Delas quickly recognized the insignia, and before Astien could get a good view from where he sat, Delas kicked it out of his hands and onto the floor, and he while around and covered Astien's eyes. "It's a miniature penis! Don't look!"
Astien sighed and gently pushed Delas away before hefting himself out of his chair. He walked out of the room saying "honestly, Delas. I'll be in my study."
Once Delas was sure Astien was gone, he picked up the bat. "Marius, what are you doing?! You can't just propose just like that! You need to make it something special, something you can tell Aiden one day!"
"I was going to in the kitchen, but somebody decided to shout at the top of his lungs." Marius sighed and took the bat back and checked for any damage. "What do you suggest then?"
"Well then it was for the best I interrupted you, cuz that wouldn't have been special either! You need to make a special night out of it, do something romantic. Something that'll stay with him in his mind forever. You could take him out to a restaurant, then go for a walk in the park, and then Cormac and I could be waiting to serenade you. Oh, or maybe we could get Astien's students and make a band to perform a real song! Or maybe we could…" Delas went on and on. "Or we could ask Cormac for ideas. Or maybe somebody else Astien knows. Like that elf guy who threatened to break your kneecaps if you broke Astien's heart. I dunno, just throwing stuff out."
"I could take him dancing or something. We could walk in a garden." Marius sighed.
"Oh, don't sigh like that. Don't you want this to be something you can tell Aiden about one day, and he'll say 'wow, maybe I'll go that when I propose!'"
MArius nodded. "I'm not great at planning romantic things like this. In the bedroom, yes, but outside of it... I just don't want to screw anything up, that's why I was going to keep it simple."
"Why don't we ask Cormac for ideas? Maybe he'll have one."
"He's in the study with Astien, though. Give me time to figure this out for myself."
"Figure what out?" Cormac asked with a yawn. "What's taking that tea so long?"
"Speak of the devil. Marius is gonna propose, isn't that great? But he needs some help planning something really romantic and memorable."
"Really?"
Marius nodded. "I'm just not that great at planning romantic dates."
"You're putting too much pressure on yourself," Cormac said as he gave Delas a stern look. "It doesn't have to be overly romantic, just personal. Do things that Astien enjoys and stuff." He ran a hand through his hair. "The hearing is tomorrow so you could just disguise the whole thing as a way to get Astien to relax."
"But it should be romantic! Why don't we ask that elf guy for ideas? He usually seems to be wherever we are, he'll probably turn up somewhere."
"Take Astien to a play or something, then?" Cormac suggested.
"How do you plan on formerly proposing to Wyn?" Marius asked.
Cormac shrugged. "I was going to give her a book filled with blank pages."
"What about the rose?"
"I changed my mind. Wyn loves to read adventure stories so I thought I would give her a blank book so she could write her own."
"Would it be special made to have Tamara's symbol on it?"
"I was going to make the book myself. Somehow."
Marius nodded and sighed. "I'm going to turn in for the night." He put the bat back into his pouch and went up to the study. "I'm going to bed, Astien."
Astien turned from staring out the window to Marius. "Hm? Alright. Bedroom's at the end of the hall, to the right." He walked over to Marius an put a hand on his forehead. "Are you alright? You seem particularly tired."
"It's probably from the trip," he took Astien's hand and kissed it. "I'm fine."
Astien wasn't convinced, but decided to let it go. "Need a snuggle buddy?" he asked.
Marius smiled. "Of course. I could always use a snuggle buddy."
Astien smiled and led Marius to his bedroom. He changed into his regular under-sized sleepwear and laid himself gingerly in his bed. He looked out the window. "Spring is coming. They'll be planting the communal garden soon. I wish I could help."
"You could help. We can stay for a while," Marius suggested as he wrapped his arms around him. "It would be nice to stay put for a while." He kissed Astien's head.