Stud Dud

Elly stopped at one of those small stands in the middle of the mall to glance at some earrings. "These are so cute. Mmn, Zashi?"

"You thinkin' about getting your ears done, princess?"

"No, but I just had a thought. Did you ever want to?"

Hizashi wrinkled his nose at the display. "I couldn't do it, babe. I did want to when I was a kid, but... ouch. Stabbing holes in your ears? Count me out."

She giggled. "I've seen anthros with earrings before, sometimes cuffs. I tried some when I was young, too. They're just not comfortable on these." She waggled her furry purple cat's ears, pointing up at them. "I still get wistful sometimes, though, when I see people with them."

At this point he was hunched over, staring crookedly at the lower display. "Babe, what about a new thingy for your choker? Look!" 

This jewelry chain carried the popular line of Pro Hero charms. Sitting appropriately next to each other were their respective logos - a cheshire cat's grinning face and a microphone. 

"Awww, cute! I'm getting yours, sweetie. It'll go with my ring."

Hizashi blinked. "For real? It's on sale?!"

The young man behind the kiosk popped up with a smile. He wore a plain white t-shirt with the shop's name on it and jeans with black leather boots. His mid-length blue hair was waxed backwards in an approximation of a style they knew quite well. It looked like they had found a fan.

"Hi! Yeah, that one's - well, I maybe ordered too many." He laughed sheepishly. "I got excited and..." He paused as he locked eyes with Elly, who as usual had scorned the stocking disguise she owned for her tail. This made her easily recognizable, though people didn't approach since they selfishly didn't notice others within the course of their day. Hizashi liked to call it 'hiding in plain sight', and they made outrageous bets to see how many folks saw through it. 

"Aw. You got one," he muttered as the guy struggled to recover.

"Looks like it," she agreed with a grin. 

"Oh. Oh, sorry! I uh, oh wow! But you're here to look. This one, right?" He reached in and unclipped the golden microphone from the display board. 

"Yep." Her smile grew wider when she saw the attendant was digging around in another section. 

"Where is that... here! Uh, Ms. Cheshire? I can add a charm with that one so they're both visible on your choker - and we have these that would look awesome with it right now." He set another display on the counter.

"Awww, shit babe, hearts an' lovey stuff! That's freakin' sweet." Hizashi gave her a huge smooch on her neck, causing her to giggle like a schoolgirl while she picked another to match the one already set aside. 

The second burst of recognition almost killed the poor salesman. <i>If he was kissing her, he had to be..!</i>

He staggered back, his eyes widening even further as he took in the guy in front of him. Hizashi's casual clothing was enough to make him indistinguishable from another civilian in the crowd. Once the bubble popped, though, fans mostly said the same thing.

"I should've recognized your <i>voice!</i>"

He laughed. "You'd think so, right? Don't worry, not a 'lotta people do." He paused to look at what his girlfriend had chosen in appreciation. "Aw. You gonna get the infinity heart?"

"You know anything larger than that?"

"Nope." He stared so lovingly into her eyes that the sales clerk lost track of what he was doing. 

"You guys," he finally cleared his throat when they turned back to him. "You're really something else. I've met heroes and I've met couples, but I just have to say you two are the most in love people I've ever seen." He stammered a little, aware that he might have overstepped his bounds, but they were still happily smiling. 

"Thank you," Elly said simply.

"We gross some people out," Hizashi confessed with a low chuckle.

"Can't help it, though," she added impishly.