Closed [The Bean] Just one of those days (Nayato)

[Valien]

8th Day of Summer, 514 AV Valien sat alone at one of the Bean's cramped tables, a steaming cup of coffee in front of him as he pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to stave off a headache. A canvas bag containing the letter and package he still had to deliver lay on the floor beside his chair, where he could keep a careful eye on it. Last night had not been entirely conducive to sleeping, and he had found himself wandering Syliras until finally reaching the Temple of All Gods again. After his prayer, if one could even call it that, he'd felt slightly better, but by then the night was half over, and it wasn't long before he had to get up and face another day. While sleepless nights were not something he was unused to, after three deliveries to what felt like three different corners of this gods-damned city, Valien finally caved and wandered in here to get a cup of coffee. He took a sip of the steaming hot brew in front of him, the strong flavor instantly making him feel more awake. The coffee was good, but the shop itself looked like it had seen better days. The building was falling into disrepair, the window was half-planked over, and the man behind the counter...well, Valien had met more talkative stumps. Still, it was packed, with almost all of its five tables filled up even in the early afternoon. He leaned back in his seat and sipped at his coffee, taking a moment to study the people seated at the other tables. People-watching had become something of a new hobby of his of late. The group of young women seated at the two tables in the far corner, laughing and giggling with each other in hushed tones...a group of housewives, maybe? Across from them, a young man sat alone, hunched over a stack of papers and scribbling furiously with ink-stained figures. Some sort of scribe or scholar? The two stocky middle-aged men at the table by the door, their shirts sweat-stained from working in the heat...laborers or sailors of some sort? If Serah were here, she would probably be able to offer more insight. She was an observant child, and in a strange reversal of roles, he had actually picked up this habit from her. But, no, Serah was off with the other children learning her letters, and he was technically working. Technically. He nudged the bag with his foot, making sure it was still there, before turning his attention back to the shop. Nothing in that bag had been marked extremely urgent, which meant that he should be alright as long as he delivered them by the end of the day. And since he had hardly taken a break since starting off this morning, he felt he could spare half a bell or so to actually be awake. He took another sip of tea, continuing to study the room as the door to the cafe opened behind him.

[Nayato]

Nayato wasn't a particularly excitable fellow. He was, in almost all situations, very calm and almost disturbingly docile. At the current moment he was living up to that mannerism by walking through the city after a long training lesson with his patron knight. His face covered in a hard earned sheen of sweat and dirt. He wore the common attire of a squire, a set of full plate armor which showed signs of occupational wear and tare from use by squires in the past.

His hands were adorned in gauntlets and the only part of his body absent of steel were his feet in heavy leather boots and his head which was absent of a helmet; an item he decided to leave at the Dormitories along with his bow and quiver before retrieving his backpack and heading to the Bean for a cup of coffee.

Along the way There was something off.

He couldn't place it, not immediately, but there was most decidedly something off. Perhaps it had always been there and he was just beginning to see it or perhaps it was a new development; he couldn't tell. But there was something... not right, something unnatural. He ignored the feeling right up until he reached the entrance of the bean where a cold breeze cooled the sweat along his brow. He knew should have payed more attention.

"You should sneak up on people like that, you never know how someone may react." His words were spoken aloud to seemingly no one. The faint smell in the air was a unique one that anyone save for a Spiritist would not have notice. It was a smell that caused Nayato's nostrils to rise after a deep inhale. "Who is there?" His words were commanding, yet oddly curious as he turned away from the entrance of the bean to search for the ghost haunting him. He waited for a few chimes for the ghost to show itself, but it never did.

There were only so many ghosts in the city that the Squire had spoken to and took a guess as to which one was following him. "I am always willing to talk with you... Jaleh" As soon as he spoke the name of his ever present ethereal stalker, the ghostly visage of an armor clad woman appeared. "How did you know it was me?" She asked with wide eyes as she floated in a slow circle around him.

He turned to walk into the cafe as he spoke over his shoulder. "I just had a good feeling, is all. Come, talk with me as I have a drink." He walked over to the counter where Hargard was brewing a fresh batch of coffee. The squire retrieved three silver mizas from his backpack to pay for a single cup of coffee made from common bean then looked around to find a table. With only five small tables within the tiny cafe, Nayato found himself sitting at the table next to where Valien sat.

Jaleh was content to absently hover above the chair across from Nayato, pretending to sit down like a living bodied person. "I listen to many people say that Tea is much better than Coffee. If that is true, than you should have gotten tea. Honestly, I don't know why it is such a big debate... They just appear to be hot...dirty... water." There was something about the simple experience of drinking or requiring sustenance that the ghost had forgotten about during her long unlife. Nayato lifted his cup of coffee to his lips to take a sip from it, enjoying the bitter taste as he preferred a black unsweetened coffee brew.

"Dirty water? Well, that is true in a way. However, my decision for this specife type of 'dirty water' is due to a matter of taste. I prefer it over the other at the moment." The ghost could only stare at Nayato's cup. She had long since forgotten the desires of tasting food.

[Valien]

Valien looked up as he caught sight of a figure out of the corner of his eye, approaching the table. As he caught sight of the ghost hovering just over one of the empty seats, her body slightly translucent, he inhaled sharply, nearly choking on his coffee. He managed to set the cup back down on the table and breathe normally though, clearing his throat into his fist. Ghosts weren't a common sight in Ravok, and the sight of them usually sent someone running to the nearest spiritist. He had to remind himself often these days that things were different in Syliras.

Still, he found himself tense as he turned his eyes towards Nayato, still aware of Jaleh's presence at the other seat of the table. He forced himself to not pay too much attention to her, glancing instead at the man that had joined them and seemed to be conversing easily with the ghost. At first, Valien simply noticed his tanned skin and dark hair, and the armor he was wearing that suggested he was a member of the Syliran Order. Then, Valien saw the eyes. He'd heard of the Chaktawe, of course, but they were another group of people not often seen in Ravok. Syliras seemed to have a much greater tolerance for non-humans than Ravok did—a much greater tolerance in general for anything that it considered right. If he thought about it like that, the two cities didn't seem too different after all.

Although after everything that he had seen, he would easily choose Sylir over Rhysol.

He took a sip of his coffee, watching Nayato's interactions with the ghost. Someone like Nayato would find himself enslaved very quickly if he set foot into Ravok. Although, he mused, noticing the weapon that Nayato wore, the squire could probably take care of himself.

He realized he had gone too long without saying something, and didn't want to be seen as rude, so Valien set down his cup as Nayato finished his conversation, turning to the Chaktawe man. The sight of those strange black eyes was eerie, but not as strange to him as the ghost.

"I find coffee is better for staying awake," he said, making it sound as though he was casually joining in the conversation, and hadn't been startled by Jaleh's appearance or by Nayato's. He offered Nayato a friendly smile, and after some slight hesitation that might have been noticed if either of them were particularly observant, extended the same smile to Jaleh as well. "Of course, that's just my personal preference. I'm Valien," he said, by way of introduction. "Am I correct in assuming you're a member of the Order?"

Gods only knew after starting as a courier, he'd seen enough knights around to make anyone's head spin.

OOCSorry for rushed post, am at a conference stealing some time. ^^