"..." = Speech
<...> = Thought
---
"Never really been to this kind of joint before, on account of not needing to eat and having virtually no money, but it certainly looks like it should be a good place!" Shantae exclaimed with as much optimism as she approached most things in her life. Looking around the restaurant with that bright smile on her face.
Fingers drumming across the edge of the table as she leaned too & fro on her chairs legs.
A broken neck was not exactly a worry considering all she had just gone through; in fact she doubted a fall from that height could even give her one.
Across from her was a rather baffled looking Sky who was turning her head as if trying to find someone - a difficult task considering there was only the catering staff milling about. Even they tried to stay out of both sight and mind to best leave the two in a world of their own. "If I didn't know any better I'd think this place was closed."
Hearing that made Shantae nearly jump out her seat, something that was very noticeable considering she was already barely balancing on it, producing a large clattering which echoed given the silence.
"Shantae… Do you have something to say?" Narrowing her eyes at her best friend.
The ha- full blooded genie just bashfully rubbed the back of her head with a laugh as she continued to avoid all forms of eye contact. "Well, as it turns out, give them enough gems and they do close early..."
"So how much did you pay them?" Asked after letting out a long, drawn out, involuntary sigh even when she knew she almost definitely would not like the answer.
"W-Well nothing that I couldn't quickly earn back by killing one or two monsters just outside Scuttle Town's safety zone." She answered and (for a moment) Sky was dumb enough to relax her shoulders with her hand resting atop her impressive chest in relief. "Toward the west..."
That whisper evidently was nowhere near as quiet as Shantae thought. Sky almost fell off her chair in shock - promptly glaring towards her friend's impromptu and abrupt waste of what was a small fortune enough to buy a decent house. "Are you serious right now; why did you even do this!"
Hearing the annoyed shout from Sky (at Shantae's lack of financial responsibility) the staff peeked in.
"I just thought that it would be a good idea to celebrate my victory with a little after party - some rest after all that dancing I did. As well as enjoy the fact I don't gain weight." Her laughter rang a little hollow so Sky was almost certain the genie goofball was hiding something.
Even if she couldn't tell what.
"Teehee~." Rapping her knuckle on the side of her head with her tongue peaking out her lips.
Just in time for their food to arrive, the best you could find in a fishing town like Scuttle, which meant a lot of sushi which Sky was quite alright with. Having spent most of her own time in Desert Town. "Where are the others if this is a celebration; if I didn't know any better I would think you took me on a surprise date."
She joked… Only to become very disbelieving as that hollow laugh once again rang throughout the otherwise silence filled restaurant. "Pff~ date? With you? Date with you? As in, sharing a romantic moment together with a beautiful woman like you? Just a bit of gal pal fun… Unless?"
"Shantae-" Sky began to speak but was cut off as a pair of chopsticks quickly scoop up a rice ball only to expertly deposit it between her open lips with shocking accuracy. Initially her brows furrowed, however her tension soon faded to give way to satisfaction at the high quality of something so simple.
"Before hearing your answer I just want the two of us to enjoy our time together." Her voice is soft.
Smiling wryly; Sky now came to realise maybe she was no less unintentionally dishonest than Shantae.
"Plus, based on your reaction, the food is great!" Laughing as if things hadn't suddenly gotten unexpectedly vulnerable.
Chopsticks retreating from feeding Sky in order to feed Shantae herself; helping herself to one of the triangular rice balls she had fed her best friend. Tiny mouth unable to fit the entire thing so she could only take a little bite out of one of the corners. Hand resting underneath to catch rogue grains.
Her eyes instantly widened as she took a bite out of the satisfyingly crunchy seaweed only to find a little hidden surprise. Bringing her hand to her mouth as she chewed it with a little squeal as well as a shaking of her torso. "Oh my, is that a tuna filling in there?"
"Yeah it's surprisingly good; you probably already know that this style of food is from the eastern continent but over there they call it onigiri instead." Picking up her own pair as she turned it into a learning moment.
Hearing that Shantae's eyes shined as she looked at the rest of the food. "What do they call sushi?"
"... Sushi I believe." Answering slowly as her voice shook due to her hiding back the smile that wanted to force its way on her lips as she took a bite-sized roll next.
Though her composure couldn't surprise the little "oh" that slipped out her friend.
Shoulders slumping as she realised she asked something dumb.
… Again.
"Although I do believe these would be considered nigiri for me due to being in bite sized chunks - maybe not so much for you though." Letting out a chuckle before she spoke only to smile more upon seeing her friend struggling to eat the generous portioned nigiri. "Are you on your third or fourth bite?"
Shantae's cheeks inflated in a pout as she still had about a quarter of her first riceball. "... It's my fifth."
At that Sky could hold back her laughter.
A blush found its way from her cheeks to travel all along Shantae's long sharp ears as she suddenly found the "nigiri" all the more fascinating.
Not that she could move onto the rest as she still had a few "mouth fulls" of her first choice.
"I forgot when the last time I saw you so flustered was." A warm nostalgic softness was painted across Sky's features as she looked at her friend. Shantae did mumble something yet it quite clearly wasn't in any known mortal tongue.
Although what caused Sky's eye to rise was the fact she actually did recognise it. "Is that divine?"
"Oh, I didn't think you knew it, guess it makes sense given how smart you are." Blinking owlishly as Sky did the same back.
Quickly realising the incorrect assumption. "I wouldn't say I'm fluent but I'm more impressed that-"
Abruptly stopping herself as she took in Shantae's appearance.
Promptly coming to sport a blush of her own as she coughed into her fist. Of course the prior teasing victim refused to let go of that moment of weakness - leaning forward over the table with a smirk found its way up to her eyes. "Surprised that a spirit knows the maiden language of the spirits and gods?"
Giggling behind her raised hand as the blush only grew as Sky sunk into her sea chair silently eating her own food with a glare towards Shantae.
Giving the genie enough time to finish her first onigiri at last.
"Mmm~ this is most definitely worth the price of admission!" Bawling aloud as she finally got to try another piece from their shared plate. A nice bit of sashimi with just the slightest dollop of green that she merrily bit into multiple times till the entire thing was gone.
"Oooh~ that green pasty thingy had a real pleasant heat; a bit sad it faded so quickly…" Sulking after giving her compliment - much to the amusement of Sky. "That is wasabi and apparently its spiciness only fades fast when it is ground fresh from the root as it loses its potency quite rapidly."
That got Shantae's eyes to glimmer once more. "Woah that stuff is from a root? Can we grow it?"
For a moment Sky couldn't help freezing at the adorable yet seductive sight of Shantae's large watery eye's long lashes fluttering at her.
A blush momentarily coming to her cheeks.
"Uhm I, I don't know for sure since I obviously mostly focus on birds, I imagine the main island at least wouldn't have the right environment..." Seeing the sad face Shantae began to make; she couldn't help adding a little bit more. "However it should be possible to grow some privately."
"How?" Blinking in confusion as she helped herself to another slice.
Sky rose a finger as she wagged around another piece of sashimi. "Well there is this gardening technique called "greenhousing" that seals off a field from the outside environment. Then, using a bit of alchemy, it would be possible to adjust the atmosphere inside to match what is needed for the plants."
"Wow, that is so clever!" Clapping her hands with Sky only able to shake her head at how easily impressed that best friend of hers truly was.
Only to instantly have her eyes shoot open.
Panting for a second as she waved a hand in front of her face although, as Shantae noted, the heat was actually very quick to fade. "Damn I don't know how you looked so nonchalant with this wasabi."
Shantae just shrugged her shoulders. "Just a nice little bit of heat."
"Ain't no "little bit" about that heat… I have to admit you have a darn iron stomach." Muttering to herself.
That genie just laughed it off, though.
---
After a rocky start the late night dinner ended up being a very pleasant experience; coming down from that high the two walked toward Shantae's lighthouse-cum-home.
Technically that lighthouse wasn't outside the town.
Even if it also wasn't inside the walls that one would normally consider the border.
"Y'know my lighthouse is actually the oldest standing building in Scuttle town?" Shantae cheerfully informed Sky with her hands nonchalantly crossed behind her back.
Heading across the wooden bridge between the town and the separate island where her home sat.
Waves freely crash between the log supports.
Shantae even took the chance to look out towards the beautiful shimmering reflection of the moon on the surface of the churning water. "Originally the entire town used this island to protect themselves from the naga roaming in the wastelands. As time went on they slowly transitioned to their current location."
A huge smile on her face as Sky couldn't help silently linger off to the side; taking a truly fantastical sight as her friend moved a hand over her eyes to peer further out toward the horizon..
In day to day life it was easy to forget, however, Shantae truly was an ethereal beauty.
Behind that bubbly yet often abrasive (and foolishly willful) personality was a legendary genie who had just saved their country slash continent from a fearsome pirate. It was impossible to ignore just how terrifying that manipulative piratess actually was. A villain of literal mythical notoriety as well as having the strength to match - to the point entire countries were willing to pay her to leave them mostly alone.
Yet the tiny (only five foot in height) 18 year old girl in front of her had managed to beat that legend.
For the first time since they first met as kids…
Somehow,it felt wrong, to treat a hero as just her rather ditzy but well intentioned best friend, when she herself had hardly done anything nearly as impressive.
"Rather fitting that it should be the home of the guardian genie of Scuttle Town, then." Her smile somewhat sombre as she admired the genie from what felt like an increasingly vast distance. Despite all of that; the girl in question looked over her shoulder with the biggest smile.
"I really mean it when I say that I couldn't have done it without you." Looking back toward the ocean with her blue eyes appearing mesmerising when filled with that graceful moonlight. "Not only can I always rely on you to guide my rather poorly thought out charge ahahaha…"
Wryly laughing while scratching the back of her head in embarrassment. "But you also went out of your way to collect a bunch of relics for my transformations. I know I wouldn't have had time to do that while collecting the stones yet I couldn't have succeeded without them."
A warmth began to flood through Sky's chest that soon reached her entire being; perhaps even beating the pride of when she first secured a contract with the palace at merely fifteen years old.
"I… Thank you, truly, I'll just be honest and say it outright." Taking a deep breath as she attempted to calm her chaotically beating heart and centre her wild but ultimately unhelpful thoughts. "I felt completely useless at being unable to actually help you in the fight but… Knowing that I still did help is..."
Closing her eyes while tilting her head back; letting moonlight bathe her features as her words came out as a barely audible whisper. "Relieving."
Now it was Shantae's turn to be caught off guard.
Sadly Sky wasn't finished.
"I should also be honest with you in saying that I doubt a relationship between us could work since girls can't exactly have kids together. There is no world in which my annoying parents would quietly accept something that doesn't fit their perfect image of me." Practically growling out the last part.
"I don't even know what that image of me is…" Grinding her teeth so harshly that it was impressive they didn't end up cracking. "Plus I enjoy the freedom of sleeping around too much to settle quite yet."
Shantae just blankly blinked only to raise a finger up with a cheeky smile. "Oh, but I'm a genie who has magic so powerful that we can grant wishes and you are as talented as an alchemist. I can even confirm that magic to create a penis exists!"
Raising her brows with a cheeky grin.
"I also don't mind having an open relationship where we share more than just a bed~♥" Finishing it off with what was probably supposed to be a seductive wink.
Yet it was hard to remove the obvious inexperience from her attempt to flirt.
That wink most definitely "excessive" in its execution.
Instead eliciting a laugh from Sky who was used to far more skilled pickup artists.
It was then that Shantae asked something rather strange. "Before you give your final answer… Do you want to come in for a snack; since we didn't have dessert at the restaurant?"