Love is Being Stupid Together 2: Electric Boogaloo

[blondandperfect]

Who: Gilbert Nightray and Hattie of Ehvenn
When: Back-dated to 8/18, 4pm
Where: A cozy Italian Bistro
Summary: Thanks to Xerxes' body swap antics, Gilbert is inspired (forced?) to do damage control with a very.. ahem.. eager Hattie.
Warnings: /!\ Will update as necessary /!\

She had an hour to get herself together and head out to the bistro. However the law of being fashionably late always applies to Hattie, and she ends up being ten minutes late- It's not on purpose, mind, it's almost in her blood to arrive early or late. Mostly late.

Today was a great chance for her to show off a design she had 'thrown together' earlier in the week and had Ella sew; a fancy brown-gold bustledress. That color since she had difficulty making orange work. To her, there was only one reason to get together, and that was to work out the proposal in greater detail- Maybe she'd even get to meet a few of his associates afterward! 

Hattie 'knew' that when this was all over, she was just one step closer to living a life of true love and grandeur. But she's late.

Ten minutes late.
 

Comments

*crawls back from being dead of laughter*

[blondandperfect]

[Hattie wasn't entirely certain what is going on. Vincent wasn't protesting against the claims so she a) assumed they weren't in any sort of trouble and b) this was a bit of an embarrassing surprise!]

Erm, I'm sorry, I don't really understand what's going on.. But I'm Lady Hattie of Ehvenn. We were just about to discuss the matters of the engagement, actually!

....

Oh, I get it! These were the two that switched bodies! Goodness gracious, are you girls all right now?

.. Are you his advisors?

geh, sorry for the wait.

[his_own_will]

[ Oz giggles, hiding his face with a small twist of his head as he curtsies to the Lady Hattie of Ehvenn. ]

You've guessed it right. We were the poor victims of that horrible curse! [ that's not entirely a lie. They simply weren't switched with each other. ]

[ he coughs and smiles sweetly, gesturing to Break standing next to him. ] But don't mind us. We simply couldn't let Lord Gilbert here put your good name to shame. I do apologize for not introducing myself earlier. I am Lady Ozellina Vessalius and this is my good friend and mentor, Xervinia Break.

Now, please. Do carry on. I think Gilbert was trying to say something?

[ he folds his hands gracefully in front of him, a charming smile on his face. Oh dear, were wear a pair of chairs when one needed them? ]

[retraced]

[Yes, he was trying to say something.

But as it is, he's got nothing. Absolutely nothing. His brain has officially turned off to save him from this incredible embarrassment and will need a chance to reboot itself now. AND OZ WHAT'S WITH THOSE NAMES.]

Wh-wh-wha--?!

[maddeninghatter]

[ "Xervina"!!! He's going to lose it. No, no. He isn't. Instead, he's going to stand behind Gilbert, putting his hands FIRMLY on Gilbert's shoulders (to prevent any hope of escape). ]

I believe what Lord Gilbert is trying to say is - how lovely you look today, Lady Hattie. Words fail him, they often do.

And, milady, he would also like to invite you and your attendants to a formal dinner at his residence, the Phantomhive-Trancy Estate. He'll send you an invitation by post, with all the details.

[blondandperfect]

[Such charisma these ladies have! Hattie feels right at home with those two about. She gives an apologetic look to Ozellina, then turns to Gilbert looking so incredibly flattered.]

Why thank you, Gilbert..

[She'll take it! And the news following that causes the blonde's jaw to drop now she's the speechless once for a moment.]

Wha-

[And she suddenly lets out a shriek; as if she had just won on the Price is Right! She stands up, knocking her chair back and hands in the air, nearly knocking the arriving salads from the waitresses hands.]

YES!! YESS!! YEEEEEEEEEEEEESSSS!!!

...

[She sits back down, her cheeks red as she murmurs, as the two are served. Also those two extra chairs? They're brought over as well.]

Ahem. What I meant was.. Jolly good.

[his_own_will]

[ Their names? Oh, dear! Don't think anything of it. Break started it after all. However, Oz hardly has time to be concerned over such a silly thing as Gilbert's continued stammering or Break's bold invitation.

No, indeed not.

For instead all he can do is simply gasp as Lady Hattie jumps to her feet. How positively delightful she was! Oz almost hated that he didn't have a chance to get to know her before this little interlude. She really did seem to care.

Still, those salads aren't going to deliver themselves and taking one out of the waiter's hand, he passes it over to Hattie, leaving the other to the waiter to handle with Gil. ] There, there. It is rather exciting, isn't it? Gilbert here has hardly stopped fretting over the details once he got it in his head. Do you like dancing? [ perhaps they could convince Ciel to hire an orchestra... After they broke the news of course. ]

[retraced]

[No. No no no no Break you're not allowed to make this worse than it already is! Gil knows that he should stand up and run out of here before this goes any further, but he's too frozen in terror and humiliation to react that quickly. But it's finally Oz's offer of dancing that gets him to stand, push his chair back and prepare to get out of here.

Hopefully Oz and Break plan on sitting down and eating those salads, because this has gone on long enough!

Without a word, Gilbert runs to the other side of the table, grabs Hattie's hand and attempts to yank her up out of her seat. They're running away from these jerks so that he can finish his dumping speech properly damn it! Cue Take On Me; we're out of here!]

Slipping in here to fix the order I broke~

[blondandperfect]

Yes I d- Eep!

['Exciting' is the understatement of the year; this has to be the most amazing thing that has happened in her life. And she had never seen Gilbert move so quickly! He's just full of surprises isn't he? Following the delighted yelp, she's easily taken, rushing along with him without even questioning it. Best day EVER.]

Oh Gilbert, we don't have to go dance now; you have such interesting companions!

[Still it's nice to see him being proactive, maybe she should't burst his bubble. Also, she's not very quick running in shoes.]

[maddeninghatter]

[ Break is actually taken unawares when Gilbert leaps up; he stumbles backwards (good thing that skirt is short, otherwise he might have tripped on the hem). He contemplates chasing them, but...

The way he's been feeling lately, that seems a bit too - energetic. Getting short of breath and coughing would ruin the effect. So he simply calls after them: ]

Mister Gilbert, you seducer!

[ And then takes one of the vacated seats. Caprese salad is right out, of course, so he waves his hand to get the attention of a waiter. ]

Well, well, Miss Ozellina. I wonder what sort of desserts they have here.

[his_own_will]

[ Oz is already contemplating an ambush. It's a delicate affair after all and if Gil's ruined all their hard work...

Oh well. They'll just deal with it when it happens. No sense getting tangled up in knots with lunch at stake! Sitting, Oz picks up his fork and digs into his salad. Desert won't be here for a few more minutes as it is, and he does need to worry about his girlish figure after all.

It took forever picking out the right dress :( ] Nothing as good as Gil can make, but I'm sure they'll have something. [ he stabs a leaf of lettuce and starts to chew. Oh yes. Gil was going to get an earful for running!

At least he took the maiden with him. ]

[retraced]

[They're the worst. They really are the worst! As if this entire situation couldn't get any more stressful than it already was, those two had to come in and take away whatever ounce of dignity Gilbert still felt that he had! Noting that she doesn't run too well in those shoes, he tries his best not to pull her along too hard, but he still rushes out the door as quickly as he can and doesn't stop until they're on the far side of the building, on the other end of the parking lot. It's definitely not a dance floor, but it's far away from those jerks!

As soon as they're out of sight of the front door, he drops her hand and leans against the building, trying to catch his breath.]

Sorry! Sorry I - those two were--! Gaaah!

[There's really no explanation...]

[blondandperfect]

[Hattie was a little out of breath once they had finally come to a stop- Well, it seems all that time in the gym has paid off after all, she never would have been able to keep up back in her home! This was so exciting, just.. Such a great amount of excitement and thrill!

While she took a moment to catch her breath, she squeezed Gilbert's hand with other hand to her chest.]

N- No.. *huff* It's.. *huff* My heart's.. *huff* beating so fast!

[She looked up to his eyes, her own glassed over and her cheeks flushed. The moment she was experiencing was clearly the opposite of Gilbert's.]

[retraced]

Oh - sorry, do you need to sit down?

[He straightens himself back up and keeps hold of her hand, forgetting that he should really be letting go about now. But right now there's a pressing question more important than 'how should I break this off', and that's 'oh crap, did I hurt her?' Because regardless of how this conversation ends, Gil definitely wouldn't forgive himself for making her feel poorly.]

[blondandperfect]

[Hattie needed about four seconds, two to shake her head 'no', and the other two to lift her free hand to try and cup the back of his neck. She was experiencing a bit of an adrenaline rush combined with being quite caught up in the moment.

As far as Hattie is concerned, that's pretty much all she needs to confirm she's fallen in love.

Assuming Gilbert doesn't slip away by some means, the blonde rose up to her tiptoes while drawing down upon his neck to lock lips with him in a way that certainly wouldn't be lacking in passion- at least on her end.]

[retraced]

[He has no chance to escape.

Even if he'd seen it coming he wouldn't be able to get away in time. Reflexes in a fight are one thing, but this is uncharted, awkward territory. His body tenses and freezes as she leans in, and shuts down completely as she kisses him. It takes a few seconds for his mind to register what's happened, then restart until any semblance of functionality. He doesn't kiss back, but he also doesn't...move. Or speak. Or...yeah, move.

He just turns as red as his skin can possibly go and stands petrified in terror until she finally moves away from him. At which point he'll probably do something equally attractive like fall to his knees in anguish. Yes, that's exactly what's happening.]

[blondandperfect]

[If Hattie weren't so caught up in the moment, she might have noticed that he had practically turned into a statue. Instead she's envisioning the perfect romantic moment despite the extremely unusual experience.

It seems like forever, but it's really only about seven seconds before she draws back with a delighted squeal. Only. He.. Drops to his knees? Hattie follows his lead as if it were the most natural thing in the world, while cupping her own cheeks.]

Oh I've never experienced anything like this before, this is so exciting, this has just.. Been the perfect day. Thank you so much~. And.. And..

Yes. Yes, I would love to attend the dinner!

[retraced]

[And, like with all things in his life, Gilbert is about to ruin this new Perfect Thing.]

--I-it wasn't me!

[He finds his voice about half a second after she finishes speaking, ten seconds later than it would have been useful. His fists dig into the ground as he bows his head apologetically, rushing his words as quickly as his mouth can handle getting them out.]

That person who proposed to you - it wasn't me! It was someone else using my body and pretending to be me! My name is Gilbert Nightray and I'm only a servant, I'm not - I'm not someone who can...! I-I only tried to come here today to tell you that...that -

[Deep breath.]

I'm sorry but this was someone's terrible prank and I have to take it all back!

[blondandperfect]

[And then comes the moment of shock. That was.. Quite a bomb to drop, wasn't it? And Hattie hasn't the slightest clue how to react to that. At least, not right away.]

...

[It's certainly an evening of firsts for this blonde, and for a moment she waits for the 'just kidding'. When that doesn't come she asks with a half-hearted laugh.]

I.. I don't understand. Then what was all this about visiting? And engagements?

[retraced]

[The worst bomb. And he's not even tactful enough to cushion it in any way. His face is still on fire and his shoulders are shaking enough to make his voice tremble in time.]

Those two back there...they're only here to make things worse for me. Both of us. I'm sorry that you had to be hurt by them too. If it was only me...

[Then it would have been all right. It's always been all right, that way.]

I'm sorry.

[blondandperfect]

But.. I.. That doesn't make any sense, they don't even know me!

[And now she starts to get a little angry.]

Gilbert, if you're not interested in doing this with me, then... Then just say so, all right?

[retraced]

I - it's not that...rather, I never had the chance to...!

[He takes in a deep breath, keeps his eyes shut. No, even if they had been put together on a proper date, he would never have been able to dedicate himself to her. He'd never be able to pay any woman the attention that she deserves, no matter who she is. He's already dedicated his life to something else; marriage, children, those things that he had been obligated towards as the son of Duke Bernard Nightray would never happen. Even in this strange world...it would be unfair to ask a woman to only take a small piece of his heart.

And he feels sick to know that she had been given that false hope, even though it wasn't technically his fault to begin with. He'll still accept it as such.]

I'm sorry. I can't.

1/2

[blondandperfect]

Eh heh.. Ah ha ha ha..

[She didn't understand. She couldn't figure it out. Hattie took pride in being a socialite, and being unable to read his mixed message was frustrating.]

Gilbert..

2/2

[blondandperfect]

[Hattie leans down to whisper into the young man's ear. Ok, it's more of a cold hiss.]

I am not letting you ruin our perfect day.

We are having dinner, we are getting engaged, and we are going to like it, or so help me..

[retraced]

--W-what?

[Yep, that's all he's got. Of all the things that he doesn't understand, this current situation rates pretty high.]

1/2

[blondandperfect]

['What' indeed. Hattie tries to cup his cheek to get him to look into her eyes, her gaze very serious. Almost eerily so. She's silent for a tense moment, letting him sink in. Her eyes are doing all the talking for her: 'Don't mess around with me, Nightray'.]