(WIP) >be human (You) >return from family BBQ with a bunch of food >like seriously, a lot >no, more than that >no, a fair bit more >no, MORE >you have no idea how much >... >Ok, that amount >yeah > >set aside a nice plate in the fridge for wolfess roommate >leave much larger platter of roasted meat on counter to cool >leave note on fridge that you brought her some BBQ >go to get ready for bed > >she gets back, sees note, and sees platter on counter >assumes you brought her that entire platter >you didn’t, but... >as soon as you get out of the shower, she pounces on you and begins licking your face >she explains that she didn’t know you felt that way, but had hoped so >... >wat > >it turns out that bringing a gift of meat is considered a gesture of affection >but, bringing more meat than four can eat in a single sitting to a non-family member is a VERY aggressive courtship gesture >bringing more than three types of meat demonstrates hunting prowess - a Big Deal among Canid Folk. >bringing more than five types of meat is a VERY Big Deal >the platter had beef, chicken, turkey, duck, mutton, lapin, venison, and pork >you are now accidentally courting your roommate ------------------------------------------ Before I even open the door, my mouth was watering. The apartment smelled absolutely delicious. Holy shit, it was lovely. Humans say barbecue smells good, but they always seem to like the scent of meat being roasted over a smoky fire. Me, I greatly prefer the scent of the roasted meat itself. I tried telling some humans this, and they claimed it was essentially the same smell. ...yeah, no. They have no idea what they are missing. ------------------------------------------ "No, I mean... look, that wasn’t a date." Her tail and ears drooped. "Don’t you like me?" "It’s not that!" he said, with a shake of his head. "I do like you. It’s just that I hadn’t really thought of it before." Her tail perked up a bit, then her eyes narrowed. "I thought a date was when two people that like each other go to spend time together." "It is!" "So when we went to see SlaughterSphere 4, even though we like each other, that wasn’t a date." "No," he said. "It wasn’t." She nodded to show she understood. "Ok. Why wasn’t it?" He groaned inwardly and tried to think of an explanation, but the more he thought about it, the harder it became to explain. "I... we didn’t think of it as a date, just hanging out. It’s... different." He snapped his fingers as something occurred to him. "It’s not a date unless both people know it is beforehand!" "Ah!" she exclaimed. "Now that I DO understand." Directly declaring ones intent to court another was actually a fairly common practice among her people. He motioned to the platter. "Remember..." -=-=-=-=-= break, refer to after SS4 non-date "I’m going to take you on a date. A real, proper, human style date." Her eyes lit up at that her tail began to make little, excited flits from side to side. "Where should I meet you?" she asked. He shook his head. "It’ll be a surprise. This Saturday afternoon, around 2 pm. Dress for activity!" Her tail wagged furiously. "Looking forward to it!" ------------- I seriously wanted to yip with delight and tackle him, two things I knew humans didn’t much care for, so I didn’t. My tail was wagging in overdrive and I felt like bursting, but instead I breezed past him, snagged the plate, and went to my room without a backward glance. I carefully set my plate down on my computer desk, then flopped down on to my bed. I rolled around a bit before grabbing a pillow to bury my face in. A few, well-muffled yips later, I sprawled out with my tongue out. I was really looking forward to Saturday. I actually didn’t care what we were going to do, I already like spending time with him. There was something special about this, though. Maybe it was because it was a real date, or maybe it was just the high I was feeling from hearing him say he liked me. The idea of him saying to set aside time, and he’d make arrangements for us to go spend time together made things different, somehow.