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 Posted: Sat Jul 05, 2025 3:08 pm
It was already late in the evening but the merchant seemed unfazed by the passing of time. He sat, poised and elegant, watching the world around him. He didn't seem bored, even as he leaned forward and laced his fingers atop the table; below it, he kept his toe tapping to some silent tune in his head. He was tall, by human standards, though while sitting down he didn't seem particularly threatening. If you didn't look at his face.
He had graceful features--sharp and refined. His chin and nose tapered to a point, giving him an air of sophistication, but that, combined with his slitted eyes and pointed teeth, there was something undeniably predatory about him. He watched with a hungry gaze and a mischievous, nearly sinister smile. His ears were pointed and were prominent despite being tucked behind his vibrant, multi-colored hair. The most intrusive feature that indicated there was something not human about him were the curling horns protruding from his temples and the oil-slick black scales that brushed his cheeks and forehead. He was well dressed, in a fashion obviously otherworldly, and seemed to enjoy dressing himself up in glistening gemstones.
His table was somehow both simple and overwhelming; it was draped in a dark purple tablecloth, with extravagant embroidery in different designs. Scattered neatly atop the table was an array of items that seemed to carry some magical weight to them.
He did not seem intimidated in the slightest and, upon noticing that the barrier surrounding him rippled when his visitor entered, he smiled.
He did not rise to meet them nor adjust his position in the slightest. He followed them with his fierce eyes and greeted, in a silky voice, "Welcome."
It'd taken all morning and a bit of the afternoon, but she finished! Soon enough she had loaded up her wagon with two large baskets of assorted goodies–one sweet and one savory–that might make one wonder if she was trying to feed a little league baseball team, and was on her way. Thankfully it wasn't a very long trip to where she wanted to go, and before long she stepped into a familiar space and eventually spotted the man behind his table.
"Almadel!" she called as she hurried over, expression as bright and beaming as it almost always was. Emphasis on almost, considering everything in recent months, but she was keeping things together pretty well thanks to some really good friends.
"It's so good to see you! I hope you've been doing okay since…" she gave a vague gesture, as if she expected him to understand that she wanted to refer to the whole world-ending entity situation just a couple of months ago, but didn't actually want to say anything.
The urge to ask for a hug was strong, but as he was still seated behind the table she forced it down.
"Well, y'know." At least her smile was steady. "Anyway, how are you? Still in the trade business?"
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Posted: Fri Jul 11, 2025 7:38 pm
“ Mel,” he greeted warmly, and rose from his seat behind the table. “I am always doing okay, never worry yourself with me. I’m very resilient. Of course I’m in the trade business!” he said, gesturing to the tables behind him as he effortlessly raised one knee to his chest and leaned forward, planting his heel on the corner of his table. He stepped up on it like it wasn’t nearly three feet tall. Mindful of his treasures–of course–he climbed over the table as easily as if he’d been simply taking the stairs. When he stepped over the table on the other side, he dropped down with equal grace. Though he had nice boots, the action probably hadn’t been to show them off. “Look at you!” he said, placing one hand on either side of each cheek and leaning in. “Hm. Well, as lovely as ever. What’s that sadness in your eyes, is someone bullying you? Or have you exhausted yourself, ah. Hm.” He eyed her wagon of treats. “Have you amassed a small army of little mouths to feed? What is this?’
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Posted: Sun Jul 13, 2025 10:47 am
Almadel was far more graceful than Mel could ever hope to be, and she watched with quiet awe as he quite literally walked over the table between them. Fashionable, too–she noticed his boots with a curious eye–though in what felt like an otherworldly sort of way. He was as impressive as she remembered.
She scrunched her face up playfully when he leaned in to get a closer look at her, more to show that she was fine and that he didn't have to worry, either. And she was, just that there was still a lot going on and she was admittedly a bit tired.
Life was life-ing, as one of coworkers phrased it at lunch this past week.
"Oh, I'm alright. Maybe a little tired, but who isn't, right?"
She offered him a genuine smile as reassurance before gesturing to the baskets with her arms–because she didn't want to break her head out of his very gentle hold–and said, "This is for you! As thanks for," there was another pause and another vague gesture with her hand.
"Well, y'know. But it's all homemade! And as fresh as I could manage with the travel time from home to here. I couldn't think of what to get a man who had an entire museum of collectibles and probably wouldn't need any of the things I could offer, so I figured maybe making you some food would be better."
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Posted: Fri Jul 18, 2025 5:57 am
“Oh, I can feel the warmth of your heart from here. You’re so very charming, Mel, do you know? How kind, how thoughtful. You’re right, though. I mean, not about ‘what to get a man who has a museum’–of course, I am always looking for more things to add to my collection. Although,” he glanced at his table. “I suppose I’ve made a bit of a show about trying to declutter some of these things that just don’t fit in. But I like to think of it more as ‘helping things find the right place’ but I’m getting on a tangent. What I mean to say is,” he finally lowered his hands from her face and lifted one of the baskets. He did not scrutinize this with the same care as he had her face but he was obviously no less interested. Almadel had an insatiable appetite, after all. “I do not get homemade meals often. My heart is fluttering. It is louder than my stomach.” He lowered the basket but looked very much like a kid at his own birthday party because he then lifted the second with equal admiration and excitement. He abandoned professional decorum because he could not help himself, and before he had time to think better of it–as if he could have ever even come to such a conclusion–he withdrew a pastry. He savored the first bite for the longest, but each bite afterwards was given the same reverence. “Oh, it’s delicious. I must give you a gift, too. Hold on, let me find something. No, after I finish this. Perhaps I should steal you from Earth, do you know what I don’t have for my museum? Someone who feeds me.”
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Posted: Tue Jul 22, 2025 9:47 pm
Her cheeks warmed–and it wasn't just because he was still holding her face in his hands–as they often did when someone complimented her in any way. She wasn't the greatest at receiving compliments, though she'd gotten a little better at it over the years. "Oh, it's really not that much," she said, eyes following the direction of his gaze to the table and bobbling her head as much as she could while he still held on. "That makes sense," she said, her expression suddenly turning thoughtful as she thought about possibly decluttering her Spring wardrobe sooner rather than later. It'd be less work come Autumn...
Mel's attention returned to Almadel when he finally let her go, and she reached up to press her own hands to her cheeks for a moment, going a slightly darker shade of pink when she felt how warm they were. Thankfully her embarrassment was dwarfed by her amusement at his statement about his stomach.
"I'm just glad you like it! Like I said, I was a little unsure what to bring you."
Clasping her hands behind her back, the young woman watched as he took the baskets one by one, a curious excitement filling her the way it filled any creator when they watched people partake of their creation–be it art, craft, food, or anything in between. Each and every piece was a labor of love, and it filled her with a sense of joy and satisfaction to watch him savor and enjoy each bite that he took.
"Yeah?" she asked, leaning in and slightly up, a bright and beaming and hopeful smile. "You mean it?"
And then she backed up, hands unclasping so she could wave them in front of her to decline his offer.
"Please! You really don't have to. I didn't bring it to trade with you, honest! It's a 'thank you' for helping us! And for also thinking fondly of us and visiting each year! And–"
She paused at that, hands coming to a stop so she looked suddenly like a statue for a second or two as she processed.
"Well. I would love to visit again sometime. I'm curious if you've been able to restore since the whole infestation thing from last year..."
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Posted: Wed Jul 30, 2025 3:56 pm
“Only a visit? Well, I suppose beggars can’t be choosers,” he said, too choosy to have ever been a beggar. “We’ll make time for it. The universe is a bit electric right now so I’ll keep you here, safe on Earth, until things calm down. But,” he shrugged and gestured vaguely to the sky, to some far away point where the Calamitous Hollow was still trapped in a distant cage. “It’s been quite an effort to restore everything. With so much else going on, ah. I’m behind on my schedule. But I suppose I’m the only one who was keeping up with it, so it’s no trouble. Who would know if I didn’t tell them?” Another laugh, warm and pleasant, because Mel was as charming as ever in a way she didn’t mean to be, and Almadel was as charming as ever in the way that he did. It took him a moment to finish eating, because he was determined to enjoy every bite–not that it was difficult–and then he licked his fingers clean, pulled a handkerchief and wiped his hand, and then returned to his tables. This time, he didn’t climb over them; he crouched beneath a table and pulled out a box. He had a hidden trove of treasures, as if meant for special occasions. After a moment of sifting through, he produced a simple, pale blue box. The symbol of Mercury was seared into the box and one long gash marred the side, but the box itself was not of interest–the portable data stick inside was. He uncapped the box and spun to show her the contents, doing so with a showman’s flourish. “Ta-da! It doesn’t look like much, but don’t judge it. I found this in one of my storage boxes and thought, ‘I know just where this belongs,’” he said, and held it out to her.
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Posted: Mon Aug 04, 2025 8:49 pm
"I can't imagine you as a beggar, Almadel," she giggled, inserting the little comment just before nodding along to his plan of making time in the future for her to visit, given the current state of things out in space. While the idea of waiting wasn't her favorite, it was more than reasonable. Plus the idea of getting in his way suddenly came to mind when he mentioned being behind schedule on the restoration.
"Well, now I know, so. If there's anything you think I can do to help, let me know?"
It was, unfortunately, the best she could offer, what with her limited knowledge of things beyond Earth or her Wonder.
Mel carefully settled back, watching and waiting happily as Almadel took his time with his food. Occasionally she glanced around, wondering about the various items but keeping her questions to herself so as not to interrupt his enjoyment of the food. She was looking away, at a curious looking pin resting just beside where she had set her hand, when she sensed him moving. He still had his back turned to her when she looked over at him again.
Even without the flourish, anything he specifically procured to show her would have absolutely piqued her interest.
A data stick sitting inside such a box, even more so.
Her mouth fell slightly open, eyebrows raised slightly and eyes growing wider as she took a step toward him to get a closer look.
Of course, the last bit of what he said caused her to flush once more, and she barely fought down another smile as she took the offered box.
"Thank you," she said first. And then she brought the box closer to eye level and peered down at the data stick, not wanting to touch it just yet. Just in case. The urge to power up was incredibly strong, but she wouldn't have been able to do anything with it here, where he could see, so she held off.
"Any idea what kind of data is inside? Or what it does, maybe?" she eventually asked, lowering the box and looking up at him again, her blue eyes bright and shining with curiosity.
"And, uh, maybe what made the gash?"
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