{ { T h e Blue Bell Café } } --- Walk-ins welcome!

[Sangfleur]

((Random coffee is random. xD))

"Sorry, I realize this position isn't exactly the greatest." Runio spoke over his shoulder towards the smaller man. "And who exactly are these people who appreciate me running around nude? Wouldn't happen to be you, eh?" He laughed, quite loudly, and the busy streets of the night watched him with puzzled expressions as he zoomed by. He hoped he wasn't jostling his human companion too much. He was turning corners sharply but always managed to make it, though more than a few people found themselves dodging for dear life. The streets were dry at the very least. His new feet protectors wouldn't get that soiled.

Soon the circus tent was right ahead, lit up to show it's full splendor. The weekend crowd was gathered around the red and white striped glory, babbling about something that was beyond Runio. He sped up and pushed his way through the crowd, making sure Lo wasn't getting assaulted by jabbing elbows and hands.

"Ah, there you are. We were afraid the mob was going to kill us all for making them wait another minute." A man with a rather peculiar curled mustache glared at Runio as he held out his hand for the passion patron's tickets. "Hurry up and get in there. Who.. is on your back?"

"No time!" Runio dashed forward, skirting around the circus stands and towards the backstage area. It was here he set Loren down, surrounded by every animal possible and just about every freak in the world. "Here we go. Free backstage pass. Though you're welcome to sit in the crowd if you want. There's a few benches back here though, if you want to watch from somewhere by yourself. I swear no one here bites but me."

[The Egotist]

{{Random coffee is appreciated. ^^}}

[Evercrossed]

• • • • • • • • • • • • ♥ • • • • • • • • • • • •

Grace giggled again, as she saw her little round friend, Buubun, who greeted her so cutely.
"Oh why hello there, Haruka, and Buubun. " she happily greeted. Grace took her hand
and gripped it firmly, giving her a strong handshake. " What a beautiful name. " Now letting go
of her hand, as she smiled. Her smiles are always so warm, and welcoming; making sure she
would always be friendly and kind to the people that surrounded her.

" I came here to try something new.. so I can live a new life. " Grace pulled a chair and sat down
quietly. Her past was a bit rough. Though, she wasn't comfortable yet with explaining on what
happened, so she moved on to the next subject. " What brings you here, Haruka? " looking into
her big blue eyes with her own. Grace smiled and leaned forward a tad bit, because she was
very interested in hearing her words.

• • • • • • • • • • • • ♥ • • • • • • • • • • • •

[deadbird5]

(( Random coffee was excellent.

I keep dozing, though, not to mention deadmau5 is streaming. So many exciting things when I can't stay awake. ;_;
I'm sorry, short post will be short and then I'm going to sleep. ))

"Possibly," he was too harrowed to inject any sort of teasing or criticism into his tone.

Loren's grip tightened around corners and into the crowd and when they slowed momentarily near a man with a curled mustache, Lo reciprocated the bewildered look. When Runio finally set him down, his legs and hands tremored, but he looked excitedly around. "Ah, no, I think I'll stay here." He moved to a bench and couldn't help but ask, "You bite?" but prepared eagerly to watch the show.

[Sangfleur]

"Indeed. Quite hard. Like a lion!" Runio laughed as he walked off, waving a hand in the air as if to say he was joking. Backstage was pretty much his home, but he had no time to appreciate it now. He stripped off the socks in his makeshift "room" and put them in his measly little trunk of possessions. After taking a nice deep breath, he rushed back through the circus hustle and bustle, throwing greetings along the way. At the last step before he entered the ring, he jumped. Then flipped, and flipped, and flipped. The crowd produced a series of "oohs" and "ahhhsss". Then he landed on his feet, sticking it and ending with a flamboyant wave of his arms. The crowd cheered, but he cut them off with another sweep of his arms.

"Hello and welcome to the Cirque de Feu! Tonight you will see many splendid things, myself included. in this show of wondrous freaks and monsters!" The crowd screamed approval, dying for more. Runio paused, putting a finger to his lips. Silence reigned. Suddenly a large flame burst from his mouth, and a look of extreme concentration overtook his generally happy expression. The flames twisted, their orange glow filling the tent. A shape began to take form, writhing it's way out of the flames. The body of a large dragon clawed it's way out of the maw, soundlessly roaring over the crowd. Screams of both horror and excitement filled the air. The dragon burst into sparks, sprinkling down onto the crowd like snow. Runio grinned. Such an opening. One of those ones that people would remember for a lifetime.

The rest of the show mirrored the gusto of the opening, with lions, tigers, and even a couple of elephants performing tricks.Runio kept the hype up by performing flame art between acts. Clowns graced the crowd during "half-time", laughter roaring through the night show. The equestrian acrobats performed to perfection. Then of course came the finale. Up on the high wire, Runio waved to the crowds below, each person's face holding a degree of both awe and worry for their beloved host. He stepped out gingerly, testing the wire with his feet before making the slow trek towards the middle. The crowd watched intently, holding their breath. Right as he made it to the median... he fell. The crowd screamed. People were at a loss of what to do.

Of course this changed to cheers as his fall was interrupted by a large flame bird scooping him up and flying him over the crowd. It was a showstopper. Several of the elderly audience members looked as if they had had heart attacks. Even several of the circus members looked as though they had nearly fainted. He hadn't told anyone of course. Not a soul. Once he had landed and taken his final bow with the rest of his workers, much to the disappointment of the people before him, he stepped backstage and fell over, partly laughing and the other half from exhaustion.

(( Night! ...FFF man this is long. I apologize. ))

[Haruka Otaku]

{ Her Theme }

踊れいのちのパ.ド.ドゥ...
-----------------------------

At Grace's question, Haruka seemed to have to give her reason some thought. "Well," she began with her soft voice. "I'm eighteen now, so I wanted to go off on my own from my parent's house. They didn't make me leave or anything, it was a choice I made on my own." She stretched and then sat back down on the bed, Buubun hopping into her lap for petting. "After a whole lot of searching, I learned that this cafe had apartments. I saw the pictures, and I saw the menu." She giggled and blushed faintly. "I love sweets, and I love charming cafes. So here I am."

-----------------------------

[Ellandrania Demonata]

Sangfleur

"Yes, you're right." Clochette nodded. Remember her childhood or trying to gave her a pit in her stomach. Anything that could make her feel that way wasn't worth remembering. Though part of her wanted to know her origins exactly, she couldn't bring herself to open up what other memories might be lurking in the deep.

"Hey, I'm not a workaholic! I just enjoy making other happy the best way I can. Food and ambiance can bring a smile to anyone's face. Like yours." She ran one finger down his cheek slowly and very teasingly. "Even if it is more of a smirk."

"Anything you want them to with the right note, within reason. It requires precision to an extreme. You have to ring the bell in just the right way in order to produce the correct spell. I don't have to use bells though. I can sing, hum, and whistle as well." She nodded, smiling gently. Bells were her specialty, but singing was her one true joy. Singing was even on her mind when she slept, often causing her to sing in her sleep. "And no, I didn't cast a spell on you when I was humming Claire de Lune." She giggled softly, nudging him in the shoulder with her own.

Dominic couldn't help but smile at her, she was such a beautiful woman, and interesting to boot. It wasn't often he came across someone like her, that was happy with life, that generally wanted to please others, and that captivated his interest. He found it interesting that although she couldn't remember some of her past, it didn't bother her. She wasn't angst-y and full of anger because of it, in fact she seemed quite the opposite. It was refreshing.

His cheek tingled where she touched it, and he wondered if she would have been so willing if she could see the real him. For some reason he thought that perhaps she would. "I still think you're a little bit of a workaholic, I mean you straightened up this room even when it was perfectly clean. And you dragged me up here, when I'm sure I could have found the room just fine myself." he paused, grinning. "Unless it was all part of your plan to get me here alone and have your way with me, which I may just be willing to oblige." he teased, leaning into her and running his fingers slowly through her hair, making the silver bells chime softly.

Of course the information about then bells was very intriguing, and he did want to know more, especially about which notes did what kind of magic. Then there was, of course, the fact that she could do the same magic with her voice. Honestly it made him want to look into her past, just to find out what exactly her lineage was. "I think you did cast a spell though, you've captivated my attention. I wish to know more about you and I hope you would give me that honor."

[Sangfleur]

Ellandrania Demonata

"Oh that was most definitely my plan. You know, to whisk you away and have you all to myself." She smirked, even though part of it was true. "But you know, the room had to be clean if I was going to take advantage of you." She joked, giggling. Well maybe she was somewhat of a workaholic, but at least she got some sort of enjoyment out of it. That and she enjoyed seeing what kind of people came into her cafe. Strangers were always interesting and she was the kind of person that wasn't afraid to talk to them.

"My guardian told me I was some kind of fae." She said this quietly, as if to say it were a secret. It was to some degree. "He wouldn't tell me what kind. I don't think he wanted me to go looking. I'm sure he had a good reason for what he did. The past is the past, and what happened then is not important now." She shook her head slightly, so she wouldn't get his hands tangled in her hair. "On a lighter note, I sing in my sleep. Sometimes it's a spell, sometimes it's just singing."

She wasn't about to say that some of them weren't the best of spells, but it was possible he had already deducted that.

[Ellandrania Demonata]

He laughed, his neon blue orbs twinkling, "Of course cleanliness is close to Godliness, or so the saying goes. Although I'm afraid I don't quite understand where the saying comes from." he admitted with a shrug. "But as far as habits go, being clean and working hard are not the most horrible ones you could have."

He let her speak, lazily running his fingers through her hair. Perhaps he was being a bit too forward, but he felt comfortable with her, as if he had known her for longer than just the half day he had. If she was the type to be with men in a 'casual sex' kind of way, he probably wouldn't say no, but he figured all the flirting and teasing was just that. Nothing would come of it except perhaps a friendship in the longer run. And he was perfectly ok with that. If it had been just about the sex he wouldn't have talked to her this long, or cared about her past, let alone offer to unblock her memory. It wasn't like that was easy, energy efficient magic.

"I've never met a Fae before, very secretive people. But if they are all as beautiful and lovely as you I can see why they hide." he said, teasing and complimenting her at the same time. "What kind of spells do you do in your sleep?" he questioned, and then a thought, "Sing for me?"

[Sangfleur]

"I don't quite understand that phrase either. Then again, there are a lot of phrases that don't make sense. Like il n'y a pas le feu au lac in French." She giggled, folding her hands in her lap, allowing him to do whatever he wanted to her hair.

"I've heard of men killing each other over a single Fae woman, so I wouldn't doubt it. I'm not that girl I was before by the way. If I stay here tonight, I expect more from you than just fooling around." She grinned, blushing slightly. That seemed like a pretty good reason to hide. Fae didn't exactly want to destroy the world like that. It would be like Troy all over again. Except with thousands of Helens instead of one. "I'll sing for you, but what do I get in return?"

She paused, unwilling to wait for him to answer. A sweet, mellow voice flowed from her mouth, filling the room with what seemed to be a foreign sounding lullaby. It was a song she knew, but at the same time didn't know. It had haunted her ever since she was young, the only memory she remembered from her past. The notes were sweet, but at the same time held a melancholy tone that would have made a lesser man cry. She ended with a final high note then grew quiet. Part of her felt as if she'd just revealed a very personal secret.

No one had heard that song come from her lips in years.

[Ellandrania Demonata]

He smiled, continuing to 'pet' her hair, listening to her voice and the bells as they rang every so often. In all honesty, Dominic really didn't understand this closeness he felt to her, the way he seemed so relaxed with her and so trusting. In fact he felt that if she were to ask him, he would be more than willing to tell her all about himself. He would let down his guard and show her his true self, let her see his tattoos and explain the meanings behind them. He would tell her about the woman he had loved and then somehow always seemed to loose. He would share the history of his family and about all the time he had spent in war. A thought came that perhaps it was the magic of her people that made him feel this way, but he chose to ignore it. It was quite enjoyable being able to feel at ease around someone again.

"And just what do you expect from me Clochette?" he questioned, "besides fooling around of course." he finished, letting his fingers trail from her hair down her cheek and then her neck over to her shoulder. It continued down until he reached her hand, in which he took her hand in his and held it. He couldn't think of what she would want from him, not in return for her singing, but he didn't have a change to answer her anyway.

She sang then, a wonderful, sorrowful melody, that seemed to bring to mind all the pain he had endured in his long life, and yet there was a peace there as well. He was sad, yes, but there was also contentment. When she was finished there was a silence in the room, a stillness that was both unnatural and peaceful, and then he spoke. "Belle, simplement belle." he whispered, almost afraid to break the silence, but needing to speak. "and yet so sad."

[Sangfleur]

"Tell me about yourself. That song was a secret, so tell me one of yours." She smiled very lightly, the sorrow of the song still gripping her heart and refusing to let go. A small part of her felt glad he decided to break the silence because it was the one thing she hated. Silence. The absence of sound. It frightened her. That is why she spent her time making bells, singing even in her sleep. It was an unfounded fear she couldn't understand because she did have the memories required to.

It was times like that that scared her the most. It felt like being afraid of shadows. You couldn't grasp it, but it could grasp you. The only thing that brought her back to reality was the sound of the bells in her hair, chiming softly.

She squeezed his hand in return, comforting him should he feel any doubt in telling her anything about himself. It was what she did. When customers came in looking troubled, she talked them. When they had a problem, she helped them solve it. She helped everyone but herself. It was just the way she felt she was "designed".

"I expect... I don't even know to be honest. I can't really ask you to stay when I've only just met you. What do you want from me?"

She couldn't help but question his motives for being so attentive and perhaps interested in her. It was obvious he flirted quite a bit, from what she had seen sitting with the two of them. Was he serious now? Would he leave in a few days?

[Ellandrania Demonata]

[sorry this is super super long.. and sappy... ><]



Dom was afraid of that answer, and yet at the same time wanted to share his life with her, or at least his past life, he wasn't sure about the future yet. After all, they had just met that morning, and for all he knew this content feeling, the trusting her was all just an affect of her breeding. Perhaps she didn't even know what she was doing, or what she was capable of, but being around her made him feel vulnerable and safe all at the same time.

He didn't speak right away, trying to think through whatever foggy spell she had over him. He didn't really know what he wanted from her. That was such a good question for her to ask, and nearly impossible to answer right now. The only thing he could do was be honest with her. "I'm not exactly sure. I have never met someone like you before." it was all he could think of to say when regards to her question, and he still had to share with her a secret, the problem was, which one to share.

He looked down at their intertwined fingers, focusing on the pressure of her hand in his. The warmth, the comfort. The last time he had held hands with someone he actually liked, actually cared about had been so long ago, nearly two decades. He decided quickly against sharing any of those memories. Although they were long past, the pain of them, when recalled, was still fresh, however he wasn't exactly sure where to start and he was positive he wouldn't sound very eloquent telling her his story. "I had a wife once. Her name was Jasline. He had a son together, but I'm not sure of his name, or if he is even alive. He was taken away shortly after he was born for his protection. There was something wrong with the pregnancy, Jasline got really sick, the pregnancy nearly killed her, something about her body and the child's body not being compatible." he paused, letting the image of Jasline's frail, deathly thin body appear in his mind. He didn't know how to explain it in words, it would be easier if he just showed Clochette what happened.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The image of a woman appeared in front of them, her long raven hair, pulled back into a pony tail, her golden eyes lively and energetic as she looked up at a man. The man, was, of course, Dominic, a little younger looking, with a lot less cares than he carried now. They were laughing about something, although the words were lost to the two viewing the scene. And then it moved ahead, almost like a montage. The woman's belly began to grow, and the rest of her shrank. Her face became hollow, her eyes tired and almost lifeless. She was too weak to leave her bed, and Dom cared for her. The child was born and whisked away by a blonde haired girl, who looked like she could be Jasline's sister. Dom remained by her side.

Up to this point in the memory it was been relatively quiet, but now it became loud. The woman's screams filled the room, her body tightening and convulsing as she cried out in what had to be horrific pain, and the Dom in the image kept tending to her. Keeping her clean, holding her when she slept, trying to comfort her and help her through whatever torment wracked her body. And then she finally spoke, her words soft. "Dominic, I need you to kill me. Please, I can not do this any longer."

He shook his head. "No, we'll find a cure. Shalise has been searching for the right spell, and once she finds it you'll be just fine." he said running his hand down her cheek.

Tears were falling from her face as she shook her head. "There is no spell Dominic. There is only one way, and I need you to do this for me. I need you to end it. Take your knife, and release me. Let me be free."

The image of Dom was crying now, tears running freely from his neon eyes. There was such love there, and such sorrow. He knelt beside her, his face lowering to rest on her chest and she gently touched his head. "I can't do that Jas. I just..."

"Please." she interrupted him, before another attack ripped through her body. Tears spilled from her eyes as she cried out, unable to stop herself. Dom held her hand tightly, while he gently wiped at her forehead with a cloth. The screaming subsided and Jasline gulped in air, trying desperately to catch her breath. "Please Dom." she croaked, as he wiped away her tears.

It seemed he had accepted his fate, and hers in that last attack, because the tears were gone and he seemed almost dead in the eyes. He removed his blade from the sheath at his side and brought it up. "I love you Jasline." he said.

"I love you too." she whispered.

And then the blade was brought down, entering her chest and spearing her heart. Dom sat there, knowing she was gone, knowing he had killed her. He backed away, leaning against the opposite wall and began to cry.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

The image faded, and Dominic looked at Clochette. "Something was tearing her body apart and then healing her only to do it again and again. Some sort of curse is what her sister told me, but it had something to do with the child. I wanted to hunt the kid down and destroy him for a long time, but I eventually just let alcohol and women dull my pain until I was a shell of myself." he finished, going into silence and letting Clochette digest what she had just seen. He wouldn't be surprised if she left, or felt pity for him. But he wasn't that same person anymore. Jasline had been his greatest love, and it had ended in a horrible way, but he had moved on, had met others, gone on to do other things. It was difficult to talk about, and something he didn't share freely, but he had moved on.

[deadbird5]

Loren laughed as Runio walked off, but as soon as he started performing, Lo had his hand in his chin in captivation. He watched with wide eyes as the flames twisted upwards into a dragon, only to burst into sparks. The rest of the show held Loren's full attention, especially the acrobats. When Runio fell, Lo knew there was a catch, knew Runio would save himself by the skin of his neck, yet he couldn't help his heart in his throat and sharply stood in the suspense. As the fiery bird caught the man, Lo let out his breath and clapped eagerly.

When Runio was finished and came backstage, Lo clipped over to him, and came to a clumsy sit next to him. He yanked Runio to a sit with him and exclaimed, "That was amazing! Absolutely astounding!" He resisted the urge to say, 'Do it again!'