B: The human approached.

She ordered a glass of orange juice from the man behind the counter, and didn't even notice the hooded young man walking up to the counter at her left. When she did, she eyed him up and down, but he was pretty concealed beneath the coat.

"Hello, spooky mysterious man," she said with a raised eyebrow.

"Spooky?" he replied. "Shoot. That wasn't what I was going for at all... I'm supposed to look like a mysterious, powerful mage or something."

His voice was coy, and his demeanour was charismatic, but deep down, he was struggling to stay confident.

"This is the outfit of a powerful mage," she said, showcasing her witch-like attire. "Though the cute look might not work for you."

"I don't think I'd look good in a skirt."

She laughed. "Maybe not! But the whole hood thing makes you look like you're trying to hide something, which makes you look creepy."

Avoiding a direct glance, he kept on his hood. She could barely make out his face. In reality, he did this to hide his insecurities. When he had that outfit on, he felt like a powerful sorcerer--mysterious but popular. Without it, he felt shy.

"Well, my name's Rab. It's a pleasure to meet someone so lovely up close."

Immediately, she fell prey to the flattery, and her already oversized ego grew even larger. "Well, of course it is. My name's Alora. Good to meet you too. You might look spooky, but at least you're nice to talk to, unlike this guy behind me."

The bald man shook his head.

"So you're a spellcaster too, miss Alora?"

She nodded. "I excel in levitation. I can lift large objects with relative ease. For a person, well you're a little short, so I could throw you across the room."

"You're call me the short one?" he muttered.

"What was that?"

"Nothing. I'm a full on mesmer myself. I do mind magic, basically. Illusions. I don't really branch out from there, as the concepts takes decades to master."

He couldn't help but look her over. She was incredibly cute, and her own charisma was contagious. He approached in hopes of asking her out, but even with the hood, that was incredibly difficult. But he needed to keep on the act that he was charming and self-assured.

"Have you eaten already?"

"I have," she answered, finish down her juice.

"Then why don't we get some fresh air? I love a nice walk after a meal, but it's a lot better with somebody else."

Her stare at him was piercing. "Hm. Maybe. How about we make a deal? I'll go on a walk with you, if you take off the hood."

"That's mean."

"If you can't handle me now, how are we going to go for a walk together?"

Who is this guy? He's kind of cute, even if I can't see how he actually looks. I get the feeling that he's trying to put on an act though, she thought.

"Fine," he muttered. Slowly, he pulled off his hood. Beneath was the face full of youth. With such a look, acting tough was impossible. And from being exposed, he couldn't help but fidget nervously.

"You have a baby face!" she announced. "That's adorable. I thought you were going to have stubble and a big jaw with how you were acting before. I think I like this better though. All right, well I'll keep my end of the deal. Let's go for a walk."

As she started, he followed, hesitant at first as if he didn't expect things to work. You like this better? he thought.

"Can I put the hood back on now?" he asked.

"Fine. If you want. But I'd rather see you without it."

As they departed the tavern, he was conflicted. In the end, after a lot of thought, he decided to keep the hood down. Though walking with a cute girl without his only means of cover made his act incredibly difficult to maintain. He had to do his best, though he hated the feeling of his entire face being exposed. He missed the security. Despite that, she did say she'd rather see him without it, and he couldn't say no.