A MINGLE

[sunflowering]

Who: Idols
Where: Anywhere. Everywhere.
When: Day 363

[ A mingle. For all your general mingle needs. ]

Comments

[skyshard]

[ Aether can't be up in his sister's business as much as he would like (especially since she doesn't remember him), so he has committed to exploring as much he can.

having wandered for quite a while those morning, Aether finds himself at Alfred's cafe, and he is incredibly excited to find out the food is free. He's sitting at one of the cafe stools, staring out through the glass of the building, people-watching.

if you happen to look his way, you'll get a grin and a wave from him (bet you feel like you have a stalker now, huh), but otherwise he is just a typical teenager at a cafe with his order of Bubble Tea and a strawberry croissant.

whether he recognizes you or not, he reacts the same way, so anyone not wanting to engage with him can hurry on along and pretend they never saw him. he would be up for some company, though... and meeting new people is always a plus.

(he's wearing something that fits with his unit's theme, just haven't figured out what it looks like exactly yet beyond it involving a hood ;; ) ]

[sunflowering]

Ahh~ I missed this!

[ He may just hear someone else sitting in the cafe. She was short enough that the booth likely hid her from view. But the appreciative hum is hard to miss. Sure she already had one, but... just one more parfait couldn't hurt, right?

Her metabolism is pretty good, to begin with. Hopping out of her seat, she tosses out the empty container, before ordering herself a new one. She hadn't been able to decide between these two flavors anyway.

It's only on her way back that she realizes that she isn't alone.

She also has. A bit of former parfait still stuck to her chin. ]

Oh-!

[ She blinks. ]

I didn't realize anyone else was here.

[skyshard]

[ he had heard her first, but remained quiet, opting to observe her as she went about obtaining the second parfait.

when she finally notices him, aether's drinking his bubble tea silently, but he waves at her in the friendliest of manners, his face beaming at finding a seemingly like-minded person.

swallowing his tea he finally chirps a reply to her. ]

Me neither! Want to sit together so we aren't both here eating alone?

[ FRIENDLY NEW PEOPLE ARE GREAT. besides, no one should have to eat alone when there's opportunity to do otherwise. ]

[gravitydefier]

[guess who is standing outside the cafe, dressed like this.]

[skyshard]

[ this is a S U P R I S E.

aether jolts, going to lean forward from his seat to double-check, calling out (even though no one outside is going to be able to hear him.) ]

Xia—OW!

[ the other will probably hear the thunk of Aether's face hitting the window as he got a little too excited there just now.

grabbing his face with one hand, he uses his other to knock furiously on the window to try and get his friend's attention.

Zhongli had warned him about the memory loss, but that doesn't mean he wants to just ignore a chance to reunite with someone he cares about.

(also, wow Xiao is so cute in that outfit--!? if he wasn't holding his face he would definitely be taking a picture... And never ever let xiao know about it should his memories come back while he is still around.) ]

[gravitydefier]

[well, that certainly got his attention. probably not in the way Aether had hoped, because he is definitely looking that way now, but somewhat...perplexed. what on earth is he doing?

also that sure is a look of absolutely no recognition at all.]

[skyshard]

[ As expected.

Now for the real test, though. He holds up one finger asking him to wait a moment before leaving his seat to come outside, waving a friendly hello as he approaches. ]

Hi! I just ordered too much Almond Tofu [ It's a dessert so just gonna go with it being in a dessert cafe... Even if a limited time item. ] ... Do you want the other one?

[ not that he knows you like almond tofu, or anything. ]

[gravitydefier]

[he does know that he likes almond tofu. but...] ...do you normally offer like that to strangers? [soft. to the point.]

[inspiteful]

[ Sometimes you go to the cafe to get some bubble tea for the day and you ...

... Actually, Lark thinks this is the first time in a long while that someone's gone out of the way to greet him like this, so he waves back from outside the building before he steps inside. ]

[skyshard]

[ first person who has actually acknowledged him. How nifty. Aether leans back in his seat with the person now inside, and calls over cheerfully. ]

So, what are you going to order?

[inspiteful]

Hmm, probably the black milk tea?

[skyshard]

Sounds good!

Have you had it before?

[inspiteful]

I have! It's pretty good. There's a lot of drinks here that I've never tried before, either.

[leaveofabsence]

[ Sometimes a person just needs to take a walk to have a moment's respite from everything including (but not limited to) numerous people showing up from your home world and a generic hit being called out on the healer unit as a whole.

This is just such a time for Zhongli.

He's not straying too far from the hotel but he is taking the time to lazily stroll around the park nearby. ]

[caniscorde]

[ haha. speaking of healer unit being menaced, this is definitely One Of That Unit.

(Probably not the menacer, though, on account of dog.)

But she's perched on a bench in that same park, smoke lazily drifting up from her kiseru as she brings it up to her lips, and... freezes, when he enters her view, staring at him.

It's honestly just because of his horns, but she kind of has a resting bitch face anyway, so. ]

[leaveofabsence]

[ As he passes, he bows his head to her amicably. ]

I do hope you're enjoying the view. It's been quite lovely to watch the flowers fade from spring to summer.

[caniscorde]

[ Hesitates, ears flicking as if she's startled by being addressed. Then she turns her head to exhale the smoke away from him, and tap the ashes out of her pipe. ]

That it has. We arrived with good timing, it seems.

Your name is?

[leaveofabsence]

Zhongli of Heart Soldier Senshi.

[ He glances over at the kiseru curiously ]

Ah, I have not seen one of those since my arrival here. But I suppose I should not be surprised they are available considering the shop stocks items from the present, past, and potential future.

[caniscorde]

I am Sanga, of You-kai. Or Viridian Tiger Devours Sunlit Skies, if that better suits you.

[ she blinks at the kiseru, but motions for him to join her in the open seat. ]

This pipe came with the outfit I was given, if I must be truthful. Unfortunately without tobacco, but I suppose we are only given so much. It seems we have a variety of accessories that we can choose from.

[byallmeans]

[Also out in the park, though he seems to be going somewhere rather than idling]

[He does slow when he sees him, though]

You again.

[leaveofabsence]

Oh hello, Kozuru. How are you faring today?

[byallmeans]

Not badly.

How did the rest of your dates go?

[leaveofabsence]

Oh, they were lovely. I was taken to see the hydrangea in full bloom. And I had an interesting chat with something with such a different world than my own - all people intermingled yet they could still choose their own style of governing. In addition, I was able to explore the city with different people much like we did.

How were yours?

[byallmeans]

Passable. I saw a lot of the city, and I learned a little more about this place.

[branchedout]

[ listening to music on his phone and rapping along with it surprisingly not in Kyoto dialect.

At least until he stops to gawk at those Tokyo-F skyscrapers again. ]

In life, everybody's gambling
Givin' those dice a tumbling
Bluffing makes it troubl'ing
That's how I want it, yeah yeah
Short-lived fun? But the dealing's done
The Goddess of Victory would e-ven say
There's just enough satisfaction in a lethal hit