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// Stormy's First Date 
// Story: School Days 
// by Dai Kirai 
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Stormy stood outside and waited. Large black columns were laced with decorative gold and a white topped created an elegant if imposing visage. Swaths of ponies walked past the patient pegasus all in various modes of dress with only the most regal even looking at the Golden Crow. The flowers were bundled and held by his left wing to not impede his walking, or in this case pacing and pawing. He could just make out a clock on an opposing building, probably a peddler in such things, and watched the minutes tick by. The butterflies in his stomach were turning into angry wasps slowly but surely with each passing minute. Was I late? Did she already leave? Never show? He thought while fighting the panic before wondering, Maybe she is just waiting inside?

Stormy took a few hesitant steps into the restaurant, if the outside looked regal he had no way to classify the insides, even the maitre d had a nicer suit than the newcomer pony. The place was dimly lit with red accents yet everything was clearly visible. The inside din was hushed yet you could not hear any conversations. “May I help you good sir?” The maitre d asked from his podium.

“Uhhhhh,” Stormy forgot why he came in in wonder of the opulence.

“Do you have a reservation?” The pegasus looked down at his podium which had to be holding a book of patrons to be expected. “If not I am sorry to say we are all booked up for the next month.”

“Um, no. Sorry.” Stormy cleared his throat and shuffled his head to clear the fog. “I was supposed to meet my date here. A Miss Radiant Dawn.” Well had coached him some on the proper formalities but they still felt foreign and iffy.

“Ahhh, you must be Sir Stormy Skies. Madam has been asking about you.” He got off the little stool and started walking into the restaurant. “If you will please follow me.” Even the unicorn’s gait was different as if he step was carefully planned in advance.

Stormy spotted his date before they got within twenty feet of the table, Dawn was practically a light unto herself. Her dress has frills and outcropping like an aurora he sadly never got to see as very few weather factories allowed them. The gossamer colors seemed to shift and swirl with the full rainbow yet always complimented her orange body and golden-brown mane and made her crimson eyes stand out even more. The pegasus stopped dead in his tracks at her sight.

Dawn saw his reaction and waved the maitre d away, who bowed before returning to his post.

Stormy somehow made his way to the table without knowing it and handed what now looked like boring standard flowers in comparison.

“OH MY!!!” Dawn gasped. “Those are amazing.” An edge of awe in her voice. “I’ve never seen such brilliant flowers. Thank you Stormy!” She got up from her lavender sitting pillow to give the stallion a peck on the cheek.

"S-s-sorry I was late… I was-”

She interrupted him with a giggle. “It’s quite all right. I knew you would show up eventually?” her smile showed the honesty.

“I have never seen such a dress. You look stunning.” Stormy had no idea how to start a date and hope a compliment was a good idea.

“It’s a one of a kind original design by Hoity Toity my father had commission for one of his parties.” She looked down at the flowers and frowned before looking back, the smile on her face didn’t return to her eyes however.

What followed was a sullen silence which Stormy quickly broke. “How has Earth been?” He asked.

"It was amazing!” Dawn’s mood popped right back up. “There are so many books, so much information on weather and unique patterns. The prediction methods are sooooo cool!” Her demeanor changed to that of a foal on Hearth’s Warming. 

“They have no way to change weather so every breeze can change the weather of following weeks. It’s so much harder than weather here.”

The rest of the evening was pleasant if non descript, nothing like Stormy had expected. The entire conversation revolved around weather or how Stormy was doing, anything else and Dawn would shift it back to one of those two, especially any talk of returning to Earth. Stormy himself was vague with his potential ban. Eventually the food came and went and they parted ways, neither wanting to be walked home.

Stormy shuffled his way back to his brother’s and pondered. He thought of the hibiscus and rose soup adorned with petals, a special fried tofu dish with so many colors, and finally something called a baumkuchen. But the date felt like nothing special, it was certainly fancy but felt like a meal with a friend. What was is supposed to go like? Did something go wrong?