Completed Cha-ching! [Bazaar] (Garland)

[Sayana]

“I was shorter as a child,” Sayana said with a laugh. “And probably even more reckless. It’s a wonder that I survived on the streets. It seems like you have to learn the hard way not to pick fights with someone bigger than you… unless you have a surprise concealed from them.”

As they stepped into the coffee shop Sayana was glad to be out of the wind. The smells were tantalizing and she followed Garland to the table. She cocked her head in puzzlement when the squire got back up to pull out a seat for her. Instead she chose an alternate chair so she would be sitting a little closer rather than across the table from him. “Do you not have family?” Sayana asked curiously. “Did something happen?” Back home, sometimes orphans found themselves on the streets other times they found a family where the slaves were treated well and sold themselves into it so they’d have a home and food. But more often, families were big enough that they’d have at least some place to go.

”Should I pay?”

“I’m not broke, if that’s what you’re thinking,” Sayana said in an annoyed tone as she plopped down a gold miza onto the table.

[Garland]

"Nope, no family. I was raised in the orphanage." He said with no hint of regret in his voice. Garland smiled and took out a Miza from his pocket as well. He took another gold Mirza and set on the table. "Wasn't the coffee two gold Mizas?" He said and smiled at her, he did enjoy the fact that she seemed really easy to annoy made her a bit more relatable

He placed his hands on the table. "They died trying to come here to Syliras when I was just a baby, knights found me, took me here. That's the gist of it. I don't know the details myself, but I was told they were killed by bandits or some wild beast." He said, but with some speculation. His mind drifted away from the thought and instead asked himself why she took a seat beside him. Maybe she just wanted to stay close? It didn't matter, but he was curious.

A few more chimes of waiting, and finally their coffee had arrived. It was still steaming hot, and it would be very difficult to drink without burning your tongue. He let his coffee cold down a bit, before drinking.

[Sayana]

She looked at the coffee with narrowed eyes and realized that in her silence he must have assumed she wanted the same thing. “Next time I’d prefer a cup of tea. Spiced, if they have that sort of thing over here.” She touched her finger to the coffee and tasted it. Adequate, but still quite hot. “And two gold mizas is ridiculous for a single cup. I bought these for two mizas, both pairs.” She said as she held up the finger cymbals she had been playing earlier. But nevertheless, she slapped another gold miza onto the table.

She put the zills down and put her elbows on the table resting her chin in her hands. Her mid hands she folded in her lap while her lows hung at her sides. “Killed by bandits…” She mused to herself. “Traveling is not for the faint of heart.” She took a sip of the coffee and nearly burned her tongue before quickly putting it back down. “But you grew up alright here. And you’ve become a pretty good fighter from how things went at that sparring contest a couple nights ago.”

She thought about her own family and how they probably wondered what had become of her. “My family would be squirming in their seats if they knew if I had been kissing a scum race like yours,” she said with a laugh. “I think their greatest fear is to find out some day that I have a half breed child. Some races are legitimately scum. Ruthless, cruel, evil scum. But even Benshira can be of use and teach you a thing or two.”

[Garland]

"Wait! I think it was two silver mizas..." He gave small blush. "Oh, uhh you wanted tea? I could order some tea for you?" He offered, he sounded like a guy on his first date or something. "Well, growing up was hard, but you learn to cope and smile."

He thought about his parents, Saede never had the chance to tell him about the gang she was in. He had a feeling their weapons could be connected to the gang she was in. He blew on his coffee, trying to get it to cool faster.

"Sayana? What are the odds of you having a half breed child? I mean... Do you 'work' on the side?" He asked more curious than aroused. He had only met a half breed once and it pretty much ended up with a fight. "I thought the chances of getting pregnant with a child from another race was low?"

[Sayana]

She dismissed the offer of tea with a shake of her head. “I don’t need two drinks to keep me warm. Unless you’re planning to stay a while.” She took a sip of the coffee and it no longer burned her mouth. It was pleasant.

“I’ve worked in various forms,” she said evasively, in answer to his question. Dancing, serving, companionship, prostitution, and once an assassination. But that person had deserved it, and was low enough that she hadn’t been in real danger of getting caught afterwards.

But pregnancy was still an issue for her lively lifestyle. She had had two scares in her life, but she knew someone back home that was good with that sort of thing. The tonic she had taken had been vile and made her sick to her stomach for several days, but that was probably the point. The miscarriage after was also pretty messy. “There are ways to keep things in check,” she said simply. “But it’s not impossible to have a half-breed. The real reason why half-breeds aren’t so common is that people don’t mix. Also, how could I tell my child that the reason they didn’t look like me was because I chose to go frolicking with someone who wasn’t Eypharian?” Although she wasn’t as openly racist as most Eypharians, she still had a sense of pride in what she was. She was also mentally thinking of half-breeds as Eypharians with various subraces of humans. It generally wasn't possible to have a child with an entirely different race.

[Garland]

"Right... Safe to say you've had a child in there before... " He gestured to her stomach. He didn't judge, but he was a bit disappointed at her decision. He was in no position to judge her, he was still young and having a child was a very big decision.

He took his own cup of coffee, and took a small sip. The bitter taste woke him up, he never enjoyed the taste, but he needed something to wake him up in the morning. Tea usually makes him sleepy, and beer... Well... He usually blacks out after a few flagons of ale. "How's your coffee?" He asked, placing his hand on the table between them.

He looked at her with a curious look. He wondered what kinds of jobs she did. She seems to know her way towards a man's heart, and with her dagger, so he assumed she could have been maybe a bodyguard passing by as an escort for a political official once. Maybe... He wasn't sure, and she would probably be a bit more stealthy, maybe an assassin. He didn't inquire further, she was hiding something and he wasn't going to pry.

[Sayana]

“Yes…” She said slowly in response to his comment about a child. “But none that have made it into this world.” Her tone was mixed, because although she did what was practical and needed to be done, there was a hint of longing in her voice. She let out a soft sigh and placed her high arms down on the table. She looked troubled, not the usual confident self that she projected. At the mention of the coffee, she took another sip. A slight bitter taste, but it warmed her stomach and made her more alert. “It’s nice,” she answered simply and then reached out to gently hold his hand in one of hers.

She glanced idly about the coffee shop and said, “Too bad this place doesn’t have a couch or two. I miss being close to someone. The warmth of their body, the soft beat of their heart, and breathing in the smell of their skin. I’d offer my own place, but it’s in the depths of the fortress and it’s rather dank and uninviting. Though I have some wood for a fire.” She took another long sip of coffee and smiled at the taste.

[Garland]

When she grabbed his hand, he returned the gesture by grabbing it and giving it a comforting, gentle squeeze. "Sayana, look at me." He moved his head up and looked at her. He gave a meaningful look, one that held some sort of compassion to his Eypharian friend. "I won't patronize you by saying 'I know how it feels' but... I can take a wild guess... You did what you needed to do at that time." He gave a weak, sincere smile, showing her that he means well.

He took another sip of his own coffee. "The dorms is strictly off limits to any non-knight. Actually... I've never had anyone close before. I've never gotten a hug from anyone, maybe a few out of sympathy, but never from the heart. That's why I fight... The heat of battle... Its one of the few things that helps me feel warm. I know its stupid, but... Having no one who loves you back can make the heart cold and hard." He gave a faint smile, trying hard to hide the loneliness. He has plenty of friends now, but no family to call his own. He took another sip of his coffee, but that was his last sip, he was finished with his hot beverage. He was sure it was 2 silvers now, he took back the gold and placed two silvers down.

"Where do you want to go now?" He asked, trying to change to subject.

[Sayana]

”Sayana, look at me.”

Sayana met his gaze, her eyes still pained but his tender features of compassion soothed her. She gave a faint nod and then turned to look down at their hands. She rubbed the back of his hand with her thumb, probably more for her own comfort than for his.

”Having no one who loves you back can make the heart cold and hard“

She instinctively reached out with her other hand on the back of his head and brought him in for a kiss. This time just a brief one on the lips but no less sincere. “We have led very different lives,” she commented quietly. “My own filled with touch and contact – be it good, or ugly. But even with the bad I couldn’t imagine trading it in for a void.”

She downed the last of her coffee and replaced her own two gold coins with silver ones. “I can understand why you’d crave the heat of the battle if it made you feel warm. People are not meant to live their lives alone and feeling cold.” At her last comment she couldn’t help but think of Bakar.

“Would you like to join me in my ‘humble abode’?” She asked mocking her little apartment as she stood up. “Can’t stay too long because I have work later this afternoon, but I’d welcome the company.”

[Garland]

Looks like their plan to go to the bathhouse had to wait. It was for the best, he thought. He smiled when she kissed her, it was a nice tender kiss, he liked it. He still wasn't sure if what he felt was love or lust, but he knew that Sayana was his friend, and he'd do anything to help her feel better.

He couldn't help but give a small chuckle when she said that he craved the heat of battle. Yes he loved fighting, but it was helping those in need with his fighting that gave him the warm feeling. The fighting felt like a friendly contact or gesture to him, while the helping felt like the kiss they just had. It felt great just to be with her though.

"Would you like to join me in my 'humble abode'?"

He gave a small smile. "Why of course I would. Maybe I could catch your show while I'm there. I've never seen you dance solo though." He admitted.