Hajime opened the door. He walked into his room, the one he shared with a certain ice princess. Aveline was reading a book, her glasses sitting comfortably on her nose as she leaned against the bed.
He faked a cough to get her attention. She ignored him.
"You heard what Professor Mayrose said right?" he said, "We have to come up with our own bonding exercise."
She answered him by turning the page.
"How about we do something besides pretending that I'm a fly on the wall."
Aveline closed the book and looked at Hajime.
"Like what?"
"Shopping?" he said.
"You want to go shopping? We have the maids for that."
"Have you never heard of a shopping date? We can try on clothes, eat food, and play games at the Noble Shopping district."
"Too many people."
"Come on it'd be fun," he said, "Unless you have a better idea?"
"Fine. Tomorrow."
A day passed by, and they stood in front of the entrance, where the grey cobblestone path met with an elegant marble path, a clear sign that the nobleman had too much money to spare. Walking past the two guards, both wearing black gloves, both carrying swords on their waists in their sheaths, the Floral Attuned wearing a white coat, the Floralith wearing a green coat, the crest of Petalhaven resting neatly on their chests, Hajime scanned them with his Lith's eye.
These two guards were strong, he thought. They were stronger than headmistress Charlotte but she's no longer bonded so it shouldn't be that surprising. He dismissed his train of thought before taking in the view of the district, one long road with shops lining both sides and the occasional alley leading to more merchants with an unhealthy amount of greed.
"What now?" Aveline asked.
"We walk around."
"That's it?"
"We can hold han-"
Aveline walked away before he could even finish his sentence. A wry smile appeared on his face. Following after her until she stopped in front of a shop, curiously looking through the window, a purple sundress with a hypnotizing pattern, resting neatly on a mannequin doll made of porcelain.
"Do you want to try it on?" a woman asked.
Hajime swore that woman was just in the shop moments ago yet here she was like a leprechaun finding a pot of gold.
Aveline looked at Hajime, who nodded before she agreed to try it on.
They entered the store, the lady leading Aveline to a changing room, Hajime browsing through the different attires. The store had different kinds of clothes for all seasons. Hajime saw a shirt that he liked, picking it up, trying it over his own shirt, finally checking the price tag, his heart skipping a beat as he put it back in its rightful place.
After a few minutes, Aveline finished putting on the dress and exited the changing room.
"How is it?" she asked sheepishly.
"Cute," Hajime said without hesitation.
The dress enhanced Aveline's cuteness. If that was even possible.
"Really?" she asked, a small smile on her face.
"Yup. Now do a spin."
She let out a sigh before doing a spin, the dress spinning along with her, her hair swaying along with it.
"I'm glad to see you liked it. I have a special collection just for couples. I'll be right back." the lady said, dashing away, not giving Hajime or Aveline a chance to refuse.
The lady returned with several sets of clothes. She gave a stack to Aveline.
"It looks pretty," Aveline said.
"You'll need someone to help you put it on, unfortunately, I have other customers to attend to first." she pointed towards the customer waiting at the checkout, giving Hajime his set of clothes before winking and walking away.
Aveline stared at Hajime with narrowed eyes. She sighed and gestured for him to follow him into the changing room, the changing room that had just enough space for one person.
"Don't look."
Hajime stared at the curtains, hearing the sounds of zippers opening and closing, vividly imagining the scene behind him.
"Turn around."
Hajime gulped, gazing upon Aveline's delicate figure, his jaw dropping.
"What?" she asked.
"Stunning," he said as he adjusted his pants, the dragon slowly awakening.
"I feel naked," she said as her cheeks turned red.
"Please zip it up." she said.
"With pleasure."
Hajime approached her. She looked down at his crotch, noticing the bulge.
"Pervert."
He didn't bother arguing. Instead, he hooked his fingers into the zipper and slowly dragged it up her back, covering her soft skin. She turned to look into the mirror, biting her thumb.
"What is it?"
"It's too tight. I can't breathe," she said, "I hate it. Can you unzip it?"
"Okay."
Hajime unzipped the dress and Aveline wasted no time taking it off, her small bra keeping her boobs in check, her white panties the only thing protecting her womahood , Hajime could smell her natural scent. She picked up her school uniform before gesturing for Hajime to leave.
She exited the changing room, handing him the clothes that she tried on and crossing her arms.
"I hate this."
"We can go somewhere else then."
"Okay."
She nodded and walked out the door. Hajime put both their clothes on a rack before following after her, ignoring the saleswoman, who had a vein bulging on her forehead.
"Where do you want to go?" he asked.
"Antique store," Aveline said.
"Oh, I know where to find one."
"Where?"
"Unfortunately, it's hidden behind a magic spell," he said, "Only those who are holding hands can see it."
He smiled before asking for her hand. Aveline just stared at his hand for a minute, in the end, she gave in."
Holding her soft hand, enduring the fact that her hand was turning colder and colder, eagerly guiding her through the crowd of students and nobles, entering alleyway after alleyway as if he had walked it a thousand times, Hajime stopped in front of a store, which made all the other stores look modern.
Aveline looked around the street. There wasn't anyone else here in this alleyway, only cats and rats.
"You know it's illegal to kidnap Floraliths right?" she asked.
"Why would I kidnap you? I already sleep next to you."
"Then why did you bring me to the outskirts of the district? To this sketchy store.
"Like I said it's an antique store. I've been here a few times and the owner is quite friendly although she can be quite energetic."
"Okay. If anything happens, you'll sleep outside."
"Sure thing honey." he teased.
They heard the sound of glass breaking before a barrage of profanities filled the streets.
"Like I said, energetic."
He reached for the handle and pushed the door open, revealing a room filled with different cultures as if a time traveler opened up his own shop.