An Activity

John moved to one side lost in thought as more people entered the cafeteria. The way his Quest was worded, it looked like he could ask anyone out - he didn’t need them to agree. On the other hand, the idea of asking out someone who wasn’t at least vaguely into him sounded like handing a free “mock me” card to Vanessa and Frank at best. Then again, he was gaining experience rapidly - and Skill points. Did he really want to risk the one person he knew for a fact was interested in him at this point by asking her out right now? If only he was more charismatic, it’d be easy.

“More charismatic…” John ducked back behind the same potted fern he’d used as cover the previous day and opened his Inventory. A quick Observe to double check he hadn’t misremembered, and he pulled the Friendship Bracelet over his wrist - and then tucked it under his sleeve. If he used it, that would pump his Charisma up to 25, the same as his Intellect. Boosting the Stat to five times would surely be enough, right?

The difficult part of the whole thing was working out exactly when to talk to Matilda. The curvy chef was busy behind the counter, working on delivering the kind of high quality food you’d expect from a place like Ashcroft. Eventually, however, the lunch rush thinned out and John got his chance.

Picking up a tray and doing his best to seem casual, he pushed his Mana towards the bracelet in the hopes that it would work. A quick tingling feeling and a glance at his Status confirmed it - he was now rocking twenty-five Charisma, albeit with a buff timer ticking down. Taking a deep breath, he paused in front of Matilda, letting the person in front of him move on under the disguise of trying to decide between the fish or the pasta. Looking up, he realized she was watching him, her hazel eyes sparkling.

“You look good today, John,” she said, her voice soft against the background din of the canteen. “What can I get you for lunch? The fish is alright, but I made the pasta fresh today myself, and it’s got that tomato and herb blend you like in the sauce?” She leaned forward slightly as she said it, and John was suddenly acutely aware of how much her chest strained against the fabric of her uniform.

Coughing to cover his momentary lapse of concentration, he gestured to the food. “I’ll have the pasta. Erm… Matilda?” She paused, glancing up from where she’d been filling a plate with the delicious looking dish as he leaped head-on. “I was wondering what time you finish on Friday? If you’re not busy, would you maybe like to… do an activity?”

Time slowed for John as he realized just how cringy that line was. He was sure that the Stat boost was still in effect, but apparently having high Charisma just made you a better version of yourself - literally more charismatic and not some chat-up line wonder-kid. “I… err… that is…” he stammered, trying frantically to figure out a way of making himself not sound like a complete nerd until Matilda held up a hand, a faint smile on her face.

“John, John, calm down,” she said, something akin to delight flickering in her eyes. “First of all, I hope you don’t try and ask many members of staff out. It’s against the rules… for the teaching staff at least.” She winked at him, and John felt a flicker of hope as she continued, “Secondly, I’d love to ‘do an activity’ with you. I get off work at two thirty, so you’ll still be busy. Give me a second…”

Matilda grabbed a pen and napkin from by the till, and scribbled on it before setting the paper down on his tray along with his meal. “Drop me a text later, and we can arrange to meet up somewhere, okay? And - whatever it is that’s new about you today, keep doing it. You seem way more confident than usual, and I like it.”

As John went to pay for his food in something of a daze, he was glad he’d hung on to what was left of the change from the previous night’s food shop. Walking away from the counter with his blood pumping in his ears, he barely made it to an unoccupied table in the corner of the room before a soft chime snapped his attention back from the cloud nine of having a date.

As he read the Quest Reward text, John shifted uncomfortably in his seat, adjusting himself. Gaining almost a quarter of his existing size all at once definitely made his underwear feel suddenly much tighter, and it took him a few moments before he was comfortable enough to start on his lunch. As he ate, he speculated on what the Cookie Jar might do, the item having been placed directly into his Inventory. With a busy canteen, pulling it out to Observe was a bad idea though, so instead he cast his eyes across the room - noting as he did so that he wasn’t the only person engaged in a little people watching.

The redheaded Paladin with the scary high Level was sitting with a group of people on the far side of the room from him, her gaze scanning back and forth as she ate. She seemed tense, as if something was bothering her, and John did his best not to stare. The last thing he needed was an argument with her! Elsewhere, Wesley was sitting with the rest of the chess club, his eyes also continually on the look out - although in his case John suspected it was more to ensure that Frank and Vanessa weren’t about to start a round of ‘pick on the nerds’.

A feeling that he was being stared at caused John to glance away from Wesley and his friends to the other side of the room. Sitting at a table that was almost as out of the way as John’s, the brunette he’d almost run into that morning appeared to be checking people out much like he was, not the nervous furtive glances of someone worried about their situation, but with the careful gaze of someone looking to see what people were up to. Combined with Moira’s odd expression, John wondered if something was going on within the Order, and made a mental note to try and steer clear of anyone with the tag for the time being.

His first class after lunch was a non-event. John kept his head down, did the work, and just got to the end before hurrying for the library; with a little luck he’d be there early enough to get one of the limited number of quiet study spaces, which had the benefit of both being out of the way, so that he could retrieve his new item and book from his Inventory without any issues, and also would let him focus on his plans in peace.

To his relief, when he arrived in the library, only a single one of the booths had been taken, Wesley’s messy blonde hair visible through bands in the frosted window glass. Choosing a booth that wasn’t immediately next to the Tactician, John closed the door and bent over to mimic pulling things from his bag. Instead, he opened his Inventory and put the Friendship Bracelet away, retrieving both his Rituals and Worship Textbook and the Cookie Jar. Setting them down on the study desk, he opted to investigate the new shiny thing first.

Trying his best to not worry about just how much the deity that Malal called the boss was going to be his wing-woman, John pulled a cookie from the jar and examined it. Oat and raisin, his favorite. He idly wondered if they’d always be the same flavor - but dismissed the thought as unnecessary right now. Storing the jar back in his Inventory and taking a tentative bite, he found that it was delicious, with a warm feeling spreading through him like hot chocolate on a winter’s night.

A quick glance at his Status as he adjusted his seat and opened the textbook revealed that the cookie had done nothing for his already maxed health pool - but there was indeed an effect applied to his Endurance.

Well, that combined with his full hp explained the lack of any health gains - it was just his ability to run long distance or fuck that was getting a buff. Still, with the possibility of a date on Friday with a woman he knew was attracted to him… John grinned at the buff before closing his Status and turning his attention to the book. Planning or daydreaming about sexual marathons could wait. Right now, he had Quests to do that would probably need him to go into danger - he needed to study hard to try and find something he could use. With another bite of his cookie and a couple of deep breaths to clear his thoughts, John opened his copy of Rituals and Worship and began to read.