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 Posted: Thu May 15, 2008 10:30 pm
Manners dictated Madeline await for her date to arrive before she order food or drink, sadly, she still couldn't help yet wish for something to sip or chew on while waiting. Unbeknown to her, Madeline's fingers strayed near her lips--Ah, no! Nail biting? She must be nervous; she hadn't had the urge to bite her nails in years. Ugh, it was such a filthy habit, one's hands were always dirty and it looked so unrefined. Best not start again, it was hard enough quitting the first time around.
Moving her attention to the outfit she had worn, Madeline began to routinely shift and smooth her hands down the long soft lavender dress. The pearls she had opted to due with out, something simpler than her meeting with Satika. Still, the shoes and hat had pulled it together. She looked nice, not ostentatiously flirty, but nice.
Moving to her purse, Madeline reached down and grabbed the silver watch out of the sleek leather hold. Secretly she smiled, not late yet.
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Posted: Thu May 15, 2008 10:58 pm
Akram had spent about half an hour deciding what he wanted to wear today to meet Miss Madeline - should he opt for a Gaian suit, or wear his usual dress clothes from home? Eventually he settled on going on native dress, as he knew he, at least, would feel more comfortable in it. He put on the nicer of his deep burgundy head-wraps, the one that left long tails of fabric embroidered at the ends with gold hanging down his back when it was tied. His white shirt, high-necked and long-sleeved, was similarly embroidered at the rolled cuffs, and he opted for a pair of loose and comfortable white pants as well. Akram left his sleeveless dust-coat behind, as he figured he would not need it walking to a restaurant; Gaia was nice in that it rarely, if ever, had the blowing sand problem of his homeland. He wore the woven sash his grandmother had made for him in the family colors of teal, burgundy, and gold, and after a bit of deliberation, decided to leave all of the silver and wooden charms hanging from it on their variety of cords. His curved dagger came with him as well, thrust behind the sash at his side, for tradition and fashion rather than any anticipation of needing to use it.
When he showed up at the restaurant, Akram was playing with his long black bangs a little. He forced himself to stop playing with his hair and lower his hands to his sides as he scanned the people seated at tables already, looking for the single woman he was supposed to meet. It was a little like the first meeting of an arranged marriage, except there was no one to introduce them.
After a moment, he spotted the woman he presumed to be Miss Madeline, and walked towards her table. "Miss Madeline, I presume?" the man asked, stomach fluttering slightly as he did so. Not that he was nervous about this or anything, but if it was not her, he was about to feel extremely stupid.
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Posted: Fri May 16, 2008 4:30 pm
Having checked her watch, Madeline began going over the menu for the fifth...or was it sixth time? She was careful to avoid eye contact of any passerby whom walked through the door. It was always rude to stare and should it not happen to be her date, my, wouldn't she feel silly now? Of course, if it was her date she would feel even more absurd than she all ready did. What was it about these types of events that made you so apprehensive and jumpy? She couldn't be sure, but she knew if she spotted him before he walked through the doors, there would be the awkward penalty of having to either A) wave to a complete stranger, or B) sit there looking like a fool.
As life would have it, she became so absorbed in these petty thoughts that she hardly noticed Akram as he did approach her table. Stupidly, she jerked up as he spoke.
"Yes, yes--" those blue eyes grew wide, but the expression on her face remained rather the same. Well now, to be honest, he hadn't been what she was expecting. You see, it was very different hearing someone being described in a letter or over the phone that when you met them in person. He looked exotic, she besides him paled in comparison.
His appearance struck her as someone who was important, a nobleman perhaps, though there had never been mention of this suspicion. Either way he seemed to command both attention and respect which she at once gave, by standing to greet him with a smile on her face. "Akram?" She chose his first name seeing as he had used hers, and choose not to correct the fact that even though unmarried, she was no longer a Miss, but a Ms.
"Pleasure to meet you, finally." Hesitantly she held out her hand, a bit afraid that he may be offended by such a gesture, he seemed so foreign she wasn't sure if he would shake her hand.
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Posted: Fri May 16, 2008 8:40 pm
Smiling, Akram took her hand in his own. Whether or not shaking hands had been tradition among his people for ages, it had certainly been a familiar enough greeting through Akram's lifetime. "Very pleased to meet you," he said.
The man shifted his weight a little, looking Madeline over to commit her appearance to memory. She was pretty, he thought, and had a dignified sort of look to her. "I hope I haven't kept you waiting long," Akram added. Smiling faintly, he gestured towards her seat, inviting her to sit.
He hoped that he could pretend like this was the same as a business meeting, and that that would work out alright. After all, relationships and business agreements required a lot of the same things, like mutual respect and understanding. Right?
Still, Akram found himself feeling uncharacteristically self-conscious. He could feel the lights overhead lighting up his face, and dearly hoped that she would not go asking about the markings on his cheeks until at least ten minutes had passed. Back home, they were something no one was supposed to talk about - Akram had gotten tired of people looking at him like he was cursed by the gold tear-like marks back home, but at least that meant that they would never become a conversation piece.
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Posted: Fri May 16, 2008 11:41 pm
It was hard to keep wandering eyes from traveling too far and she knew she shouldn't...but he was so different. Living with as many bizarre entities as she did in her home, you think she would be used to the out of ordinary. But that was actually quite the problem, Akram was ordinary, yet not. If you removed the clothes and some of the face paint, he would look much the same as a normal man. But then there was something about him, oh, she…she couldn’t quite put her finger on it, but it made him stand out like a sore thumb!
Ah! But now Madeline had been standing here for far too long and rather embarrassedly she realized she may be making the man feel uncomfortable. With a shake of her head, Madeline sat down. "Well," the woman looked calmly down at the smooth glass of the table, "one of us had to be early. It's the rules, right?" She pondered briefly, "Though, I suppose we could have both arrived at the same time. But the odds seem so slim, hardly worth mentioning."
Hitching her arms up and underneath her chest, leaning slightly forward, a position she was quite comfortable with, the blond waited to open her mouth again until the server had come. Which, of course didn't take long at all. This place had a way with their timing, almost like magic...but, really, that was such a silly thought. "Tea please."
Her attention turned back to its original focus. "Once again, I have to thank you," Madeline pulled back a large rounded golden curl as she pushed in towards the comfortable cushioning. "It is Akram, correct? Or should I have been more formal in calling Mr. Mercier? I’m sorry."
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Posted: Sat May 17, 2008 12:02 am
"True," he replied, considering the unlikelihood of the pair of them arriving at the same moment. Or would that sort of thing be considered a sign of true love that was meant to be? The corner of his mouth twitched a little as Akram's generally cynical mind took a moment to ponder the question.
Once the lady was seated, Akram settled into his own seat. He shifted a little to get comfortable, then settled back a bit with his hands resting on the edge of the table. He studied the glass as well, not wanting to stare across the table at Miss Madeline, but found himself instead looking at her reflection on the glass tabletop.
The merchant glanced up as the server came to the table. "Water for me, please, with an extra lemon," he told him after his date had made her order. The waiter nodded and departed as quietly as he had come, and Akram picked up the menu and opened it to study it.
"Thank you as well," he replied when Miss Madeline spoke. Mentally selecting a relatively inexpensive soup and salad after a moment, he closed the menu again and set it aside. "And Akram is fine. We share a table, so no reason not to call me by my given name. Is it acceptable for me to call you Miss Madeline, too?" Secretly, the man hoped so; it was a nice name to say.
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Posted: Sat May 17, 2008 12:46 am
“Yes of course,” How long had it been since someone, other than her dear friends, had called her Madeline? It was her own fault, for not using her first name more. It was a beautiful name, common for her generation and class, yet it grew on you each time you heard it, repeat it again, and again, it was nice to hear. “Yes—“ she spoke with a bit of hesitation, realizing that whether it be Akram or some boy in the future, her first name was going to be used quite a bit from now on. Her life was no longer closed to the general public. “But please…drop the miss, no need to be so formal. As you said we share a table…”
Coy as a cat, the smile on her lips changed from a broad one to something of quiet content. What was it you said about this time? “I suppose there is much to talk about, but I can’t think of anything. At least, besides the fact you weren’t what I was expecting, but then again, as I look back on it, I don’t think I was excepting anything. Your manners are quite impressive though, just like the man in the letter.
Tragedy to think my own expectations for myself haven’t been quite up to par during this meeting. But please…this is the part where you jump in and save me from myself, isn’t it? I don’t want to keep rambling away.”
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Posted: Sat May 17, 2008 10:57 pm
"Alright, just Madeline, then."
Akram laughed a little as she admitted that he was not what she had expected. "Ah, I never really liked being another man in a suit," he told her. "There is a dress for every woman, but put a man in a suit and he looks just like all the others." He started playing with his hair a little. "Besides, I always thought my clothes from home were more comfortable." The merchant prince smiled a little as he added, "I'm pleased that you find my manners acceptable. You seem to be quite the lady, yourself."
"As for saving you from yourself..." Akram trailed off for a moment, looking amused but not teasing. "Do not feel like I do not want to hear all about you, anything you care to share with me. Those sheets Joseph had us fill out about ourselves were not fully informative." He leaned towards her a little, crossing his arms as he rested his elbows on the table. "And I always considered myself more of an auditory learner."
"You look like you have questions about me, as well, so by all means, ask." There were plenty of things he really did not want to have to answer, but he figured if he could get her talking as well, then they would likely end up on other topics.
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Posted: Sun May 18, 2008 10:48 am
"Quite, true. Quite true. I always wondered why it was us women that were given the artistic license with our dress." She leaned back as the passing waiter briefly set her tea before her, and Akram's water besides him. "Thank you--" she whispered as he brought the cup towards her mouth. It was heavenly, the aroma, the bit of steam which bubbled up and rolled over the edges of the cup, no matter the container, no matter the flavor, drinking tea for Madeline was like drinking a cup of comfort.
Unbeknown to herself, the blond drifted back to a state of ease, "--And please, your too kind," she set the cup down lightly waving her hand, in response to his comment upon her manners, " I've had years to practice." At this thought she began to laugh softly, "You should have seen me when I was younger, my poor mother, I'm sure she's thankful I grew up fast as I did."
Talking was wonderful, she always forgot how much she enjoyed it, conversation wasn't one of those things that came easily, but it was something she liked. Besides, now that Akram had given her permission to ask what she would like…Picking an earlier comment, the woman swooped in quickly.
"Home?" Madeline tilted her head to the side, looking at him inquisitively. So, he wasn't from around here? She had her suspicions as much, but didn't want to pry. It felt so accusing to point-blank say he looked like a foreign figure. "Well, I suppose then, I would like to ask you where you're from. Of course, you live here now...but how long have you been in the area?" She got a rather silly look on her face as she asked, again uncomfortable about approaching these types of subjects, "What brings someone as charming as yourself to this..." she had to pause, carefully picking the best words to describe her current surrounding environment,"...Sorry, I just can only imagine its different from where your from." In the end she retreated, falling back to a simpler manner of speech, something ambiguous.
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Posted: Fri May 23, 2008 7:36 pm
"I'm from a place called Isur," Akram told her, then sipped at his water before continuing. "I came here a few months ago to study. It's nice being different. And away from the rest of my family." He laughed a little, glancing down at the table. "It takes about three days to go back from here, since I have things I can't take on a plane with me. It's a nice relaxing trip, though."
"The boat ride is interesting, though, especially the first time. I'd never seen the ocean before," he went on. Then he looked back up at Madeline and asked, "Have you seen the ocean?" Akram took his glass of water in one hand but did not pick it up, instead opting for the moment to brush his finger down the side of it to trace a little pattern in the condensation. "Are you from Gaia, or are you from elsewhere, also?"
It relaxed him, exchanging questions like this. Akram was thankful the awkward first meeting part seemed to be over. Still smiling slightly, the Isuran glanced between the menu and his date, though he paid more attention to the latter as he awaited her response.
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Posted: Sat May 24, 2008 9:12 pm
Lazily Madeline stirred her tea as she listened to Akram, the silver spoon occasionally hitting the side of the white cup with a 'c***k'. Three days travel? He sounded as if he lived close, why had she never heard of this place? For shame Madeline! She would have to study up on her geography this evening, oh, it was so embarrassing. To reflect this she rolled her shoulders forward, slouching a bit in her chair, if only to make herself look smaller. It felt so uncomfortable to slouch. Poor thing, she should have been more in tune with with Akram and his discussion of studies. If she had thought about it correctly, she would realize she was several years his senior. A fact, that if the date continued from a first to a second, would be startling to Madeline. She had never dated a younger man before, no, hadn't even considered it. Akram hid is age very well.
"Mn? The ocean?" She perked up a bit. "Why yes, I've been there many times on vacation. My parents own a nice summer home on the shore, they used to take me when I was younger. Before I went away to school," it was a bit of a sad smile which crossed her face, "well, once or twice". She neglected to say that it was only through the care of a well trained governess that she spent most of the days on the beach.
But how should she phrase her answer to his next question? Madeline always had trouble when people asked if she was a native. Because..."I've also lived here my whole life. But," she looked down at the tea in front of her which was getting cold. "...I'm not what you would call your usual resident. I grew up very far away from all the main cities here. A sheltered community, I was never exposed to...magic or I call it the un-ordinary, people like you from far away places. Humans whom are just that, nothing extraordinary... just humans with a lot of money." She took a sip, feeling this was a good point to pause. "It's taken me a while to get used to the rest of Gaia, the majority of Gaia."
"But I've come to accept it, or rather I've been more forced to. I currently have a dragon living in my home, would you believe that?"
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Posted: Wed May 28, 2008 9:48 pm
Akram nodded slowly; he looked interested in all that she was saying, but when she implied that he was 'un-ordinary', the man's brow furrowed ever so slightly for a moment. "Well, Isur does not seem to be very well known here in general," he told her. "Or so I've noticed since I came here."
The merchant sipped at his water, then chuckled a little. "I guess I am like an ambassador here in Gaia. Ask me whatever you like about Isur and I will tell you if I know. Although I suspect the place has changed since I left, at least a little. Becoming more modern like Gaia and all that."
At the mention of a dragon, Akram's eyes widened. "Wow, a dragon? What sort? Is it very dangerous? I suppose it eats a lot, no?"
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Posted: Fri Jun 06, 2008 10:47 pm
Haha, so many questions from Akram and yet she didn't have the faintest on how she should answer them. "I've been told, by the company I work for, that it is a black and green mix? It really is my sons and not mine, so I don't know much about it. Really, its an awful thing though....dangerous, not to him of course! " She jumped in, not wanting to sound like a bad parent, "He and it get along quite well, I and it however--" she let out a sigh and gave what could only be called a 'shrug' of sorts. "It's crafty, the type of venomous creature that will wait for you to pet it till it bites you, it makes you think you've earned its trust. It's salvia is something poisonous too, green dragons can breath chlorine and black ones have acidic spit." Go figure, they just had to give Keivlos something like that, well, not that his twin had gotten the better of the two.
"I'm sorry, I don't mean to scare you off--just wanted to share," in her haste she had forgotten that not everyone was used to tales of such creatures. "I've had some wonderful experiences with the other dragons of children I have worked with, it's just the one they gave my son--well, no matter, not like it stays at my apartment all the time." She did her best to smile and continue the positive tone of the conversation.
"Tonight I'll be sure to read up on Isur, so that I can question you more intelligently about your home town."
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Posted: Sun Jun 08, 2008 10:21 pm
Akram listened intently to the talk of the dragon, his expression a mixture of intense interest in the creature itself, and worry for the well-being of the lady describing it. For being so well-populated, Gaia seemed to attract the most interesting variety of fauna, and so often, it was easily domesticated. Or perhaps not so easily, in the case of the dragon. Idly, Akram wondered what happened to the problem creatures that did not have someone like Madeline's son to take care of them. Hopefully there was some sort of control on the potentially dangerous ones.
"I'm not scared off at all," he assured her. "Trust me, talk of dragons does not phase me." Not that Akram was jumping to meet the creature, but at the same time, he was also kind of curious. He then realized that he should probably try to come up with what he wanted to eat, so when the waiter came by, he would have an order ready. Madeline had probably already waited long enough for him.
Deciding on some sort of sandwich, the merchant scanned the descriptions of the different ones, and frowned a little. "Could you tell me what the different types of bread are?" he inquired. "I know white and wheat, but I'm not sure I've heard of the others. After a moment, he added, "And what is 'corned' beef? Is it much different from roast beef?" Akram went on to admit, "I know enough about food here, but some of the varieties still escape me. I think I've seen some of these at the deli, but what do they taste like?"
"I apologize for asking so many questions," the Isurian tacked on as an afterthought. "I'm trying to learn the details of this place, too. That, and I always need to know what I'm buying."
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Posted: Sat Jun 14, 2008 5:41 pm
Well, well, it was certainly refreshing to have someone who was not intimidated by the man eating boulder sized "cat" she had at home. Perhaps dating a man who was different from her, and yet still so alike in many ways, was something quite good. After all, Akram was sweet enough, polite too ...and yet, he seemed traversed in ways of the world that she had only began to understand. Apparently it also worked both ways around, for his questions about the food were so endearing, it took all effort to hold back a laugh.
She turned it into a soft giggle of sorts and from there a smile, "Please, you're really not a bother at all, sometimes even the smallest of details escape me. But lets see..." she looked down at the menu that Akram must surely have been basing his questions on. "Well besides white and wheat there is sourdough, which as its name suggests has a bit of a bite to it. It's quite delicious and what you would call more of an artisan bread, something created rather than mass produced. Rye is similar to wheat, actually, closely related if I'm not mistaken..." she drifted off for a second, mentally checking herself, "But more often dry and ...well I'd describe it more dense than wheat."
"As for meats," she continued on, deciding only to stick to the questions asked, Arkam was intelligent enough that unless he asked about it, she assumed he knew what it was. "Corned beef and roast beef are very different in taste. Same meat but roast beef is cooked with an oven, the times I've had it I'd call it almost a tangy meat? Or even smoky." She wasn't quite sure how to put it, but none the less continued on, "Corned beef on the other hand is usually cooked over long periods of time. It's a tougher meet to chew and perhaps a bit more fattening."
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