I promise I'll pick up after it and feed it and walk it and...

[self_named]

Duo was kicking back in front of Polly's hut, waiting for her to come back form patrol. He was feeling sort ofplayful after a barrage of great soca from the jukebox. He was determined to make her learn to dance for real.

Comments

[strange_fancy]

Angua, Polly thought. Or, no, the way this place operated the werewolf would actually turn up the moment she did that. Possibly-

Polly looked up, and Duo was standing in front of her. She smiled at him. "Fancy meeting you here."

[self_named]

"I get everywhere," he said, smiling broadly, hopping to his feet and going over to meet her. He kissed her in greeting.

"How goes it?"

[strange_fancy]

Polly kissed back with some enthusiasm, but then put her hands on Duo's shoulders and drew back to arm's length.

"Know where there's any chocolates?" she asked cheerfully. "Arya's in a play, so obviously we've got to go and see it."

[self_named]

"Last time I saw chocolate, it was being consumed by the chronically ardorous," Duo said. "I don't think anyone keeps it around anymore. What play?"

[strange_fancy]

"Pity," said Polly, with real regret; what with one thing and another she'd never actually had any chocolate. She'd even have taken some of the magic stuff from That Time; she was sure Duo would be perfectly happy to keep her from making a fool of herself with anyone else. "I'd heard they were kind of a feature of the theater. It's something with magic and people being shipwrecked on an island," she added.

[self_named]

"It is, kind aof," Duo said. "When I was little we would sneak into theaters sometimes and someone was always on candy duty, and if you could steal enough chocolate covered peanuts or whatever for everyone in the gang, you got off look-out for like a week."

He quirked his head to one side.

"What, The Tempest?"

[strange_fancy]

Polly nodded. "Yeah, that's it. An Earth thing, then?"

She smiled. "She's playing a boy, too. Seems pretty excited about that."

[self_named]

"I guesso. I call it a colony thing," he said, winking, then spent some time kissing her again.

"Well, good for Arya. We're definitely going."

[strange_fancy]

"Well, if all these other people know about it," Polly pointed out. Then she didn't say anything for a little while. Gods, this was nice. Every day here should be more like this, she thought.

Except possibly without the having to deal with Arya's concern over incestuous direwolf sex. That should be infrequent.

[self_named]

"So," he said, and pressed his mouth to her cheek, "what else is up?" and then to her chin, her lips, then the corner of her neck.

[strange_fancy]

Polly tugged at Duo's braid. "You can't seriously expect me to answer questions when you're doing that?" She tugged him down into a sitting position, sort of leaning against each other, and after another moment's pause...

"How," she said seriously, "do you feel about puppies?" As if I didn't have a fair idea, she thought, but asking never hurt anything.

[self_named]

"Sorry!" he lied brightly, and let himself be tugged down to sitting. Then he blinked.

"You mean like, the small version of dogs?"

[strange_fancy]

"Like that, yes," said Polly. "Only, in this case, more sort of wolves. Arya's wolf, to be precise."

[self_named]

Duo watched her for a moment while his brain connected some dots.

"Oh my god you mean real puppies?!"

[strange_fancy]

Polly couldn't quite hold back a smile at Duo's expression. "Yes. Real puppies. Or cubs, or whatever the hell they call baby direwolves. And Arya's already offered me one, even."

[self_named]

"Wha- ah-" He tried not to bounce. A puppy! "Have you- name?"