Prologue: A lively affair

Nils and Aimee had made excellent time on the way to Austin, having raced each other most of the way there. He was so glad to finally have someone to ride with him the way he liked to ride. He'd honestly had his work cut out for him making sure she didn't get ahead.
Nonetheless, Nils was flushed and sweaty after such a long ride in the Texas heat, and when the two of them finally found a place to park he took his helmet off with a sigh of relief. "That was one hell of a ride." He said, taking a moment to relax in his seat. "It is way too hot for October, I still can't seem to get used to Texas seasons."

Aimee beamed as she removed her helmet, shaking out her hair and sweeping it back. She smirked up at Nils, saying, "Its that faux English blood of yours. Too much time out of the," she paused to stretch before continuing, "ah, glorious Texas weather makes you all weak and pansy-like. Come on, we've still got a bit of a walk, if that's not too much for your delicate constitution." She put her arm through Nils', laughing as they made their way down the street.

Nils laughed. "You can scoff now, Aimee dear, but when winter comes and you're shivering away whilst I'm still wearing short sleeves we'll see who's the real pansy."
He took her arm with a tip of an imaginary hat. "A bit of a walk sounds lovely, just the thing after a long ride. How far away is this theatre anyway?" He looked around curiously as they walked. "You know, I'd expected something a bit less... colourful for the capitol of Texas. I'd expected something much more rugged and... traditional."

Aimee inhaled deeply, a look of sheer bliss on her face. She smiled up at Nils, responding, "Nils, didn't you know? Austin isn't in Texas. The capital, maybe. Possibly the Domain. But Sixth Street, most of the place, its a state all its own."

It almost looked like Aimee was coming to life next to Nils, her step bouncing as they moved in among the clubs and the early evening pedestrians. She hummed bits and pieces of the music they heard as they passed random doors.

"I'm sure we'll find something to your liking, Red. Oilcan Harry's, Charlie's, ooh, we should hit up Elysium. Though it would have been better yesterday, and I'm not properly dressed."

Nils smiled. "Aimee, I told you I've never been here before. I had heard that Austin was a bit more gay friendly, but I'd assumed that to be just because it's a large city, and that that would be fairly relative, seeing as we are in Texas still. Is it really that different?"
As they walked, he paid close attention to the people around him, noting with interest that they did seem to come in a much wider variety of styles, sexualities, and even ethnicities than he'd come to expect, living in San Antonio and College Station.
"I have no idea what any of those places are like. Take it slow, dear, we have all night to explore.

"Pfft. Fine, suit yourself. Slow it is. Its just been a while since I've been in town, and its the first time in a while I feel up to this without knowing I'm doing it for the wrong reasons."

Aimee stopped after speaking, arm slipping from Nils'. When he turned, she was looking at her feet, more...embarrassed than he'd ever seen her.

"Wow. Um, overshare. Sorry. Guess I got caught up." She coughed, clearing her throat as her hands moved up to push her hair back again. "We can do whatever you want, Nils."

Nils raised an eyebrow at her. As well as they had connected, he did sometimes forget that they still didn't know each other all that well. "It's alright, Aimee. We all have less than pleasant things in our past." He straightened a glove thoughtfully. "The important thing is to enjoy now and not worry about what was, at least for tonight."

Aimee laughed, half genuine, half bitter. "Yeah, enjoying the now has gotten me in too much trouble." The side of her mouth curled up in small smile. "But I appreciate the sentiment. And just because I get all mopey doesn't mean we can't find you some sweet young thing. Or older, I don't judge."

She started walking again, slower this time, leading the way to the Drafthouse. What little wind there was rippled her hair, blending the red, yellow and orange strands behind her. Her hands went to her pockets, making her posture almost a continual shrug.

Nils sighed. "That's not really the point of tonight. If I just wanted to pick up a cute boy I wouldn't have drove all the way to Austin with my new friend." He slung an arm around Aimee's shoulders. "So cheer up, tonight we celebrate new friends."

"Heh, thanks. Awesome. So, Nightmare in 3-D, a burger, their awesome white chocolate mousse. Hell, that'll be a good night right there. What're you wanting to do after?"

Nils thought for a moment as they walked. "I'm not sure. Someplace relatively posh, where I can actually get good wine." He shrugged. "Other than that, I'm not picky. You're the one who knows the town, I'll let you take the lead."

"Well then, as I so often do, lets play it by ear." Aimee's demeanor picked up somewhat, her humming starting up again occasionally. "So, what's going on in the world of Nils? How about that cute guy you were talking to after French the other day?"

Nils blushed a bit. "I should be so lucky." He admitted after a moment. "I'm reasonably certain he's straight, though." He kicked at a rock on the sidewalk. "The best ones usually are, unfortunately. I'm sure you know what that's like."
After a moment's thought, he grinned at Aimee. "What about Constance? How are things going there? You ask her out yet?"

Aimee grinned at Nils' cynicism. "The best ones may not be the best descriptor," she said to Nils' pause. Immediately, her face registered shock and embarrassment. "What? No! Shut up." Aimee went back to sulking for a few steps. "She is pretty awesome, isn't she?"

Nils made a face. "I didn't mean ALL straight guys were awesome. But a lot of times awesome guys are straight."
He bust out laughing at Aimee's reaction. "Aimee, you can't deny it. I see how you look at her. And yes, she is quite lovely." He glanced over at her deliberately for continuing. "She likes you, you know."

"Likes me or, you know, likes me? She talks about guys, which is nice, because its her talking, but, ack, you know what I mean." Aimee was more animated now, talking with her hands like she normally did when excited or upset. "And you're right, she is pretty, gorgeous, with those eyes, and the hair, and...ahem." She blushed magnificently, her face childishly guilty. "I'm really not ready to get my heart broken again, Nils, and I don't even know if she'd want to date. Nor do I really know what I want right now. Its not like I'm looking for someone to spend the rest of my life with. I'm 20 years old." Her petulant voice matched the look on her face, but she paused a moment, frowning. "I'm worried I may be falling for her anyway."

Nils smiled and gave Aimee a one armed hug. "You two are too adorable. You both give each other doe eyes when you're not looking. One of you two needs to just ask the other out already. There is not a doubt in my mind that she is crazy about you."
He let go of her and turned moved to look her square in the eyes. "There's a question you have to ask yourself then. Is it worth risking losing her to take time out and figure out what you want? She's quite a catch, Aimee, and if you don't make your move, someone else will eventually."

"I know. I know I should just ask her out. And if it were a few months ago, it wouldn't be a problem. I just...now I wonder if I'm what she wants, you know?" Her eyes narrowed at his expression. "Don't smirk, smartass. That's a big step for me. For the last year I've been...not the greatest person in the world. I'm trying to put that behind me, and a big part of that is actually caring about the person I'm with. Constance is great, and I want to make sure I'm great for her."

Nils nodded. "Alright, alright. I didn't mean to smirk. It's just so adorable how worried you are about being right for her. You should just go for it-you can't be right for her if you never get to the 'for her' part."
He grinned good naturedly at her. "This is your chance to start all over, Aimee. The rest of your life is now just a prologue, and now you get to start the main story. Maybe we'll get lucky and become the main characters in a fantasy epic. Do you fancy slaying a dragon?"

Aimee snorted, breaking down laughing. "Ha, sure, St. Nils and the dragon, huh? I could get behind that. Duel the evil knight, brave the storm, save the girl. Sounds like a life well-lived." She was smiling as she continued. "Still, those heroes in the books, they go through their share of crap. Wonder if they'd really consider it worth it in the end."

Nils laughed with her, although it felt a little bit of a lie. His life was, unfortunately, already much more fantastic than he'd ever admit. However much he might joke about it, he didn't think more of the same would be something he would at all be able to deal with.
He adjusted his gloves. "If we're very lucky, we'll never have to find out. That sort of thing in the real world would get people killed."

"Aww, I wouldn't let you die, Red. You're too amusing. You can be my Sam. No, wait, I don't want to be Frodo. You can be...Legolas? If you go by the movies, he was pretty fabulous. And Aragorn, well, he's just plain awesome regardless. Anar kaluva tielyanna, my friend."

Nils grinned. "Well, that's good to know, I guess. Aragorn and Legolas were a pretty great team. Although, I must confess I have no idea what you just said there."

Laughing, Aimee replied, "Sorry, I'm a total dork. It means 'The sun shall shine on your path' in Quenya. And if you don't know what that is, we can't be friends." She strolled along for a second, looking thoughtful. "I guess I should ask her out. Constance would make a very pretty Arwen."

Nils shrugged. "It sounded like Quenya. I just don't actually know how to speak the language. I plan on learning it at some point, but just learning the languages for all the places I've been is plenty tricky enough."
He nodded. "Yes, yes you should. Although I have a hunch that she would bitch slap anyone who suggested she stay home while her loved ones were in danger. Which really just makes her more awesome."