The Fox and the Geese [Himiko, Erchanhardt]

Much as Erchanhardt felt he ought reassure her that there was no need to go through those efforts if it would be difficult, there was not an insubstantial part of him which simply told him to allow her to make this request. Was that in poor taste? That was a little bit difficult a question for him to answer, but he would not argue with the outcome either way.

"I do quite like children, yes. It is such a joy to see them happy, and it brightens my own day to give them a bit of excitement. It reminds me much of when my daughter was young, though that has not been for a long while now."

He supposed he may as well make clear to her that he did have a child, yes? Erchanhardt wondered, briefly, if she would actually mind that. He would be disappointed, certainly, though he supposed he could not particularly hold it against her if she found it to be a concern.

He did have a daughter! Would he be opposed to more? Would that be weird? She should meet his daughter right? Maybe that was a bit further down the line, first date and all you know? She shouldn't get too into it. Take it nice and slow, but it was so hard. How could she not fall ears over tail?

"That's great! I bet your daughter is totally great."

She assumed she was great, with a father like this guy how could she not be great? Himiko would bet a guy like this would do anything for his kids, a real dad of the century like that.

"Well, I don't really have any kids of my own but I think I'd be a great mum. Well, maybe I would struggle a bit. I don't know yet. Kids do tend to like me though, I think?"

"She is quite a wonderful young woman, yes. I am as proud of her as any father could be."

Indeed, his pride in Ada was rather clear to just about anyone, as there was very little in his life that Ercahnhardt treasured more than her. Though, having thought about her for a moment, it did occur to him that he would surely need to tell her about this development, yes? Ah, dear. That would be something of an uncomfortable conversation, wouldn't it?

"There are always some struggles in parenting, so I do not think that is something that you need worry about. I believe it best to accept that truth, so that it is far easier to change ourselves for the better and grow into the best possible parents. With that said, I have found that an understanding of children and an affinity for them does go a long way, so I would say that you are off to a good start."

"Aww, that's so sweet. I bet you two are super close."

Himiko liked to imagine that families were super close and her's was just an exception. A great reliable guy like this would surely remain close no matter the time or the distance that separated him from his daughter. Yep. Himiko's ears flicked excitedly when he said she was off to a good start. That was great! Someone with experience in it saying she had a good foundation really made her happy to know that she had the potential to be the best mum ever.

"Right. Um..."

What did she ask now? She couldn't stall now. Ask him something, tell him something. Do something dummy. It was kind of nice just sitting here though, even if she was struggling to figure out what to say next. If they kept talking about kids she was afraid of getting excited and asking him if he had any intention of more, that'd be super awkward. So Himiko sat there and kept eating while getting shy over her stalled train of thought. Ooops.

"I do like to think that we are, though her living in Japan makes it a matter of keeping regular conversation when possible."

Indeed, Himiko's assumptions about Erchanhardt and his daughter were fairly accurate, as he did very much do his best to stay close to her. Her obvious excitement was rather endearing, something that he actually blushed a faint bit as he considered. My, blushing like a young boy again? One might never have known how long he had lived.

"I would imagine your work in the Gotei brings you around the world now and again, yes? If you have ever been in the Orient, you may have seen her face. Ada is something of an icon in the fashion world, I am told, though I confess I do not fully understand it. Still, it has made her very happy, so I am all too glad to support it."

"Of course, I've been to Japan a few times. Wait a minute... Ada.. Ada. Ada."

Himiko pouted and looked to the distance, why'd that name sound familiar. Right on the tip of her tongue. Fashion world? WAIT!!!

"Ada.. Adawolfa's your daughter!? The adorable woman on the front of all the magazines! The Lady of Iron herself!? That Ada???"

She was shocked, it kind of made sense if she thought about it. Ada was a pretty big girl herself and the blonde hair, there was definitely the strong resemblance but still. She was not expecting to be here on a date with the Lady of Iron's father, oh gosh. That's so cool? weird? Awesome? Yeah. That one. Definitely awesome.

"Wow. I can't believe that's your daughter, she's totally amazing."

It actually surprised Erchanhardt just a touch when Himiko reacted so positively, though it did not necessarily come as a shock that she would actually be familiar with Ada's work. She was rather ubiquitous, and Himiko certainly seemed as though she were more familiar with modern society.

"She is my daughter, yes. I am rather glad to hear you speak so highly of her. She does work rather tirelessly in her career, and so far as I can see, there is a good deal more effort in women's fashion than in men's."

Well, Erchanhardt certainly felt all the more confident in things now. Perhaps that was a bit overconfident of him, though he felt as though at least a small bit of confidence was merited at this stage. He imagined that a more aggressive sort of approach at this juncture would be to offer to introduce her, but frankly, that felt as though it would be disingenuous on his end, so it was wholly out of any consideration. And, besides, much as he did intend to introduce Himiko to Ada in time, presuming that all went well, he nevertheless was not one to simply intrude on his daughter's life for the sake of his own interests.

How could she not be so amazed by knowledge that a beautiful queen like that was Erchanhardt's daughter??? Like gosh, she always grabbed those magazines when she was done with her patrol. The articles and modelling was so pretty, great inspiration for when she wanted to look a million bucks too. Maybe she could meet Ada, down the line. Oh oh, it'd be so weird though wouldn't it if she was the step-mum of such a prolific woman. That's crazyyyyy.

"Uh huh. She's amazing, she's so beautiful when she does her shoots and she's such a natural at it. Whoa, like gosh. I wasn't expecting this hahaha."

She took a moment to recentre herself, it did not work and she tried not to go all girly on him. He probably didn't want to get caught up in all her girly ramblings, Kokoro would lose it when she got home and told her all about the gossip. Those juicy deets they could share over a day out or somethin'.

"I am sure she would be quite glad to hear you say as much. I know she does put a great deal of time into her appearance."

The finer details of this sort of thing did escape Erchanhardt, but he did not mind discussing it with Himiko. It was, in no small part, simply pleasant to hear her speak so energetically about the topic, such that he was rather content to led her continue as long as she felt pertinent.

"I suppose you also keep track of such fashion trends and the like? That certainly does make sense, given your consistent choice of attire. I've not thought much on such things, though there is a good deal worth learning there, yes?"

"She'd have to, girls'd probably kill her if she just naturally looked that glamourous you know."

That was true, girls could be totally envious you know? They'd me suuuuuper jealous and that was always bad, well annoying. She could get the despair at not being able to look super cute but to be vicious over it? She didn't have a malicious bone in her body, except maybe if someone tried to hurt her hypothetical kids that was. Then she'd relentlessly want to hurt them back.

"I sure do, I guess I'm a bit of a fashionista. Girl's gotta look her best, you know? If you want I can take you some places, I'm sure we can get something adorably handsome for you around the place. Might need a bit more flashy place than the country but I can sniff out some real gems."