Tegwen had a perpetual blush in her cheeks from before Steelbeak showed up to rescue her from Megavolt's hideout. She was painfully quiet and shy -- surprising coming from the woman who'd hit on him in the mens' restroom -- but she was also very, very sweet. This personality one-eighty was surreal.

Steelbeak wondered if this was the way she acted around those she didn't detest. It was nice, if not disconcerting. What the hell had changed? He was dying to know. Maybe Gabriel had the answer. He did his best to just accept Tegwen at face value -- he wanted to, so badly.

She had a cute sense of humor and an even cuter laugh. In the candlelight of the Mandarin restaurant, her eyes sparkled and her feathers practically reflected the golden hues. It was as though she were designed specifically to be viewed by candlelight. Before he could stop his racing thoughts, Steelbeak considered how glorious she would look sprawled on a pricey Persian rug situated by the glow of his fireplace.

He made a mental note to purchase a Persian rug with this year's Christmas bonus -- just in case the opportunity to fulfill that fantasy ever presented itself. Was it too much to hope it would? It was their first date, so it was too early to tell if she'd still be around by Christmas. His track-record indicated she wouldn't be.

And Sally. She would be disappointed, at that rate.

"What's that look for?" Tegwen asked, chasing a small piece of candied banana fritter around her plate with chopsticks. She was a chopsticks novice and had struggled eating most of her meal. Despite that, she could laugh at herself about it.

He shook his head slightly, resting his chin on his fist after propping an elbow on the table. It was seven thirty and the desserts would soon be cleared away. There could be coffee, still, but the date would be over soon if they were keeping it strictly to dinner.

"Steelbeak?" Tegwen quietly prompted. He was still staring at her with that look on his face.

"Dere's a place down de street -- ya ever hear of Goliath and Bugs?"

Tegwen shook her head. She finally caught and ate the remaining piece of banana fritter.

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