I had expected Fianna to lead me to the Café when she had said crepes, but… she went off course and navigated us to this small hole in the wall of a… well, it fit the idea of a café worlds better than the larger dining area. I looked to Fianna, who had taken a moment to turn her head and look at me.

“Welcome to the tea room. Avalon’s best kept non-secret. I’m a little surprised your roommate hasn’t told you about this place with how often she visits by herself. I think she might use it as a reprieve from her friend. That actually makes sense now, her not telling you.” Fianna said, a look of thoughtfulness crossing his face.

I took in my surroundings as Fianna led me to the counter. The walls were mahogany, and the moulding was redwood. The tables and chairs were stained oak, and the floors were either yew or ash I think. The darker woods, accented by the lighter woods made the room feel cosy. When compared to the stonework in the rest of the castle, this room was an oddity of wonderful proportion.

“Hello, Olivia. Two crepes and two cups of Early Grey today, please.” Fianna said to the stunning girl behind the counter.

Olivia was of a medium build, her dark brown hair flowed like a river down her left side and over her plain white blouse and light brown apron. Her face was all soft angles and sun-kissed skin, her nose was a cute little button that was just slightly off center, and her eyes were a warm and inviting chocolate color. She had a single beauty mark under her left eye, off to the edge where the bottom of the eye meets the cheek bone.

“But of course, Fianna. What kind of crepes are we wanting today?” Olivia responded, her voice like that of an angel.

“I think we’ll both go with strawberry and banana. With cream, and if you wouldn’t mind, the chocolate drizzle I like mixed into the dough.” Fianna said, kind of matter-of-factly.

Olivia smiled and nodded. She then got right to work, brewing a kettle and starting pouring the batter onto the griddle she had behind the counter.

Fianna then led me away to a table in the far corner, away from the windows. “How about this for a first date? Sure, it was business at first, but we have a little time for pleasure.”

She smiled at me and I smiled back. All in all, I guess there could be worse ideas for a “first date” in a school that has everything.

Olivia showed up a few moments later with a tray laden with our tea and crepes, a knowing smile on her face. “I’ll leave you ladies to it. I’ve got this one covered.”

Fianna looked a little embarrassed, her greyish skin tinged red.

“Oh, hey, Olivia. One question before you go?” I asked.

“Certainly. Anything for Miss Bás’ associate.” Olivia responded, a little teasing tone in her voice.

“I don’t see any earrings, are you not participating in the festivities?” I asked.

Olivia smiled, “You’re wanting to know what I am, is that it?”

“Well, you’re not wrong, but it wasn’t my initial intention.” I said, smiling back.

“I’m a human, just human. No magus bloodline, no glamours, just human my dear. Though I have to say, I’m a little jealous when I see some of the beautiful girls wandering about the halls, even more so when I see what they become. And because I can see the next question on your face, I’m twenty three.” She poked my nose when she finished.

I was kind of in awe, she was able to handle the day to day of this school and not be at all freaked out about what the girls she was serving were or could be? I didn’t think I’d ever be able to be that calm and cool about the situation, so her attitude was inspiring.

Fianna giggled a little before speaking. “Lauren here just discovered the first secret of Avalon a few days ago.”

Olivia’s eyes widened and then she nodded in understanding, “I see. She’s just learning the ropes, talk about special. I remember when I first discovered how things really were here, talk about an eye opening experience. You handling alright, dear?”

I nodded, “As well as can be expected I guess. Kind of odd to be given all this information and find out you’re not human. Still, could be worse.”

Olivia smiled and excused herself as another girl entered the tea room.

I turned to face Finna and picked up my cup. It was nice, the smell of the tea, somehow different than the baggies dad used to get when we wanted tea at home. Taking a sip, I noticed the flavour was a bit more intense than what I was used to. I scrambled for a moment, trying to find the sugar bowl, and eventually added five cubes to the drink. After mixing them in and testing the tea again, I found it tolerable.

“I should have warned you, they like to use very fresh tea leaves here, so everything is a bit stronger than what you’ll get elsewhere. Even the tea I serve in my office isn’t as pungent as what you’ll get here, for good reason.” Fianna said when I was finished.

I glared at her for a moment and set my glass down, “It would have been nice, but It is what it is.”

She looked slightly embarrassed for a second and then tried to shrug it off my motioning to the crepes, “You should really try these, they’re amazing. It’s all made with ingredients picked in the mornings, cream that’s been churned just a few hours ago, and the batter is second to none.”

I blinked at how uncomfortable she had become by my teasingly being angry. “You know I’m teasing you, right? I’m not actually mad. But I will try one of these, they look really good.”

Fianna blushed again, her inexperience in dating seemed to be her downfall today.

I carefully lifted one of the crepes from the holder Olivia had kindly put on the tray and took a bite as best I could. It was a little difficult, finding the right spot to bite, but it was well worth it. If you’ve never had a crepe before, they’re kind of like very thing pancakes wrapped around a mixture of fillings, and topped with whipped or ice cream. The end result is really tasty and slightly messy if you’re not careful.

Fianna watched me for a few seconds before starting in on her own food. She actually took off her earrings to eat the crepe like a normal human, which was kind of a surprise. But then again, if her head isn’t attached to her body, it might be hard to eat things. She, however, was able to eat the crepe in her hand as simply and sophisticatedly as I had thought… part of her training here was to eat like a fancy person I guess.

We continued on in silence, sneaking glances at one another occasionally, both very uncertain about how to proceed. It was awkward, in that kind of cute fashion that you might expect from two people who are new to the idea of a relationship. Then my crystal beeped.

Class starts in 5 minutes, where are you? –K

Oh snap! Class!

“I’ve gotta run, I’m so sorry. Class… Crap, how do I get to class from here?” I started to panic a little.

“Go straight down the hall, hang a left at the first intersection, a right two corridors down, and another left after the fifth doorway will get you to the hall with your class. It’ll take about seven minutes at a walk.” Fianna said, looking a little disappointed. She affixed her earrings and returned to the dullahan form.

“I’ll see you later then.” I said.

“But of course.” Fianna responded, she sounded a little dejected but as head girl she couldn’t endorse being late or skipping classes.

I yanked her head off her shoulders and gave her a kiss on the lips. I then placed her head on the table and ran off.