Roleplay City
Infusco => INFUSCO: Enter The Shadows => Sanctuary => Topic started by: pentagrandma on August 18, 2019, 07:56:50 AM
-
Reserved for Maxpphire; continued from Perfect Illusion (http://www.roleplaycity.com/forum/index.php?topic=7383.0).
Spared the embarrassment of having to climb over Dreki in the backseat of a moving car, Aislin relieved a sigh. Her hands remained pinned beneath her thighs, and a smile quirked in beginning answer to his question. Back home, the mention of drawing horror stories would incite short, unsettled responses from anyone other than Adam. No one had ever bothered to inquire about subgenres.
“Most of my shorts are of the paranormal variety; little tales of things that go bump in the night. I have the most fun drawing when there’s a monster of some kind involved. Gore is also really fun. It’s still disturbing in a way, but it doesn’t have the same realism as modern cinema. I guess that makes it more palatable,” She revealed with a shrug, apparently having felt the need to explain her fondness for illustrating the unsavory.
Her gaze drifted toward the window as the car slowed, and came to a subsequent stop. It really had been a short ride. “Oh,” remarked Ash, “We’re here.” After thanking the driver, she unbuckled and stepped back out into the night - holding the door, again, for Dreki. She inhaled deeply the sweet scent of jasmine, and released the air upon a breath of compulsory contentment.
-
He too got out of the car once they were there and thought about what she said. Monsters, the toe that go bump I'm the night. He wondered if she knew about the supernaturals that lived in the city, or if it was just a weird coincidence. He also wondered if she were to grab his hand again or if they would just walk inside without. He stood next to her and would walk in with her regardless if she had or not.
"One of the students in my highschool music class really enjoyed Junji Ito, who I guess is a comic artist who specializes in body horror. It sounds fairly interesting, but they never go super detailed in describing the photos, so I only know some basic descriptions. They might be a point of reference that's useful for you?" He mentioned wondering if she already knew of the artist. He seemed not really bothered by horror stuff, although horror does rely on ones eyes a lot. More than the other senses really, to the point where it just never terrified him.
"Also curious, what drew you to this city as opposed to some other city. Was it just the school you got enrolled into or were you looking at other places too?" It was his way of trying to find out if she new about the supernatural or not. "Also feel free to get whatever you want from the cafe. I believe I mentioned it was my treat earlier, but if not, I figure it's an easy and simple enough way to repay you for describing those pieces or art to me." He smiled at her, another reason was that, with him having 3 stable incomes and her having none right now, it only made sense for him to pay. She could use whatever money she has on more important things.
-
It hadn’t even occurred to Ash that Dreki might like to join hands again. She hadn’t been to this part of town, yet - and so she simply stood for a time after the car had pulled away, preoccupied with the act of taking it all in. She peered down the cobblestone road, openly gaping at the active market stalls and their many loitering pedestrians. On a weeknight, no less! How nice it would be to live in one of the charmingly dated apartment buildings of this street; to spend mornings and evenings strolling the subtly winding thoroughfare, and exploring its quaint shops. Too bad the monthly rent was probably more than her savings.
Coming back to herself, she cast an apologetic and unthinking smile toward Dreki; having forgotten his inability to perceive it. “Sorry,” she offered a touch belatedly, hastening toward the cafe door to pull it open for him. Ever the chivalrous prince, our Aislin. She followed in from behind, and smiled anew in her review of the interior. Cozy. The place truly was a Sanctuary.
“Junji Ito is an incredible talent,” she gushed as she perused the contents of the glass display, ducking down to admire the confections within. So pretty in their simplicity. “I’ve only read three of his works, but I loved them all. Do you remember which story your student described to you?” Her gaze rose as she straightened; skimming over the 'Help Wanted' sign (she’d have to remember to ask for an application on her way out), and the tables with their prearranged place-settings and menus.
“Is it all counter service?” She paused to clarify, awaiting Dreki’s response before providing an answering nod and continuing on. “The school I wanted to attend was here. There were a couple of other places that I looked at, but,” she shrugged, “I guess I had my heart set on being here. I wanted to be somewhere... progressive.”
... “I really don’t need to be repaid, but I’ll still let you treat me. Thank you - and next time, I’ll treat you.” Again, she smiled; allowing both gratitude and contentment to color the words as she spoke them.
-
He noticed Ash take look around, and enjoy the sights. He lived pretty close to here so this was quite a normal sight to him, or at least their outlines are. He allowed he to take her time looking around, taking in what was ground around, when she came back to it all and apologized, he shook her head.
"Don't worry about it, I'm guessing you haven't been around here yet, if not then welcome to the west!" He smiled as he walked in as she held the door for him. "Thank you" he said in regards to the door and walked in a bit. He listened to her speak, following her to the confectionery counter, watching her take a look into the glass. Which to him just looked like a solid wall.
"I don't remember the name of the story but it's with the people shaped holes in the side of a mountain after an earthquake and how people found their specific holes. It was a weird one but I honestly wish I could have read it myself. The weird always makes the horror more interesting." He said thinking on it, he didn't want to spoil the ending in case she hadn't read that one yet herself. Maybe someday she could describe it better to him, so he could really get a feel for how the characters did, and the anxiety that came with them wanting to enter their holes.
"It's all counter, but we can take a seat, look at the menus a bit before ordering. I know what I want already, but I have a habit of memorizing menus since I cannot read most of them, makes ordering from places easier," he mentioned, "feel free to choose a seat, I'm open with sitting anywhere." And would follow her to whatever table she choose. "Also I'm excited to get that treat, it was a treat enough what you did at the museum. I'm pretty easy to please so don't worry too hard about it either." He spoke knowing that whatever it is, it will be a good time. He didn't have much of a chance to hang out with others, so regardless of whatever they did, he'd be appreciative of it.
-
“Oh, I have read that one!” Ash enthused, returning her focus to Dreki. “The three books I have are each anthologized volumes of one story, but they all have a little short at the end. So, I suppose, technically I’ve read six of his works.”
With a soft exhalation of laughter, she reconsidered their seating options. Usually, she preferred to sit near a window - or, wherever provided the best view for people-watching - but observing their surroundings while Dreki was unable ... felt, somehow, wrong. Though he didn’t strike her as the type to mind, she still chose a table that was a bit off the beaten path. It would be better for conversation, anyway; separated as it was from the general hubbub of the cafe.
For a moment, she considered pulling out his chair for him - ultimately deciding that the gesture would have been too extra. She didn’t want to annoy him with her over-attentiveness, or make him feel any less capable than she. So, she simply sat; taking up a menu, and studying her options.
... “What are you having?” She asked, after a short time.
-
"Then maybe someday you can describe it better to me, and maybe some of his other works." He smiled as he followed her to one of the tables. He didn't think much of her choice, beyond that it was a table he would have chosen given it's general out of way nature. He mostly kept to himself in public spaces, how much of that is his normal introvertedness and how much of that was him basically hiding himself from others was hard to tell at this point, as they were now just habits ingrained into him. He sat down not even thinking of the prospect of her even possibly pulling out his chair for him.
"Oh, I plan on having their Rosemary and Olive Oil Bagel toasted with cream cheese and some green tea," he described, which he realized after saying that, it might not sound very filling to others. He began to feel a little self conscious with his choice, but given how his stomach had been acting up on and off for a while now, he didn't really want to push it. He wasn't really used to eating with others who also ate food and was mostly worried that she would show concern over it all. It didn't help at all that he knew that he hasn't always eaten as he should be, and while he was trying to fix that, the newer issue of stomach pain made that more difficult than he had liked.
"Anything on the menu looking good to you?" He asked, in a way hoping to get his mind off of the sudden bout of anxiety before it became noticeable. In a way he hoped she wouldn't press him on it, but if she did, he wouldn't lie, but he'd likely keep it as vague as he possibly could without arousing suspicion. It's not like the bagels here were that small anyway.
-
“I’d be happy to,” she provided, in genuine response to his suggestion that she might describe the story to him. Explaining each panel to him in the same way that she had in the museum would be repetitive and confusing - but perhaps she could write it out in a story format beforehand, and read it to him. It would likely be better planned out than improvised.
Aislin made no mention of Dreki’s seemingly small appetite. It could have been that he’d already eaten. She’d been guilty of the same before, having treated Mitri to dinner after she’d already had hers. Besides, she didn’t know Dreki well enough to comment on his weight. For all she knew, he was the type to eat and eat and never gain an ounce.
“Hmm,” waffled Ash, pressing her lips together as she continued to glance over the menu. “A latte, for sure - lavender, I think. A rosemary bagel sounds good ... maybe I’ll have a sandwich on that.” She paused, then asked, “Would you share a dessert with me if I ordered one?” The cakes on display had looked really good, but she didn’t think she’d be able to finish too much on her own.
-
"I can certainly try," he spoke with a smile, "I've never seen what any of their deserts looked like, usually they are behind the glass, which acts like a wall for me. So if they are super big we might still need a to go box." Luckily for him and glass acting like any other wall does, that even if he didn't have the appetite for it, he could just claim it was more than he was expecting. "Also the Rosemary Bagel is probably my favorite, if I ever get a sandwich, bagel, or any other bread related item here, I always start with that and work out the rest from there." He mentioned for sure suggesting that using that bagel as a bread base for a sandwich was indeed a good idea.
"What kind of music do you like?" He then moved to ask, figuring a topic he knew a lot about might make for a fun conversation. She had after all given him a bunch of perspectives on art he normally couldn't access. He doubt he could really give her a new perspective on music, but it's something he generally has in common with most others. He had yet to meet a person who didn't like it, or someone whom didn't at least expand his tastes some.
-
“So, do you just see, like... silhouettes?” Wondered Ash aloud. She gave him no time to respond, however, before shaking her head and asking, “What kind of dessert do you prefer? Chocolate? Floral? Fruity? Tart?” Leaning back in her chair, she folded up her menu and set it aside. A sandwich sounded good, and she’d ask the counter clerk which on their menu would pair best with the rosemary.
... “I know it’s a cliche response, but I really like all types of music. Lately I sort of lean toward indie and folk rock, but it really depends on how I’m feeling in the moment. What about you? You mentioned you teach music - what do you play?”
-
"Oh! I prefer lemon as a flavor for sweets, but if you want chocolate or something floral or something else altogether, by all means. Get what you think sounds nice, as I'll enjoy it regardless. If we somehow can't finish it, I figured you'd be the one to take it home, as I feel as if I were to take it home, it would likely go bad before I could finish it." He said with a smile, to him it was only logical that the person to take home any potential leftovers would be the one to choose the dish, and personally he didn't want the leftovers. With how iffy his stomach has been lately he wasn't sure if he would actually get around to eating it before it went bad.
"In regards to my sight, maybe I did a poor job at explaining it the first time around. Feel free to ask questions if you need to, I really don't mind answering any. It's not really silhouettes or shadows or anything like that. While I know that is a common way for blind people to be able to see something, I actually have no personal point of reference for darkness or light. More like I see outlines of everything. I cannot see through anything solid." He thought for a moment to see if he could better describe it. "When you draw something, you draft up it's outline first, right? Imagine that, I would guess, I'm not really sure how accurate that is given how I can't see 2D or printed items, but I'm hoping it helps you understand." He wanted her to kind of understand his sight to the best that he could describe it. He didn't want her to think he would be ever incapable of walking her home just because he was blind, and was actually slightly concerned that was the reason why she offered to walk him home instead. While it was a nice turn on it's head from societal norms, and he enjoyed that aspect of it, he did hope that it wasn't just because of his eyes.
"I think people have a habit of underestimating how much I can actually see once they find out and it's mildly frustrating at times, but that could also be from the fact that I used to be fully blind as a child, and ended up with some way of seeing as an adult and thus, I've actually dealt with the improvement, while everyone else, just take me for what they know as Blind being. I don't normally tell people I'm blind, in fact only a very very small handful of my students actually know. Sorry for going off on that tangent, but I hope by describing it a bit better to you, that you don't get the chance to underestimate me." He said that last part with a warm smile. It was clear he didn't take her invite to walk him home as an underestimation of his own abilities, while he understood it was a possibility that was the case, he didn't want to be wrong and accuse her of such.
"In regards to music, I also like all kinds and I feel like I learn of new songs and bands everytime I go into work," he lightly chuckled, "Piano is the main instrument that I play, it helps to have it has a base instrument to know mostly due to the amount of music theory you learn from it. I can also play Violin, Cello, Guitar, Bass, Drums, and Trumpet. I've debated on whether or not I've wanted to pick up a Saxophone. I understand it's a lot but it's my main hobby, and I do enjoy writing music, even if my writing skills aren't the greatest. I can also sing."
-
“Let’s get a lemon-something, then,” stated Ash in approval. She listened as Dreki explained to her the details of his vision, lips twisting into some semblance of a frown. He had no concept of dark and light. Did that mean he could see the same, even in pitch dark? If so, how was that possible? Wasn’t that how vision worked? Wasn't light required?
... As she puzzled over this, and he continued on, she found herself relieved that she’d chosen not to pull his chair out for him. It wasn’t so much that she’d underestimated him (okay, maybe she had, a little) as it was that she wanted to make things a bit easier for him to manage. She wanted to be helpful. She opened doors for everyone, always, so she hoped that he hadn’t found that at all belittling. Would she have offered to walk him home, had his vision been the same as hers?
“Did you have a retinal procedure, or a cornea transplant? ... If I’m ever too excessive in my offers of help, I hope you’ll tell me.”
She took a mental inventory of all of the instruments he played, and gaped. SEVEN? He was a multilingual teacher who played seven instruments, and also sang? On top of all of that, he was good-looking and kind to boot. What in the actual fuck? He really was the whole package; she refrained from telling him so, again. “Wow,” she exhaled, instead, upon an astonished breath. “I’d love to hear you play.”
-
He smiled at the idea of a lemon treat of somekind. It had been a while since he last had am actual dessert, that he was kind of excited to share one with her. However, any hints of excitement faded when she asked about his eyes, and what he had gone through to get some semblance of sight. He didn't want to lie to her, but at the same time he couldn't tell her the full truth either. He thought about his answer before he told her anything, and there was a certain unease to his tone that at the very least made it sound like he didn't like talking about it too much.
"Well, I don't remember too much on what was done because I became very sick afterwards, but it was an experimental procedure. It didn't work out nearly as well as anyone had hoped it would either, so they ended up scrapping the idea." He was nothing but truthful in his statements while leaving out the whole 'They infused a lot of my body with Angel DNA' parts. He figured it was possible that it could have helped a sighted man much more, but it did help him out a little. He was able to be more independent, but knew Hofflan considered it a failure at least.
"If you're offers become too much I'll let you know. I did enjoy the banter of you being my chivalrous protector so no worries there. I guess just try and treat me like anyone else, I know when to ask for help in most scenarios where my eyes can't." He smiled at her, trying to be reassuring to it all, as well as trying to be helpful on how he wanted to be treated. Sometimes it was hard for him to convey this. He was reminded of having to tell Sam that he didn't need to be warned about curbs much more than sighted people do. Reminded of how one of his students who found out got there before class, trying to set things up. Dreki had to explain to them that he didn't need help that and if he needed help, he could ask. People did it subconsciously a lot of the time which is why he didn't speak about being blind to most.
"I'd be happy to play for you sometime," he seemed to veer back on excited again, "I enjoy playing for others the most, and I used to do so at a bar, but lately they've retired their Piano." He mentioned knowing that he likely wasn't welcome back there anyway after drunkenly telling someone out loud that he is sometimes monitored. "I do own all those instruments though, so practicing is not a problem, I just wish I could find a venue that would accept me walking in whenever and play for the fun of it."
-
“Oh, I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable by asking,” Ash contritely stated, having noted Dreki’s dwindling enthusiasm. Recovery must have been really rough to have invoked that sort of response. “I don’t want you to feel obligated to answer every question I ask. It’s okay to tell me you’d rather not. I won’t be upset.”
She was relieved to hear that he’d enjoyed their previous banter. Good. That meant she could continue to do as she had. Besides, even opening doors proved a measure of trust in him, right? It wasn’t like she’d told him where those doors were, or how many steps to take before he’d have passed their threshold. He would have to be able to see something in order to know where to go; to know that the door had been opened for him to begin with.
With his renewed excitement, her smile returned. “Maybe you should open up your own bar,” she suggested, half in jest. “No one would dare say ‘no’ to the person who signs their checks.”
-
"But it feels so rude to deny someone an answer. Maybe that helps me be a good teacher?" He half joked, but would have felt more uncomfortable not answering her. Some deep intrinsic feeling tugged at him that he need to answer questions. Whether or not he was truthful was always up to him, but it always felt like he needed to answer. "It doesn't bother me that badly to mention as much as I've have. So don't worry about that so much." He smiled at her, letting her know it was fine, or at least trying to. When she suggested that he open his own bar, he chuckled at her half joke.
"I'd be a terrible business owner," He admitted with a smile, "Sure, they wouldn't be able to tell me no for playing, but how am I to sign a check when I can even see the line." He joked fully, then took a more serious tone, "I'm no business man, just a hobbyist with a love of music and preforming. I'm confident that someday I'll find a spot that won't mind me moseying in when I please and play. In the meantime, I can always practice." He was not too terribly worried about it.
"Anyway, still thinking about what you want?" He casually asked, waiting for her to be ready to order being going up there and paying for them both.
-
“I don’t think it’s rude at all,” replied Ash in good humor. “It’s totally fair for you to tell a person that you’re uncomfortable with a topic, and that’s answer enough. If they can’t accept that, then that makes them rude.” He hadn’t sounded entirely serious in his response; but still, she felt she should reiterate. Perhaps, for him, she would need to consider her questions more carefully.
... “Oh,” she began, straightening up in her seat when prompted. “No, I’m ready to order whenever you are.”
Likewise, she would wait for him to rise from his seat before doing the same. Once they arrived at the counter, she bombarded the poor clerk with a flurry of questions. Which sandwich did they think went best with the rosemary bagel? It didn’t have pickles on it, did it? Between the lemon bar and lemon-blueberry cake, which was better? What about the lemon meringue pie? Oh! She’d almost forgotten to order her lavender latte! Was that better iced, or hot? ... And could she get an application?
“Sorry for being a pest,” she said around a small laugh, addressing both Dreki and the person at the counter. When all was settled, she moved aside for Dreki to take over.
-
He walked up with her and let her order first. He smiled as he listened to her go over her options with the person working at the counter, and the worker giving her some of their opinions on what they felt tasted good, when Ash apologized to them both the counter person said there was nothing to apologize for and they were happy to help, He then himself ordered and paid for it all, he looked toward Ash.
"You know they are there for more than just taking orders and money, making the food, and handing us the food right?" He said with a smile, "I'm sure helping out customers figure out something good to eat falls as part of their job. So no worries there." He said, as their food came out, he grabbed the tray and began to head back to their table, once there he sat down, grabbed his bagel and took a bite. It was good, like usual when he grabbed food from here. He waited for her to also take a bite of her food and a sip of her drink both before continuing.
"How are you enjoying the food and drink?" He asked hoping that she liked it. If not it was no bid deal, he was the one who paid anyway so it isn't like she would lose out on anything if she didn't like it, but he'd feel bad as he was the one who choose the place after all.
-
“Oh,” began Ash around a little spout of laughter. “Yeah, I know. I was a server, back home. I think that’s why I’m extra conscious of the type of customer I’m being. I don’t want to be too needy.”
When they’d made it back to the table, Ash spent a moment in blissful silence; exhaling cooling breaths across the surface of her lavender latte, and taking dainty sips thereafter. So good. It was exactly what she’d needed. Something to simultaneously calm and energize. She could live on this.
Eventually, and with some measure of reluctance, she returned the cup to its saucer - claiming, instead, the sandwich. Her first bite was met with a sound of mingled surprise and delight. How could a simple sandwich be this appetizing? When his query came, she gushed out a fervent, “It’s really good! The rosemary was a great recommendation.”
-
"Good I'm really glad you like it! It's my favorite type of bread here so I always go for it when I get food here" he said with a smile super happy that she was enjoying the food. He enjoyed his meal and when finished he'd wait for her to be done before trying the desert. He didn't feel it right to start on it without her, wondering how good it was. He never really explored the desert menu here.
"Let me know when you're ready to try the desert." He spoke with a smile. He could already feel his stomach not be happy at having ate something, but he didn't mind so much. He was just enjoying her company and focused more on that than his own health issue.
-
Aislin took the time to really savor each bite of her sandwich, pausing to offer up the occasional mundane query in an attempt to maintain some semblance of a conversation. Likewise, she would respond in kind were he to echo back any of her questions, or give voice to some of his own. When she had finally finished, she stacked her plate atop his and slid them toward one edge of the table, out of the way; old habits and all.
“You take the first bite,” she said, centering the dessert plate between them. She’d chosen the lemon blueberry cake, per the cashier’s recommendation. They’d described it as light and airy in the melt-in-your-mouth sort of way, not too sweet - and Ash had always had trouble saying no to French buttercream.
... “How is it?” Came her eager query, following that initial taste. She watched his expression for any tells, hoping to find some measure of satisfaction.
-
He nodded and picked up his fork, and pushed it in one of the corners of the cake grabbing a small piece. It was delightfully moist cake, with strong flavors of lemon and blueberry. It was easily one of the best cakes Dreki ever had in his life, which wasn't many of them, mostly box bought for birthdays and of the like.
"It's really good!" He exclaimed, not expecting it to be as amazing as it was, "It feels like I've never had an actual cake before this moment but I have during birthdays and holidays before. This blows all of that out of the water." He explained a bit, never really having had a from scratch cake before he was kind of amazed. Although Lemon and Blueberry was an odd flavor of cake but it was easily the best cake he's ever had.
"Try it." He encouraged pushing it a little towards her, out if fear he might eat it all before she can, and figured it would be better if they do eat it together.
-
“Really?!” Ash brightly enthused, taking up her own fork to portion off a bite. It had dissolved almost the moment it had touched her tongue; like cotton candy, if it had substance, and far more flavor. She was swift to dive in for seconds, pushing the plate back toward the center of the table for optimal sharing. Dreki had been right - it was really good - and she voiced as much by way of a wordless murmur of satisfaction. She loved the blueberries; the way they popped in her mouth in little sugary bursts. What was it about baking blueberries that made them so much better than leaving them raw?
“So good,” she gushed. In a way, this was a first-time experience for her, too. There weren’t any bakeries in her hometown; unless you counted the one in the local grocery, which she didn’t. She’d had plenty of quality baked goods per her mother’s keen efforts, but this had easily surpassed those - not that she’d ever say as much. Besides, home-baked goods had their own appeal.
... “When is your birthday?” She asked as she went in for a third helping. Each bite she took was a little smaller than the last; to draw it out, and to ensure Dreki could have his fill.
-
"I know right?" He lightly chuckled at her reaction, mainly because he could relate to it in the same way. He also kind of mirrored her in taking smaller and smaller bites, making sure she had a chance to enjoy it herself, and so he didn't overdo it on his stomach. He did look up from the cake when she asked for his birthday.
"Oh, it's October 15th," he said, "how about yours?" figuring that it was a harmless enough of a question to respond back with. He paused and had stopped eating, waiting for her to respond.
-
Likewise, Aislin took a break from her own nibbling to respond, smiling as she said, “February 29th. It’s a leap day, so I only get a real birthday every four years. I’ll have one coming up soon! ... Yours is even closer - are you thinking of doing anything fun? How old will you be turning?”
-
"I don't usually do much for my birthday, sometimes if able, I like to see my sister. I'm not so sure that will be possible this year, but it wouldn't be the first year I wasn't able to visit her. Beyond that, I don't really do anything special." He explained as he didn't like the idea of celebrating alone, so a lot of years he didn't really celebrate it.
"What do you do to celebrate yours?" He asked, taking one small bite of cake right after he asked, waiting for her to respond.
-
“Oh, you have a sister?” Ash queried, cutting away another small portion of cake with her fork; she lifted it to her mouth and left it hovering there as she continued speaking. “Is she older, or younger?” She couldn’t help but notice that he hadn’t responded to her question about his age, but didn’t think it polite to ask again. Maybe he was self-conscious about it? It didn’t matter all that much, anyway.
“Back home, whenever I had a real birthday, we’d throw a big party. Small-town big,” she clarified around a soft laugh. “I’d still celebrate for all of the other years, but I generally like to keep it mellow. It makes the real birthdays feel all the more special, you know? I don’t know what I’ll do now that I’m here, though.” With a shrug, she finally took that hovering bite, and set her fork down upon the table.
-
"She technically my adoptive sister. Both her and I met through the foster care system and ended up getting adopted together," he explained, "she's younger than me, she is 19 and I'm 28 so there is a bit of an age gap." He said finally mentioning that he does look younger than he is. "She has her own handicap though and is more like a 6 or 7 year old mentally, which is honestly better than when I first met her. She was in foster care because her parents neglected her to the point where they didn't even speak in front of her. I can't really imagine all that she has gone through as the reason I ended up in foster care was because my parents died. Either way I'm proud of how far she has come along, and helping her is how I discovered that I enjoy teaching." He said with a smile explaining a bit more of his background. This was something he didn't really mind talking about because they were past that, now only if they can get over the hurdle that is The Facility that did adopt them.
"If you want I can help you celebrate your birthdays, no matter in what way you wish to enjoy them. I bet it's fun to say that you're a younger age from time to time?" He asked mostly mentioning her being able to say she is 1/4th the age she actually is just based on her real birthday. "I know I would if I had your birthday. A fun way to joke with others." He took another bite of the cake. "Although I'm not very good at event planning, I can try to come up with an idea for the leap year ones, but I can't promise a big party." He thought about it a bit, and he did want to help her feel at home in the city. Honestly, he missed the way he'd celebrate his birthday with his parents, so he could only imagine she would feel similar being far enough away from home.
-
Twenty-eight? Gosh! Dreki wasn’t old, but Ash had placed him much younger than that. She’d just assumed he was her age; but then, that wouldn’t have made complete sense, given his many occupations. How many degrees did a person need to teach all of those classes? How many years of schooling?
“Wow,” she softly marveled. “I would have guessed you were, like… five years younger.” Her lips pursed into a thoughtful little moue as she processed the rest of his explanation. “I can’t even imagine,” she echoed back. “I’m glad that you two found one another. I’m sure you’re a really good brother.”
In spite of the gravity of his previous words, Aislin found herself smiling anew with his offer to celebrate with her. “I don’t need anything big. I’d love to have your company, though - and if you end up unable to see your sister for your birthday this year, then we can do something else special together. If you want.”
With a laugh, she added, “No one would believe me if I told them I was turning six.”
-
He chucked at her response to his age, a lot of people had the same response. He didn't really grow too much facial hair so he kept himself clean shaven, which didn't help any at all. Both of his parents had aged pretty normally according to Hofflan digging through old family photos Dreki still owned, stored away.
"No one ever gets my age right, it can be fun sometimes to subvert expectations like that, because the surprise is always fun." He smiled, it suddenly making sense that he would indeed enjoy telling people he was super young if born on leap year, he did the same with his age and looks as it was, just on the opposite end.
"I'm sure I could be a better brother, but I love her and I'm trying and I think that's worth something." He mentioned thinking about it. He does currently feel like he has failed her in some way, given the current situation at the facility, but he knows if he can get her out sooner rather than later then he can help fix that. He had been thinking on it a lot lately, but knew he still had a while to go.
"I'd be happy to celebrate with you even if I can see my sister. It might be on a different day than I see her, but honestly, it sounds like fun. Much like I'd be happy to celebrate your birthday with you. If you end up making more friends you want to celebrate with, then I'd be happy to meet them too." He smiled, giving her the option of how she'd want to celebrate things, much like he'd still enjoy seeing her for his birthday, even if it didn't happen directly on his birthday.
-
“I look younger than I am, too,” Ash replied around another laugh. “I get double-carded at bars, all the time. I try not to be bothered by it, though, because I know it means I’ll probably always look younger than my age - and when I’m fifty, I’ll probably be grateful for that. Buuut,” she continued, “It’s hard not to get annoyed when people assume that I’m fresh out of high school.”
“I’m sure you’re doing your best,” she offered up in encouragement. “That’s what counts, and it’s definitely worth something.”
With a firm dip of her chin, she decided aloud, “We’ll celebrate our birthdays together, then - even late, and with all of our friends. Assuming I have any others by then,” she added, growing momentarily quiet thereafter.
... “Do you touch peoples’ faces to ‘look’ at them? Like in the movies?” The question was blurted out the moment it came to her, and she belatedly realized he might take it as a form of invitation. Would that be weird?
-
"Thank you, for both the brother comment and birthday celebration. Even if friends are hard to come by, you still have me to cerebrate as well." He said with a smile, one that felt somehow more genuine than his warm smile, which he did use the warm smile more as him showing he appreciated the situation more than anything. Those comments both meant a lot to him, he had always liked to think he was a good brother but did someone's worry about it. He also generally had been feeling more lonely as the years gone by. Having a friend should be better than nothing, which is what usually happened on his birthday.
"I do sometimes do that. The way I see now mostly gives a face outline and since details here and there, it doesn't already give me enough to recognize someone unless I've been up close to their face several times in addition to feeling it." He explained clearly not taking it as an invitation to touch hers. "Everyone does look a little bit different but the further away the more they just kind of blend in with how everyone else looks. It's really hard for me to see a face without having touched it first so mostly I go based off of voices because those are all unique too."
-
“Of course!” Ash enthused brightly, mirroring back his smile while simultaneously admiring it. All of his smiles had been pleasing, but this one she found far more charming.
Aislin unconsciously lifted a hand to her face, fingertips sweeping across the expanse of her own cheek. She felt relieved that she was having a good skin day, in spite of Dreki’s lack of request to touch. He would feel all of the things that the eye couldn’t always catch: rough patches and break-outs, oil and dryness. Yikes. No amount of make-up would be able to mask texture. It would probably only make it worse.
“You can see up really close, then?” She asked, dropping her hand. “And profiles?”
After reclaiming her fork, she took one final bite from what remained of the cake - then pushed the plate toward him. “I’m done with this,” she announced.
-
"Kind of," he said taking a bite it off the cake, there wasn't much left and he figured he would finish it off while talking about this conversation. There wasn't really enough left for leftovers otherwise he would have told her that she could take it home. He didn't speak with his mouth full, but it gave him some time to think on how to describe this too.
"With inanimate objects it's easier, living beings, there are so much details in living beings that really it's hard for me to parse it all without feeling ones face first. I can kind of guess the shape of ones nose and their browbone from different angles, I can see where your eye lids open and mouth opens, but I can't see where your lips actually end or really anything too defined." And finally took the last bite of the cake. He had noticed that she touched her own face, and wondered if he should all or not. She didn't exactly seem too comfortable with the idea.
"Are you ready to head out?" He asked after he finished that last piece of cake. "No rush if you're not, we can still chat here for a bit."
-
Ash leaned forward as she listened; elbow upon the table and chin propped up within the palm of her hand. If he could see her expression, it would read fascination. Interest. She couldn’t fathom how he could see some things, but not others; how light and lack-of could play no role in the way he saw them. She could ask question after question, and still never fully understand. She’d always assumed blindness would be like perpetual darkness; and, perhaps that had once been the case for Dreki.
She was so lost in speculation that when his query came, it took a moment for it to sink in. “Oh!” She belatedly blurted, pushing out abruptly from her chair. “Yes, we can go.” Swiftly, she took up her mug to down what remained of its contents, then stood. “Do we bus our own tables?”
-
He mostly picked up on expression via body language, and while it wasn't always the most accurate, it functioned well enough to read how a conversation is going. He could tell she was interested, but that was mostly because she leaned forward to him when he spoke. When she said she was ready to go as well he stood up.
"Yep, we bus our tables ourselves." He said as he gathered his own trash, including his empty paper teacup, to toss out. He was always sensitive about that, and always treated people who worked service jobs nicely and with respect. Once things were tossed out, he would wait for her to be ready to walk with him, even if it was waiting for her next to the trashcan after he tossed his stuff. He did take the garbage from the cake and tossed that as well along with his stuff, mostly because he was the one that finished it.
-
Likewise, Ash stacked and gathered her own dishes and cutlery; even going so far as to wipe any crumbs from the table with a napkin, collecting them in one corner and brushing them off the edge and onto her plate. Old habits. After dumping her trash into the bin, and depositing the dishes into the bus tub, she hastened back toward the table to pick up her application. She took the time to carefully roll it up as she made her way back to Dreki.
“Alright,” she said with a smile. “Let’s go, then.” Maintaining her previous acts of chivalry, she pushed open the door and held it for him. She would wait for him to start forward, before falling into step at his side - and offering out her free hand to hold.
-
"Thank you" he said with a smile and waited for her just outside the door after walking outside. Once she joined him and offered her hand, he took it. He enjoyed holding her hand, his heart raced a little bit while they did so. He enjoyed her company quite a lot, and couldn't quite place it beyond that he enjoyed her company as a friend. After a few blocks they were pretty close to his place, it was all quite and empty of others, except for what seemed to be a homeless man sitting on the side walk who stood up and faced them. His apartment building was right behind the homeless guy. Dreki tensed a bit and it could be felt as in that tenseness he had lightly squeezed Ash's hand. The man walked up to them, Dreki didn't like this, not one bit.
"Do you have any spare cash?" The guy asked. Dreki didn't carry cash, he kind of hoped Ash didn't either because he didn't want to interact with this man. He otherwise didn't want much with this man, it felt off to him.
-
Ash spent the majority of their walk taking in the things they passed, and memorizing the route to Dreki’s - thinking that perhaps she’d be able to visit frequently should she secure a position at the cafe. She kept her hand clasped gently within his, maintaining a casual sway until she felt the gentle squeeze to her fingers. Drawn from her reverie, she landed a clueless focus upon the homeless man, before offering an apologetic smile.
Usually, she did carry cash; but she had a tendency to only bring with her as much as she wanted to spend and, today, she’d spent it all. “Sorry,” she said with sincerity, “I have none.”
Our small-town girl wasn’t entirely clueless to the dangers of the city. Still, she had a compassionate heart; she couldn’t find it within her to ignore the man outright, even if she couldn't provide him with the help he needed. She expected he would accept the apology and they’d continue on their way.
-
"I have none either" Dreki curtly mentioned, only speaking really when Ash had responded to the man. He tried to side-step the man, pulling Ash with him, but the man stepped alongside them.
"But the two of you are dressed so nice, particularly you sir." The homeless man said, almost antagonistic, "You have to have something" The man wasn't wrong to the first part at least, Dreki was always dressed nice. It was just easier for him, he didn't have much the way for casual clothes. Less types of clothing, less chance of leaving the home not matching. The guy had his hands in his pockets.
"We have nothing we can give to you. Please, leave us be" Dreki said a little more sympathetic, but still sounding kind of annoyed. However, the homeless man now started to look super annoyed, he was a few inches shorter than Dreki and looked up at him with an intense stare, one not quite as intense that Dreki naturally gave, but it was clear that he was sizing up Dreki. Dreki felt even more uncomfortable, and any attempts to move away, had the man match his movements. At some point he had let go of Ash's hand, he didn't really seem too keen on dragging her along with this odd dance.
At one point it all came to a head. The homeless man turned his head to face Ash, and fairly quickly pulled out a knife and went to stab her. Things seemed to move slowly for Dreki, and he acted really without much thought and moved between this man and Ash. His upper abdomen, where his stomach sat, suddenly felt really warm and wet, he didn't really feel any pain associated with it all. The homeless man seemed to have been aiming for Ash's upper left chest, possibly to kill, but given the height difference, stabbed Dreki in the stomach instead.
Golden white shimmery wings appeared from Dreki's back. They looked real and opaque, the feathers themselves would feel soft if touched and felt as if they were genuine and real. Dreki grabbed the man on the underside of his jaw, leading him backwards with his right hand. His left hand looked ready to grab something and some form of tiny bits of sparks and lightning seemed to be going in a straight line, perpendicular to the angle his left hand sat at, almost as if there was indeed something he could grab. It followed his left hand as he moved the man backwards.
The man looked shocked as he watched the wings appear, he froze, allowing Dreki to move him back. Once he felt his back hit the wall his sense came back to him. Freaked out by seeing this winged man, he removed the knife and plunged it into Dreki's chest, now trying to defend himself. Dreki didn't feel pain as the knife entered but it for sure hurt to breathe and luckily for him, his heart was missed by the blade, but realizing that the man might try again, he grabbed the man's wrist with his left hand instead of whatever else it seemed to want to grab, the wrist of the arm holding the knife, and squeezed as hard as he could, eventually hearing and feeling a snap. The man let go of the knife, no longer able to grip it with his now broken arm, and had yelled in pain when the snapping noise had happened.
"L-leave us," Dreki spoke haggardly, through the pain "and no f-further harm, will," he stopped to coughed a few times, winced in pain, a coppery brass color thickish liquid came from his mouth as he had done so. The same color liquid came from his wounds instead of the normal dark orangy-red color that blood normally was. "Will come t-to you." Once finished he let go of the man, and the man ran off. He then leaned against the wall, and carefully removed the knife that was embedded into his chest. The wound to his stomach had already healed, and it took a few moments after the knife was pulled for his chest to heal up too. Once healed his wings disappeared again, however, due to the blood the pooled in his lunged and stomach, where it quite clearly shouldn't be, he coughed and hacked most of it out of his lungs hard enough to led him to vomit as well. He wiped his mouth on the sleeve of his already ruined shirt.
He then remembered, he was here with Ash. He looked around, finding no one else around luckily, except for her. He looked mildly terrified. He wasn't sure what to say or even where to start, but assumed things would now need to be explained.
"Are you ok?" He asked nervously, no longer sounding like he was in pain, or even hurt. While there now were two holes in his shirt, one of which was also through his vest where the first top button sat, wounds could not be seen through those spots. However, it was clear that the same coppery-brass color stained around those two areas, an obvious dirty golden color among his white button-up.
-
With their path now blocked, Ash lifted her application-wielding hand to clutch at Dreki’s arm; effectively crushing the rolled-up paper against him. Her other hand maintained a tight grip on his as they side-stepped again and again; only to be intercepted each time. Panic began to rise in her throat, worsening when Dreki parted from her to face off against the vagrant. She stood still, feeling useless and afraid; racking her mind for solutions to a problem she’d never before encountered. Should she try to dial the police? Would she even be able to? What about a swift kick to the groin? That would hold him off long enough for them to--
Ash was startled into paralysis when a blade was suddenly aimed in her direction. The flow of time changed, quickening into an incomprehensible speed; too swift for her to discern anything beyond fear. Belatedly, she cowered where she stood, arms rising in defense - but Dreki had already taken on the role of shield. She sucked in a horrified gasp when he was struck.
“Oh, god!” she managed around a sob, drawing in a succession of convulsive, blubbering breaths. Ash staggered backward and fell to her knees, tossing the application aside in favor of fumbling with shaking hands for her phone. They needed an ambulance! Now! Before she could muster up the stability to dial the necessary numbers, however, her focus was drawn upward by a spread of shimmering gold.
... What?
She was stunned. Stupefied. There were no coherent thoughts in her mind. All she could do was to gape as the scene continued to unfold before her. When Dreki took another stab to the chest, she collapsed further back upon her calves, her sobbing having renewed with vigor. Useless. Useless. Her vision blurred in the same way her mind had, the way that time had. It felt like it had been hours and hours; but, somehow, mere seconds. Before she knew it, it was only them, and their assailant had fled. She’d run out of sobs to choke on and tears to spill, cheeks stained and stinging. She had never been a sympathetic vomiter - but, in this scenario, she was. Her own splatter of vomit followed the sound of Dreki’s, spreading in a pool upon concrete to coat her denim-clad knees.
When his question came, it acted as a reminder of what had just transpired, and served only to reopen the floodgates. It took her some time to regain some semblance of composure. Finally, she mustered a quavering, “Are... are you okay?”
-
It had taken him a moment to realize what kind of condition she was in, but once he had, he rushed over to her side. He could smell her vomit as he moved closer but wasn't put off by it as he kneeled down next to her and put his hand on her back, rubbing it up and down as trying to offer some sort of comfort.
"I'm fine," he started to explain, "I heal very quickly, look my apartment building is right there," he pointed at a building that was no more than 500 yards away, "let's get you inside, and clean us up a little ok? I can explain more then. Can you walk? Do you need help getting up?" He asked, not really concerned with her application at this point, a new one could always be gotten, if anything he wanted to make sure she was ok first and foremost, as that wasn't even an easy experience for him to handle, he could only imagine how it was for someone who had no idea what was going on.
-
Aislin’s gaze had fixated on the slashes in Dreki’s shirt, stained with blood that didn’t look like blood. Her throat undulated with a heavy swallow, and her tongue darted briefly out to moisten parched lips. She glanced in the direction of his indicating hand, toward his apartment building, and returned her attention to him thereafter.
“I think,” Ash attempted, voice catching. “I think I can stand.”
Eventually, she managed to push herself up from the cement, collecting her phone along the way. It probably had vomit on it, but she couldn’t be bothered to check before tucking it into one of her pockets. Her legs felt like they weren’t hers; they felt unsteady and weak, like a tenderfoot’s, and it took every ounce of her focus to keep them from collapsing beneath her own weight. A hand extended toward Dreki in a further seeking of balance.
-
As he got up with her, slowly and steadily, he moved to be slightly behind her already bracing to catch her with the arm closest to her hovering by the middle of her back ready to throw itself under her furthest armpit, and his arm farthest from her was by her arm closest to him. He was fully prepared to catch her if she fell at all, and when she reached out her hand for support, he grabbed it in such a way that his arm would be under hers, and she could lean on it if she needed to. He matched her moves as needed, walking at her pace when she started to as he guided her to the building.
"Move as slowly as you need to," he reassured her, "we'll get there when we get there." He made sure his voice sounded confident and calm but inside he was terrified, and was mostly trying to keep it together for her sake. This is where some of his project twilight training had come in handy, he was able to take control of a situation without panicking himself despite how he felt about it. This was the first time he had even been attempted to be mugged, let alone stabbed by a random person, a homeless man who must have had one sharp knife. He knew not feeling it go in painfully was a sign of sharpeness.
His thoughts not only stirred about how he got such a sharp blade, but also on how much he even let loose. He knew his quick healing would raise some questions, but he assumed that would be it as well. All other times before hand, when his wings came out he wasn't in control of his actions, and usually his back burned afterwards. That hadn't happened this time around and thus was unaware they even came out. He was also unaware that his blood was no longer red. He was also thinking about how to explain his quick healing without her becoming in any possible danger from it if Hofflan ever was to find out.
When they reached the building, he opened the door with his free hand and threw it behind his shoulder, allowing him to still support her as they walked in. He would usher her into the elevator, as he didn't even think he could handle the stairs to the 3rd floor right now, let alone her.