Let's make a date

[notadartboard]

WHO: Sanji and Rapunzel
WHERE: the skating rink at Rockefeller Center
WHEN: Friday, Dec. 9
WARNINGS: not likely
SUMMARY: Rapunzel wants to learn to ice skate!
FORMAT: para intro but whatever the lady wants after

Comments

[paints_lanterns]

Rapunzel arrived a couple minutes late, hurrying along in a heavier-than-usual pink dress, with a scarf, and her hair up in the giant, dangerous ponytail. She was barefoot, though the cold ground didn't seem to bother her at all. She waved when she spotted Sanji, smiling brightly.

"I'm here! I'm sorry I'm late, the bus driver yelled at me for not wearing shoes." She said this like it was an ordinary thing because...well...it was. She came to a stop in front of him and grinned. "So anyway let's go!"

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Sanji had his arms out for a hug but stopped in surprise. "But aren't your feet cold? Your poor, delicate feet!" He looked her over, to make sure she was all right, but at least once they got their skates, it would be less of an issue. Even without socks. "Ah...they have a place over there to rent skates, so we should get some. It's hard to skate without them, of course." He put on a brilliant grin. "Then it's just slipping and sliding, not skating."

He offered his arm to escort Rapunzel to the skate rental kiosk, fully intending to pay for both and having no problem with it.

[paints_lanterns]

Rapunzel shook her head and peered down at her feet, wiggling her bare toes. "Well, no. I mean, a little chilly but it's nothing I haven't felt before?" Rapunzel pretty much never wore shoes. And the tower had gotten quite cold sometimes!

She took his arm and smiled brightly as they started inside. "I can't wait to learn! I brought some money, I couldn't find out how much this would cost..."

'Money' was another thing she still wasn't entirely used to. Even after months. But she was getting there!

[notadartboard]

"No, no, it's all right," Sanji assured breezily as he led the way. "I can handle that part. Consider it a gift, or a treat in honor of the holidays." Not that he wasn't also going to go out to buy gifts and make treats both. But that was later.

It only took a glance for him to tell what size skate she'd need, one of his hidden talents. He went into full-on prince mode, then, whisking her to a bench and kneeling in front of her to help her put them on with all gentleness a pirate shouldn't have.

[paints_lanterns]

"Oh, well...thank you, Sanji." Rapunzel frowned slightly at not being able to pay, but Sanji always seemed to know what he was doing so she couldn't exactly argue about it.

When she was whisked away she actually made a startled noise, and her toes curled faintly when he was putting the ice skates down. She tugged her foot away after a second though, frowning. "I wish I didn't have to wear these..." She said before she inched her foot back to him. Rapunzel had pretty much never worn shoes. Of any sort.

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"It's all right," Sanji reassured, waiting until she was ready and being wholeheartedly delicate about it. "Think if them as...equipment, not shoes. A necessary tool in order to properly skate - without it you'd just be walking and we already do plenty of that every day, hmm?"

[paints_lanterns]

Rapunzel hesitated again, frowning, but then gave a tentative little nod and pressed her foot forward into the skate in one motion. She winced a bit as it squeezed at her ankle, and then tried to wiggle her toes and couldn't.

"They're really tight."

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"Are they? Hmm. Let's try a size up, then." Sanji went to swap the skates at the counter, noticing as he did that the one skate Rapunzel had tried didn't match the other skate. He almost gave the teenage attendant an earful about wrong-size skates but settled for a glare and a huff as he got the correct size and returned, this time loosening the laces as much as he could before offering the skates. "Let's try these, then."