"I'm sorry I sprang the will on you," Solae apologized as she took his hand and gave it a firm squeeze. Rene opened his mouth as if to protest the need for such to say such a thing but the marquise shook her head before any words left his lips. "We're a team so I should have at least warned you," she explained. "My cousins aren't bad people but I know that they have fundamental philosophical differences from me. They certainly aren't Syshin sympathizers. I know I can't control everything that happens but I want to at least try to leave the universe better than I entered it. I trust you more than either of them and... it's the least I can do if we aren't able to clear your name."

She leaned back in her chair and wrinkled her nose. "Not the best date conversation is it? I think we've been doing things a little backwards," the linguist laughed as she pulled her gaze away from Rene and back down to the menu in an attempt to not be thinking about him instead of food. As much as he had enjoyed seeing her in the dress he had selected, she had been similarly quite attracted to the vision of him in a finely tailored suit. "I hear that most couples have dates before they get engaged," she elaborated.

They made small talk until the waiter came back for their orders. Though they had quite a bit of privacy given the arrangement of the room, Solae was reluctant to discuss any sensitive matters when their server might be approaching and overhear a confidential topic. On New Concordia she had a very regimented diet meant to maximize nutrition with a low caloric intake. The death of her parents, being on the run, and being in disguise her a large amount of freedom over her meal. She didn't order any of the standard selection for ladies neurotic over their waistlines. The noblewoman requested a plate offering with prime cuts of meat, a vegetable side, a side that unabashedly had carbohydrates, and a desert for two.

Rene didn't comment or look surprised. Solae couldn't be sure if this was because he was comfortable with the choices she made, because he wanted her to eat more, because he knew as well as she this might be their last indulgence for some time, or if he simply didn't care about her preferences so long as they didn't make her sick. Their waiter couldn't hide his disbelief. He had spent years catering to wealthy members of both genders quizzing him about ways to trim down an entree to make it more 'healthy.' The paranoia about maintaining a physique was normal. He repeated Solae's order back to her twice as if certain he had gotten it wrong.

"Do I need to speak with the management?" the marquise finally snapped. She was putting on airs that were faithful to her attire: a cold indignation, a sharp tongue, and an expectation that anyone with her material means ought to be treated like royalty by establishments in the service industry. It was fine acting but she was also sincerely annoyed. The last thing Solae wanted was to have this nice time with Rene ruined because someone wanted to passively question and criticize the first time she ordered a meal she wanted to have rather than the one she ought to have out of societal obligation.

"I can take my business elsewhere," she threatened.

"My apologies, miss," the waiter capitulated before he had to explain to his employers why he had lost a customer. They would be shocked by the order as well, but so long as it made the aristocrat and her companion happy it wasn't worth jeopardizing business over. He bowed to emphasize his remorse and took Rene's order much more quickly, without any judgment, eager to get away from mistake. Ten would be displeased they had drawn attention to themselves, however minor, but it was almost a certainty that the desert would now be compensated.

"I don't envy you being a marine," Solae whispered once she was certain no one else was within earshot, "but I have to admit sometimes I get a little jealous that you're not obligated to follow the same absurd rules I'm supposed to even when we're not even being ourselves."

After a moment's thought she frowned to herself. "Maybe I should have requested two deserts. If I was going to be met with resistance no matter what I chose I should have been especially gluttonous." It was Solae's frustration speaking. The view was beautiful and the music carrying through the space pleasant but she couldn't pretend the enormity of their quest wasn't still weighing down upon her constantly. The only time she truly forgot about it was when Rene pulled her into his arms and they expressed their love physically in such intensity the world itself bled away. She yearned for the days when her largest source of stress was her unwed status.