[PrP] Cafe Conundrum

[tepidtea]

The soft patter of rain washed onto the cobble streets, ushering most of the market masses indoors. For those who lingered, the rain was cool and refreshing, making ones skin tingle pleasantly. One such person was still standing outside, coat unzipped, head tilted back welcoming the cool wash of rain. Eyes closed, his face was emotionless as brilliant yellow and black locks stuck to his face; droplets rolling like tears down his face. The lone teen breathed in and out calmly as the if the water was washing his worries away.

“Ziya...... what are you doing?”

The teen opened a gray hue and looked at the doorway, spotting his raven haired guardian standing there. He was leaning against the door frame, arms wrapped around himself. His white bandaged arm stood out amongst his dark clothing, a sharp contrast. The lightening dust sighed softly and raked a hand through his damp hair, a sheepish grin on his face.

“Just enjoying the rain..... thats all...” He replied softly and then looked down the empty street. Remaining silent as he heard the jingle of keys and the door shut, he turned his head slowly to see Ashton walk out of the home. The older male pulled a coat on, zipping it up carefully as he walked down to street level. The two were around the same height, though Ashton wasn't very tall to begin with.

“Well since you're too wet to come inside... lets go grab coffee... warm you up...” Ashton said softly, his stormy colored hues looking into slate gray. The teen chuckled a little, putting his hands into his pockets, stance relaxing a little.

“We're out of coffee again?”

“... yes... now shut up and lets go...'


The only sound between the two were the splash of their sneakers and the sound of rain pattering ont heir coats. The silence between them wasn't uncomfortable, it was just they didn't always feel the need to talk when together. There was some sort of mutual understanding that they held that no one else understood.

The cafe they strolled up to was nice and quaint. Despite the rain it was quiet as it was off the beaten path. There was always the occasional person or two in there, since it was perfect for quiet private conversations. Also they had the best pastries either males had ever had. Needless to say they were regulars as, as soon as the barista spotted them, their orders were already starting to be made.

Ashton pushed open the door and entered, the warmth of the roaring fireplace greeted them with open arms. Peeling off their coats, the two picked a table and waited to have their drinks brought to them.  

[Kazu-chan]

Alastair grumbled to himself as he walked down the street in the rain. It wasn't a hard rain, but after nearly an hour of walking, he was practically soaked to the bone. His briefcase, as he should have expected, made a terrible umbrella. But he hadn't expected it to rain that day. Of all the days for it to rain, it had to be the day he had to walk miles from work back to his home. He still had a ways to go before he reached his home, but the rain chilled him.

"This is just not my day," he mumbled to himself as he continued down the street. He needed to warm up, if only for a little while. If he didn't, he feared being out in the rain any longer would result in him spending the next few days in bed with a fever.

He looked about the area, and his eyes landed on a cafe just up the street. That was exactly what he needed: a cozy little cafe to sit in for a while and sip a nice hot cup of coffee. He turned his course, heading right for the cafe.

When he reached it, Alastair opened the door and stepped inside. He lowered the briefcase from above his head and gazed about the place. Already, he could feel the heat of the cafe warming his skin and it felt delightful after the hours spent in the cold rain. But he was dripping from head to toe and hoped the owners of the cafe wouldn't be too angry with him for dripping water all over the cafe.

Alastair walked over the counter, ready to place an order for a simple black coffee. He never understood why anyone wanted to put anything more into the coffee when it tasted just fine plain. His gaze darted over toward the roaring fire, eager to sit as close as possible to the source of heat. But there were already two men sitting at the table there. He sighed, a little disappointed. There was a table near to them, but their table was the closest to the fire. When his coffee was ready, he paid for it then walked over to sit at the table near the other two men.  

[Seiaeka]

Splash, splash, splash.

Worn shoes pattered rapidly down the back alley as the rain picked up, turning into torrents of icy sheets in a matter of minutes. Epoch had to get out of this rain before he caught his death. Could Dusts die? It didn't matter; he would just rather not be ill and bedridden with no one to care for him.

The warm light of a fire drew him through the slate-gray waterfall that throttled the city. It drew him into a rather cozy and homely cafe, a roaring fire in the place, acorss the room. Much to the child's dismay, both of the tables were taken; that wouldn't stop him though.

Out of a matter of politeness, the little newspaper boy fished around in his pockets, pulling out what manner of spare change he could find to buy a single biscuit from the shop. Paying his right to rest, he sidled through the tables until he was at the one right next to the fire. Without a word, he plopped himself down on the hearth, perching right next to the flames, paying the other residents of the area no mind. It might normally be an uncommon sight, but could one blame him for wanting to be warm and dry?  

[tepidtea]

Once receiving their coffee and paying, the two finally got comfortable in their table by the fire. The teen wrapped his hands around the steaming mug and looked at it thoughtfully. Ziya was just about to lift the mug to take a sip when there was a tug in his chest. He paused, his eyebrows knitting as he lifted his head. He looked around for a moment then his eyes fell on a man who sat near them. He didn't appear to be a dust, and the tug was small, which means it was most likely a bottle. The tug he felt always reflected in size and feeling depending on what stage the dust was in.

Just as he studied the purposive guardian, a second, larger tug gripped him and his attentions. Spotting a green haired boy, he watched him scurry over to the fireplace. Seems like this place was Dust central.

“You alright Ziya... you've been acting strange lately” Ashton asked, sipping his coffee after. If he remembered correctly it was always two sugars in his coffee.

“Nothing nothing....” he murmured softly, looking around at the two different sets of groups. He faintly wondered if they could sense him as well. The bottle wouldn't possibly do much could it? But the boy could notice, another question was why was he all alone?  

[Kazu-chan]

Alastair took a sip of his coffee, the heat flowing through him and warming his body. Yes, coffee was definitely the way to go on a wet day like this one. He sat there for a moment, just basking in the warmth. He hoped that the rain would pass by the time he finished his coffee because he didn't relish the idea of heading back into that cold rain to walk the rest of the way to his home.

As he rested, Alastair noticed a small boy taking up a seat at the hearth of the fireplace. He tried not to stare at the unusual color of his hair, having never someone with green hair until now.

Alastair shook his head then took another sip of his coffee. After setting down his mug of coffee, he reached into the pocket of his over coat. He brought out the item stored there and carefully unwrapped the cloth from around it. The precaution to keep his coat from getting wet ended up being pointless with the rain, but he hadn't anticipated that. He checked over the bottle, making sure no harm had come to it during the day.

The bottle still leaked from the top, but there were no cracks in the shiny surface of the glass. He sighed in relief. Alastair didn't often take the bottle with him to work. But today was one of those rare days when he felt like the bottle would be happier going to work with him than sitting in the pot of violets. It was still a weird thing to him to think of a bottle having feelings. He kept the bottle out on the table as he sipped his coffee.  

[Seiaeka]

Epoch stared into the fire as he rested on the edge of the hearth, his shoulder pressed against the warm stone of the mantle. The heat was enough to allow steam to rise from his small figure as he nibbled on his cookie, taking his time to consume it. An awkward feeling ballooned slightly, causing his chest to constrict a little. He looked up from his on the floor at the two tables he had passed earlier; both sections appeared to have their eye on him.

With a moment of awkwardness, Epoch dropped his gaze back to his biscuit and pulled his little newsboy cap down to his ears, effectively hiding all of his pale green hair from view. Something was still bothering him though. The adults had taken their eyes away from him- the lone one fussing with something from his pocket, but the teen from the pair seemed to still be interested.

The little Dust looked up again, hoping to give the teen a look that meant to tell him off for staring when a glimmer caught his eye, his pale leafy orbs drawn away from the figures to the weeping bottle that rested on the table. Everything seemed to stop as he was entranced- rather, everything did stop. Just for a moment, Epoch's power swelled with curiosity as he got up, just peeking over the edge of the table at the bottle now really close to it; his eyes wide with wonder.

His power released, and to anyone who had been paying attention to him or the bottle woud have merely seen him seemingly appear next to it, his thin and pale hand already reaching out. He didn't touch the bottle, but rather, allowed his fine fingertips to graze the droplets that clung to the side of the glass. He didn't know why he was so drawn to it, he hadn't even realised he was standing.