn't have been so eager to drop all my previous life because of this, just because my parents were so backwards about it." She rolls her eyes a bit. "I know it's a big change, obviously. But well, Suzie insisted she get to visit me up there some day, and who am I to say no?"

Rebecca nods, reaching down towards a large party sub she carried along for herself and taking a chunk of it, "Any friend of yours is a friend of mine, of course. I can surely make myself scarce if Suzie wants to visit but isn't comfortable with me there... or I can stick around if you want me there. I'll leave that up to you, when... or if you're ready."

Courtney smiles: "We'll see. I'll be in touch with her anyway." She hums: "She was kind of my only friend in school growing up. She didn't directly call me out on vanishing on her, but... she kind of did."

Rebecca fiddles with the chunk of sandwich in her claws, "Mmm... I never really had any friends growing up. Just books." She laughs, but the sadness behind the laugh is apparent. "Hold onto your friends if you can, Courtney. I'll encourage you to reach out when you can."

Courtney nods: "Yeah... Hindsight is twenty-twenty, I suppose. But in my defense, everything about me and myself was changed. Suzie did understand that, at least, and promises to keep the knowledge to herself for now. I'd rather not the whole town know who I was."

Rebecca smiles, "Oh, and I'm not saying you were wrong... it was a lot... it IS a lot, and we're both still figuring it out. I'm just saying, don't let this chance escape. But you know that already."

She sighs, glancing around again at the passerbys still staring, "It's a lot to put together, for people who don't know you. I doubt anyone else could figure it out... I hope... maybe a picnic was a silly thing to do like this, but I'm glad we're here."

Courtney nods, starting to snack again: "I like silly. And I'm glad too." She smiles, glancing upwards again. "If someone else recognizes me, we'll deal with it."

Rebecca takes a bite of her large sandwich, smiling at Courtney. "We both needed this, hm? The fresh air, a change of scenery... not something I'm exactly used to, I admit. Been a bit of a shut-in, both by family and by choice."

Courtney smirks a bit: "Maybe even us introverts need fresh air at times. But not too much. Really these people gawking are getting a mite annoying..." The kobold has a look on her face that might mean she's about to do something about this...

Rebecca tilts her head at Courtney's expression, "Don't worry about me, at least. I'm used to be stared at when I go out. Fresh air is nice, I just... I'm not terribly good with people. You've seen me in the town meetings."

Courtney nods with a small grunt, then starts climbing on top of Rebecca, making her way up quite easily now. She stands on the dragon's back spines and turns to the assorted crowd of onlookers, clearing her throat.

"Do you mind?! We don't come staring your picnicking on a day off! Either come ask if you're curious or butt off!"

Rebecca blinks as Courtney climbs up atop her, blinking again as the kobold shouts the onlookers away, and then stares in awe as most of the people disperse rather quickly, "W-whoa..."

Courtney nods, satisfied at the crowd at least mostly having the decency to disperse, even though few stragglers still linger. Some look like they would want to come ask something, but the kobold opts to ignore them for now.

She turns to Rebecca with a smile. "That should do it." Then she actually notices the dragon's expression. "... What?"

Rebecca blinks again, then laughs, "You. Here I am thinking I have to protect you, and you're the one standing up to protect me! It's just... I dunno... I'd say I'm in love but that's nothing new..."

Courtney blushes: "I mean, i-it's really not much of a protection to just tell gawkers to mind their own business..." She looks aside, touching her palms together.

Rebecca giggles, patting Courtney's mane with a claw, "Well, it certainly makes me feel like a Princess under your watchful eye. This is what we want, right... to be able to come down and do what we want without being the center of attention. I mean, maybe we always will be to some degree, but..." She glances around at the people who actually are just minding their own business now.

Courtney smiles, purring a bit as she instinctively leans onto Rebecca's palm. "Sounds like a goal to me. Like, it doesn't seem unreasonable to me to be able to be friendly and still have privacy, right?"

Rebecca shakes her head, "Not unreasonable at all. If I am going to be this community's dragon... I want to be a part of it. But that doesn't mean we're a public spectacle."

Courtney giggles a bit: "Yeah I don't want that in my resume, exactly." She then touches on Rebecca's neck a bit, before making her way down back to the picnic blanket. "I hear those chicken canapes calling for me. Hungry work, peacekeeping like that."

Rebecca giggles, "You've earned them, my valiant defender, your Princess is safe." She takes a bite of her sub, chuckling.

Courtney sticks her tongue out at the dragon, before digging into locating said snacks. "You're worth it, mistress."

Rebecca mrphs with a mouthful of sandwich, glancing away shyly from the 'm' word, though she is still smiling. "So... some lunch, some relaxation, then we go find out if any one is brave enough to try to style our manes, yes?"

Courtney nods: "Sounds like a plan to me." She pops a treat into her mouth: "Mm, fun things to get used to. But like... not really chewing my food much at all anymore. Too sharp teeth for that properly. Though my guts are also now made of stronger stuff, so eh, works out."

Rebecca hums, thinking as she looks back, "Again... the little things I would never think of. My teeth are for tearing, not chewing. My stomach is cast iron, I could eat anything." She takes another handful of taffy, a food that forces her to chew regardless, "Humans make the best food though."

The kobold hums: "Not that I..." She pauses, blinking. "...you know, honestly it's another thing that should freak me out about this change, but aside from learning how to food a bit differently, it doesn't." She absently nods: "Yeah, we do. At least if you pick the good places to get food from."

Rebecca shrugs, taking another bite. "I don't know if dragons just never bothered to learn, or what. It wouldn't shock me if the rest of my family is just too lazy to bother." She shrinks up her muzzle a moment, then sighs, "But I like learning all this stuff. From books, or even better, alongside you."

Courtney nods, then blinks and looks up: "Does that I get to keep teaching you how to kitchen? Cause I will."

Rebecca grins, "As long as you want me in your kitchen, then I'll be there with you."

Courtney smiles: "Always more fun to have someone to talk with when making food. Especially if that someone is you." She pops another snack: "Mm besides, isn't it like kobold's most important job to keep the dragon fed?"

Rebecca chuckles, "If I recall, Glimmer's book said the most important job of a kobold is to keep the dragon's head from swelling. But the food does seem important too." She pops another handful of candy into her mouth as emphasis.

Courtney laughs, then prods at Rebecca's side: "Oh, trust me, if you ever get enough ego to even do your own crowd dispersing, I will be there to call you out on it."

Rebecca nods, "You'd better." She leans in protectively, "Though if you ever need me to, I'll disperse anyone to keep you safe."

Courtney stands up to nuzzle the dragon: "I know. I love you~." She then laughs a bit: "I think we are pretty safe from needing much of that, though."

Rebecca hums, nuzzling back, "Y-yeah... a bit of instinct, I guess. I love you, too~"

Courtney giggles: "I don't mind, I just hope it's not needed. I much prefer if we are left alone~."

Rebecca pulls her head back enough to kiss Courtney, "Me too."

Courtney mm's softly in the kiss, not really having anything else to say for right this instant. Her tail gives the tiniest of wags, though.

Rebecca breaks the kiss, picking up one of the chicken canapes to give to Courtney, "So... this is a good date... right? You seem happy, even with the weirdness, and the interruptions."

Courtney giggles, smiling brightly: "I'm happy. It... feels good to be out here. Yeah sure, we weird people out and they stare, but that's just... guess that's just our life, now. We gotta deal with it."

Rebecca giggles, "To be honest, I was weird even before. The stares and such aren't new, even amongst my own family."

Courtney nods a bit. "Mm. They're new to me." She hums, thinking: "...that said, I want to maybe go find if anyone is willing to deal with my new weird hair." And new weird me, I guess, she thinks to herself.

Rebecca nods. "New beautiful hair." She sniffs at Courtney, and giggles, "You know, through all of this... you still smell the same to me. Is that weird? I remember when you first arrived, thinking how much I liked that smell..."

Courtney blinks. "Huh. I... well really I have no idea if my smell should have changed or not. So... not that weird? ...compared to everything else about all this lately, anyway."

Rebecca giggles, "Maybe it's just a me-weird thing and not a you-weird thing."

Courtney glances aside: "Well, my experience with this much sense of smell is limited to like... what has it been, few weeks?"

Rebecca hums, bringing a claw down to caress Courtney gently, "Yeah, I guess so. Sorry... didn't mean to bring it up like that... I just... you're not weird, that's all I'm saying. I mean, yes, we are. We both are. But that's not bad." She seems uncertain if she's helping or hurting things further, but she does seem to just want to reassure Courtney of... something. Everything.

Courtney smiles. "It's fine. I've refused to break down so far - that much, anyway - I'm not going to start losing it over being able to smell roasting meat better or desiring it more." She touches her paw on Rebecca's cheek. "This is a new life for me, but at no point have I thought it was bad, Rebecca."

Rebecca breaths out a laugh, "Okay, okay, fair... I just worry. Even with the changes I've had, I know it's only a fraction of what you've been through. And I am very vested in you being happy, love." She closes her eyes and leans against Courtney's paw every so gently.

Courtney closes her eyes as she leans onto Rebecca: "I know. It's a life, now." She hums: "That said, should we finish here and go find a hairdresser brave enough to serve us draconic beings?" She giggles a bit. "Heh. Guess I am a kind of draconic being now."

Rebecca hums, "You are whatever you wish to be, love. Human, draconic... the best of both?"

Courtney giggles: "I don't think I got a choice or some of this would have gone differently." She considers. "That said... if I had gotten the option to become this, would I have? I don't know. One side of me says, of course not, losing what I did, but..." She glances at her tail: "...there are things about this new me that I do rather like, too."

Rebecca frowns, "I just... suck with words. I just mean I would love you either way. This is... what we have, now. I don't want to change it because of what we've gained, but if I could give you the chance to change back, I would give it to you, of course."

Courtney smiles: "...thank you. But... well, it is what it is." She leans to nuzzle the dragon again, then turns to pack up their picnic supplies. "Love you regardless of the form I am in, but if loving you means I have scales and fur... then, that's what it means."

Rebecca swallows, "Mrph... I said I wouldn't apologize for it anymore too but..." She opts to bite her sandwich and look away, mumbling something that is probably not 'I'm sorry' out of the side of her full mouth.

Courtney giggles a bit: "I know, love. But I don't blame you. You feel bad cause of what happened even if you didn't actively do it."

Rebecca nods, smilling lightly, "I know you don't. But, well... no use in dwelling on that, yeah?"

Courtney nods: "Yeah, no use." She nods at the packed-up picnic meal. "Let's go."

Rebecca lets out a breath, then nods and stands up, picking up the packed up meal to carry for Courtney. "Alright. To the salon, love."

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