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Friendly Conversationalist
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 Posted: Thu Jan 14, 2016 12:30 pm
Who: Aaron (alpha lyrae) and Phoenix (Annarchye X)
Where: Phoenix's restaurant Ambrosia, in Durem
When: January 14th, 2016, just before their opening at 10 AM
Weather: Slightly overcast and chilly
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Aaron stuffed his gloved hands into the deep recesses of his pocket, watching his breath rise in front of him. While it was not as cold as it had been, it was still enough for him to long for the warmth of the indoors. Following the long, boring parade that had been Holmes Produce's New Years Eve party (for clients and higher up employees exclusively), Clarence had gotten the bright idea to check in on clients who had not been in attendance to make sure everything was running smoothly. The problem, there, was that Clarence became suddenly busy after the turn of the year and he had nudged Aaron forward to take up the mantle in his stead. He did not mind much, since he was going to be the head of Holmes Produce in due order - what he did mind, however, was the sudden appearance of Clarence's golf clubs in the corner of his office whenever he sent Aaron out on his rounds. His father was already steeping himself well into his eventual retirement, it seemed; he hadn't even been there this morning when he had swung by the office to drop off his briefcase, check his emails quickly, and then head out to his first appointment of the day - checking in at Ambrosia.
The Argyris clan had been longtime clients of Holmes Produce, easily as long as Clarence had been the head of operations, and nary a complaint to be seen on either end about the other. Aaron was familiar with the sight of the restaurant, having accompanied his father many times on his own business rounds when he was fresh out of college and getting his feet wet in the company. He was also quite familiar with the current head of the restaurant, Phoenix; Alexis Argyris had been in the class under him when he had been in high school, but the familiarity was also tinged with guilt as they had not run in the same social circles, and he and his friends had been more or less unkind to Phoenix during their time together. Nobody would have guessed that given how the two men interacted now - no means close but still amiable, a good working business relationship. Phoenix apparently lived under the idea of letting bygones be bygones.
With how his life circumstances were playing out now, however, Aaron stood outside the restaurant feeling antsy, glancing at the delivery driver he had ridden in with from the factory as he hopped out of the cab and headed towards the back doors. He brushed a hand through his increasingly shaggy hair (that his dad had made a comment in jest about the day before, "aren't you too old to be that shaggy, son?") and headed towards the back door as well. The driver glanced at him when he ascended the steps but knocked firmly on the metal door, order form and clipboard in hand, when Aaron's pocket jingled. He fished the phone out of his pocket and noted the ID with a tired frown - his dad. He and the driver exchanged a small glance (to which the driver immediately diverted his gaze to the especially fascinating form in his hands) while Aaron took the call.
"Hey dad." He did his best to sound enthusiastic.
"How's it going, bud? All systems go, I'm hoping!" Clarence sounded boisterous as ever and in good spirits; Aaron was fairly certain he could hear the clink of glasses and conversation in the background and his frown deepened. He rubbed his temples.
"Dad, c'mon, we haven't even gone in yet."
"Well that's why I sent you early - you know what they say about the early bird and all."
"You didn't even send me but - yeah, I gotcha." For all his efforts to mask his frustrations, he was doing a very poor job.
"You seem tense, kid, what's wrong?"
"It's fine, dad. Just a lot on my mind right now, I mean we got the client meetings to finish up, then all the Lab stuff in the works -" Clarence's enthusiasm waned at the well-worn name in their conversations.
"Lab again? If it's that stressful, talk to Claire about it. Maybe now is not the best time, son." Aaron stiffened; this was the response he had expected from his mother, but not from his father. Seems as though Ruth was being more vocal about her dislike of the Lab as of late. "You're right about the client meetings, that's important. But Lab? It's an experiment, I'm sure there will be more." He clenched the phone as he turned away from the door; he may have been having doubts about his own capabilities as a father, but he was not about to take away this opportunity from Claire just because he was feeling uneasy.
"Dad, not now, c'mon."
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Posted: Wed Jan 27, 2016 2:03 pm
Phoenix Argyris was about as involved a boss as you could ever meet. He knew the managers who wore their fancy suits to the restaurant and stood in the back never understanding the restaurant. One such man owned a small Mexican joint down the way, the father of one of Zoe's classmates. He'd had a fit once about a piece of tomato that had fallen on his shoe when he went to the kitchen to yell at an emploee. Phoenix had heard the story and conveniently forgot to offer the man a pastry at the class potluck that year.
Phoenix came dressed at least partially in a suit every day alright, but as usual this morning he already had an apron tied around his waist. His hair was pulled back into its usual ponytail and the whole thing was wrapped ever so fashionably in a hair net. Instead of working in the office on paperwork, which was beautifully caught up on, he was at the counter expertly slicing up an eggplant, belting out "Sister Christian" slightly off key.
He heard the knock on the door just as he finished up. He nodded to the cook next to him, who swept away the eggplant for his dish while Phoenix went to wash his hands. Still shaking them to dry, he nudged the door with his hip to open it just in time to catch the tail end of Aaron's phone conversation.
The mention of "Lab" was enough to get his attention immediately. Realistically he knew it could mean anything. For all he knew maybe Aaron had to go and get lab work done for a medical concern.
That's when he realized it was Aaron there, just Aaron, which was rare in and of itself. Phoenix wasn't used to working with Aaron unaccompanied by his father. But he didn't mind this, which admittedly was a big change from when they were teenagers.
At that time Phoenix had been extremely frustrated that their fathers were in business together. While Aaron's behavior towards Phoenix may not have been the most direct out of the kids that gave Phoenix a hard time, he'd felt negatively enough at the time that he regularly voiced his resentment to his parents.
But that had been years ago. He had no chip on his shoulder about the mean things children could say. There was no room for grudges in the life of a man who tried so hard to keep his every waking moment positive. Instead of being angry, Phoenix leaned against the open door to the restaurant to wait politely for Aaron to finish his conversation, and to consider how to casually find out what Aaron meant about "Lab stuff".
He was mildly obsessed.
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Friendly Conversationalist
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Posted: Mon Feb 08, 2016 12:57 am
"Well -" There was a beat of hesitance on Clarence's part, a note that said he wanted to continue, and Aaron suppressed the urge to groan loudly into the receiver by clamping his lips shut. "Oh, what are we talking about this right now for? I'm keeping you from work. We can touch base on that later when you drop the papers back by."
"Dad -" It was Aaron's turn to start in on his father as a ripple of irritation was rising in him at his father's negligence. He may be on the way to taking over Holmes Produce, but Clarence Holmes was not retired yet and Aaron firmly wished he would act like the boss he still was. There was a sharp sound behind him and he glanced over his shoulder, starting when he noticed Phoenix leaning in the doorway; Aaron's eyes flashed over to the delivery driver, who had his free hand held up to his mouth - so it had been him trying to get his attention, after all. "We'll talk later, Dad." Aaron did not wait for a reply from the other end before he ended the call, and hastily shoved the phone back into his pockets when he turned around. "Phoenix! How long were you standing there? Sorry about that, thanks for waiting." He laughed to diffuse his own tension, the embarrassment clearly written in his smile. The delivery driver frowned, feeling quite awkward himself at being stuck between his usual client and his boss's son, and looked down at the clipboard in his hands, which Aaron relieved him from. "I've got this, Tony - go ahead and do what you need to."
"Uh." The driver did not quite know what to do but he decided to bow out. "On it, Mr. Holmes." Aaron was rarely, if ever, referred to as "mister," and to hear it now made him feel a little more awkward than he normally would felt on other days - days not following an argument about his soon-to-be-adopted floating torso child. But he had a job to do, and despite the awkwardness of their youth and the partially overhead phone call, he pushed forward and offered the clipboard to Phoenix. There was a moment of awkward silence as he stood there on the back steps and rubbed his hands together to warm them, trying to think of what to say. His father was usually there to act as a buffer, all charm and business sense, and while Aaron certainly inherited some of these traits, most of them were buried beneath his recently-unearthed layers of crippling doubt.
"Just doing the yearly rounds at the businesses, making sure everything is going smoothly," he said, quite suddenly, as though to shake off the dirt of his guilt radiating from decades past. "Should we go inside, talk shop and all?" He grinned amiably - when all else failed, rely on good humor and smiles; it never failed him before.
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Posted: Fri Feb 19, 2016 3:39 pm
If he had noticed at all that Aaron was uncomfortable, Phoenix was too kind to bring it up. Instead he shook his head, holding one hand up. "No worries. I only just came out. It's hard to hear in back, especially over my singing." He grinned, stepping back against the door and motioning dramatically for Aaron to step inside.
"How's your pops doing?" Phoenix said as he lead the way inside, the door making a metallic thud as it slammed shut behind them. The warm kitchen greeted them, enticing aromas wafting from every corner of the room. Everyone they passed looked back and smiled, waved or nodded their heads in greeting. Ambrosia had a reputation for having a relaxed, but organized and driven staff.
The restaurant itself was still mostly empty, so instead of going to the office, Phoenix lead the way to a booth in the back of the restaurant. The atmosphere here was nicer, and they wouldn't have a problem with noise for some time.
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Friendly Conversationalist
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Posted: Fri Feb 19, 2016 10:49 pm
"He's good. Already halfway in retirement mode, you know him," Aaron laughed as he stepped inside. "Nothing else to do but make sure I'm on track while he's off and away." Going back through the kitchens was familiar territory to him although he had not been in some time, and the last time he had come, his father had been with them while he shadowed. He raised his hand in a friendly wave towards the employees who acknowledged them when they passed through, and he could not help but marvel at how relaxed and friendly everyone seemed. At the main office and warehouse, tensions ran on a wire most of the day, but Aaron was usually too busy to get to acknowledge it. Employees kept their minds strictly on work and did not seem to see or interact with those around them outside passing on tasks or divvying up orders. It was a very different atmosphere here.
Aaron slid into the booth that Phoenix led them to and wrangled himself free of his coat. He leaned back into the seat comfortably, eliciting a squeak as he readjusted. "Sure smelled damn good in there, what d'you guys have on special today?" This was anything but business, but that would come eventually. He was still trying to get the conversation with his father concerning the Lab out of his head first.
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Posted: Sat May 07, 2016 12:46 pm
Almost as soon as they'd sat down, a young woman hurried up with a basket of hot bread. As it was still early and the restaurant wasn't even open yet, it was clearly the first batch and had just come out, as was evident from the steam rising from the small round loaves.
Phoenix nodded in thanks to the server as he plucked up one of the loaves himself. Every recipe down to the simplest of breads was either of his own creation or carried down through the family for any number of generations. Phoenix was constantly checking the quality of food made -- or at least that's what he claimed (with a wink and a smile) that he was doing to get a bite here and there. He wasn't ashamed to brag a bit over how hard he and his family worked to perfect the menu. And the food was good. Really good. Greek wasn't necessarily everyone's cup of tea, but for those who enjoyed it, Ambrosia provided what was arguably the best for miles.
"That would be the lamb souvlaki," he said in response, tearing off a strip of bread and bouncing it around in his mouth, burning his tongue slightly out of eagerness. "You hungry, thirsty? On the house for you," he added, smiling genuinely. Food had long since become Phoenix's way of making people comfortable. He was constantly offering free food to friends, and it was rare for him to show up for a visit somewhere without bringing something for his hosts to eat.
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Friendly Conversationalist
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Posted: Wed May 25, 2016 10:50 pm
Aaron was surprised how easily the talk of food persuaded him. To be honest, he had skipped breakfast that morning in a bid to get to the office on time after a later start than he had intended. Doubled with the workload his currently-absent father had so graciously left him and the stresses of the phone call he had just had with Clarence, his empty stomach rumbled in anticipating. He eyed the small loaves in the basket on the edge of the table, so picturesque. There was no question of the quality of food here; Aaron and Clarence had had it many times over the years during other meetings with the Argyris family. Phoenix had offered, and it had been so long since he had had lamb.
"That sounds great, actually." Aaron grinned and reached for one of the small loaves, breaking it in half between grateful fingers. It had been a long time since he had been in here, now that he was thinking about it. He took a bite and chewed thoughtfully, glancing around the empty restaurant. It had certainly been a while but the restaurant itself had not changed; they still always brought in a good amount of business, their orders to Holmes Produce always hefty. Their food was certainly nothing to scoff at, and the fresh bread tasted as good as it ever had. "This hits the spot, thanks man." He tipped one half of the loaf towards Phoenix in gratitude before he took another bite. "I've been meaning to bring Claire for a while, she loves Greek food." Now that he thought about that, as well, the two of them had not been out (without other family members tagging along, anyway) for a long while - perhaps a date was in order sometime. "But you know how it is, always hard to coordinate schedules, and -" Aaron paused as he flashed back to the phone call, and his words stumbled, but he was quick on recovery, masking it with a small laugh. "- well, y'know. Lots of stuff going on, things coming up." This was certainly not business chatter, but maybe with some food in his stomach, he might be able to stay more on track. That phone call was really bothering him.
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Posted: Fri May 27, 2016 11:56 am
A quick wave of Phoenix's hand alerted the server, who was chatting with one of the other girls. Rather than come over, she leaned back on her heels to give the boss a questioning look. Phoenix raised a finger and called out to her, "Ooone extra stuffed plate of the souvlaki for this guy, right here." He gave her a goofy grin, to which she threw up a thumb in confirmation before skipping off to the kitchen.
"Well, you two are welcome to come in any time." Phoenix tore a piece of the fluffy center out from the bread and nibbled on it contentedly.
At the mention of things coming up, his curiosity was piqued, and he saw an opening. "Nothing bad, I hope?" He inquired casually, keeping a neutral smile on his face as he munched on his bread. Even if he was wildly mistaken about the mention of the Lab, the question was still genuine. And with as early as it was with so little to do for the time being, he didn't mind the conversation being something other than professional. He had time to spare.
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Friendly Conversationalist
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Posted: Sat May 28, 2016 8:50 pm
A soft laugh departed from Aaron when Phoenix sent the waitress away, but the goofy good-naturedness of his host sharpened the doubt inside him. His interactions with Phoenix had been sparse in recent years, although amiable enough. However, spending so much time in his memories as of late brought to mind faces from the past that he had been less than kind to, including Phoenix's. He remembered how he and his friends had laughed at him behind his back (or in the case of Pete Donahue, to his face during gym class), making fun of his hair, his name, how he acted. Aaron had followed along for fear of ridicule, flinging a few insults as they occurred to him, but without the full heart behind it - he usually echoed what the others in his group had said.
And now, sitting across from him as he offered him lunch on the house and asked if everything was alright, all smiles, Aaron felt like a prize idiot. He held his smile but it was the slightest touch more subdued, and Phoenix's question flashed him back to the phone call once again. His parents' blatant disapproval of the Lab program was proving bothersome, but he did not know how to persuade them, as they seemed so dead set against it.
"Just a program Claire and I are looking into." For the first time in a long time, Aaron wanted to reach out to someone. But other than Claire and his relations, he was quickly realizing he did not have any friends. The thought was so terribly claustrophobic. Still, he did not consider himself more than a business acquaintance to Phoenix, much less one worthy of such close confidence as to divulge every detail about the Lab. 'One I've been a d**k to, on top of that,' he thought bitterly. So instead he went the roundabout route. "Adoption of sorts, they're based in Gambino." Once he got rolling in his vague path, he found it a little harder to stop, but something stopped him from uttering the Lab's name. Perhaps his family's disdain for the facility as a whole. "We've already been approved but we're waiting for things to go through."
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Posted: Sun May 29, 2016 10:33 pm
Whatever lingering guilt Aaron felt over what had happened when they were in school, Phoenix was completely unaware of it. Even if he had known what was going through his mind he would have laughed it off and told him just how little it really mattered. Of course he had no way of knowing just how deep rooted everything Aaron was going through was, but to Phoenix at least it had all been done and over with many years ago.
He did, however, have a pretty good idea what Aaron was talking about the more he said about his current situation. As soon as he mentioned adoption, Phoenix put down the rest of his bread and leaned forward, his elbows on the table and his chin in his hands. He batted his eyelashes at the other man, a sly smile crossing his face. He was very certain about it now.
"Apologies for being an eavesdropping, nosy b*****d," Phoenix started, his tone suggesting he was very much not sorry, because he was far too excited all of a sudden to feel sorry for accidentally overhearing the tiniest bit of information that lead him to this conclusion. "Would this program happen to be the Lab?"
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Friendly Conversationalist
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Posted: Mon May 30, 2016 6:44 pm
Aaron chewed on the bread, lost in thought as his gaze dropped to the tabletop when he was done speaking. He immediately felt a twinge of self-consciousness in how much he had spilled, however vaguely - it had been a truly long time since he had let his guard down around anyone outside of Claire and his family. Aaron was struck again by how few friends he had. Had he really walled himself off that much? So much of what he had repressed over the years was resurfacing at a rapid pace, in part due to his re-connection with his old high school friends, and in part to the Lab.
The Lab?
It took a moment for Phoenix's words to register, as well as to realize that they weren't coming from his own mind. There was a split second squint of confusion that was washed away quickly by an expression of surprise as he gaped at Phoenix, who watched him with chin resting in his palms. "Yeah," he replied dumbly, "Yeah it is." The confused squint returned. "Wait. You know about that Lab too?" It was hard to mask his tone of surprise - the world was seeming to get smaller and smaller. For all of his previous doubts, they were set to the side with his own abject curiosity, and he laughed a little in his relief on a common ground and leaned forward himself excitedly. "When did that happen?" He vaguely remembered the guardian and staff contact list that Claire had been given, perusing it when he had gone over the other paperwork, but he had not noticed the name 'Argyris' on there. He must be a recent addition.
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Posted: Mon May 30, 2016 9:46 pm
A sort of smug satisfaction washed over Phoenix at the confirmation. He'd been quite sure he was just projecting his own excitement when he first overheard Aaron, but that clearly wasn't the case at all. Now he definitely wasn't sorry for having overheard.
He joined in the laughing, removing his head from it's ridiculous placement. He rested his arms back on the table and relaxed to his previous state. "I overheard you on the phone back there." He jerked his head towards the kitchen and, beyond it, the back door. "Not much, mind you, but I thought I heard you mention it and I was curious."
Phoenix's grin was ear to ear. "Zoe pushed me into applying. It's kind of a long story. But we've been approved as well." He thrust out a hand to shake Aaron's. "Hey, congratulations, man!" In his excitement he'd forgotten to congratulate the other man on being approved before jumping into his own questions.
At that precise moment the server returned, carrying with her a plate piled high with seasoned lamb, vegetables and pita bread. She gave Aaron a warm smile as she placed the plate in front of him, warning him of the temperature and asking what he'd like to drink with it.
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Friendly Conversationalist
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Posted: Thu Jun 02, 2016 11:56 pm
Aaron's mood dropped just a touch at the mention of the previous phone call by way of a tiny jolt to the heart, but he did not show it through his enthusiastic smile. This was the first time he had actually connected with somebody on his own about the Lab program, rather than through an organized event or through his wife. Despite whatever wrong foot they had gotten off on in the past, it felt nice to have this nervous thing in common. However, Phoenix was a little different than he was: he was already a father and likely had more of an idea of what to expect from this program than Aaron did himself. The thought of being a dad only served to remind him how ill-suited he was for it, especially with his past shouting as loudly as it had been lately. So for the time being, he relied on what he was good at - shoving those feelings into the abyss to be dealt with at a much later time. His grin widened.
"Congratulations to you too, dude, that's great" he answered, all cheer, and his eye fell on the steaming plate before him that had gone neglected in the excitement of the announcement. "Aw s**t, sorry - got distracted, don't wanna let this go to waste." As though to urge him on, his stomach nervously grumbled, and he sheepishly picked up the fork and dug in. As was expected, the food was superb - it always was, but it had been a few years since he had last eaten at Ambrosia. He chewed the lamb thoughtfully before swallowing. "The Yelp reviews never lie," he added in after a moment with a laugh. If he were honest, this was the most he had felt at ease with Phoenix. Had the Lab connection really eased that much anxiety or had a mixure of shame over his past behavior and work expectations created such an undercurrent of unpleasantness? He was really not sure.
Aaron took another bite, enjoying the quietness of the restaurant before its doors opened. He could hear the staff in the kitchen, slightly muffled behind the doors, going about their tasks. It was such a nice atmosphere here that he wondered why he ever felt uncomfortable - had it really only been him this whole time? He swallowed, wiping his face, and leaned forward a touch to grin, once again, at Phoenix. "What Essence did they give you guys?" The next question on his mind was the heavier of the two, and he paused, hesitant to give it at first. Some of his levity vanished as he remembered how much Claire struggled with the very same. "Did you settle on a soul yet?"
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Posted: Sat Jun 04, 2016 3:33 pm
Phoenix watched with great satisfaction while Aaron dug into the food. While his duties as owner had pushed him out of the kitchen and into the office on a more regular basis, he still made sure he was back there enough and many of the recipes had been tweaked by the man over the years, even if they originated from others in his family. It always satisfied him immensely to see someone thoroughly enjoying Ambrosia's food, whether he'd helped prepare the specific dish or not.
While Aaron ate, Phoenix took a moment to appreciate how much the both of them had changed, if this was where they were now. He didn't know much about Aaron's personal life, but with him taking over Holmes Produce and being thrust into parenthood, even from an outsider's perspective Phoenix could say that was a huge difference from the boy he'd known in school. And Phoenix had certainly gone through his fair share of change. He almost couldn't believe there was a time when all he could think about was goofing off and chasing girls.
"Perpetual Sandstorm," Phoenix said in response to the first question. "God, you should see it." Was it even possible for his grin to get any wider at this point? With the exception of the Raevans he'd had the pleasure of meeting so far, he couldn't rightly say he'd ever seen anything quite so magical.
At the second question his smile wavered a bit. "We haven't decided on anything yet, nah." They'd only just been given the news, but it was a matter he was dealing with very delicately. Even Zoe understood that it wasn't a light matter, and while they had discussed it some, nothing had been settled on between the two of them.
As the server returned with a drink for Aaron, Phoenix leaned forward again with a look of great interest on his face, eager to find out more. "What about you though?"
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Friendly Conversationalist
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Posted: Sun Jun 12, 2016 3:48 pm
"Perpetual Sandstorm," Aaron echoed, eyes squinting into the back of the restaurant as he tried to imagine it. The only Essence he had ever seen himself was the one gifted to his wife, which was Bitter Honey. And while he knew the basic definition of what the Fel Essences were, he could not really imagine anything other than the tiny vial of amber liquid that had sat in the silver suitcase in their bedroom for months on end. He tried, instead, to shift the memory to one more aligned with what Phoenix had described, and all he could really think about were those mini-tornadoes he had made in soda bottles in junior high science classes. Probably not quite but he nodded all the same. "Yeah, I bet it's pretty cool."
Aaron took the silence in stride as Phoenix considered the heavier part of the question, getting in a few more bites. The waitress was quick to deliver a drink and Aaron took up the water gratefully. Phoenix's shift in expression was not lost on him, but he could not say he was in the same position, as Claire had been the one who had dealt with the trauma of the soul capture. He saw how it had affected her, given the tears she had shed some time after her return and the haunted look in her face as she relived the leshy's death in very brief detail. He could tell Phoenix in some capacity but it would only be the barest bits that Claire had told him - he did not understand the brunt of what she went through. A ripple of anger flashed through him as he remembered his father and mother's implorement to just "quit" the experiment. There was no going back now, not after everything his wife had done, and he would not dishonor all her hard work for something she truly wanted, despite his own uneasiness at the thought of parenthood. He swallowed the quiet bites he had been chewing and looked down at the plate when Phoenix dished his own question back to him.
"We had Bitter Honey for our Essence," he said, pausing for another drink, and he grinned. "It's.. what you'd expect. Looked just like every day, regular honey in a little vial but I bet the person who found it got a bad surprise." He chuckled, fingers laced as he leaned a little on the table. "Claire is the one who kickstarted this whole thing, and she ended up doing the capture." He paused, his jovial mood failing him. "I'm sure you've gotten some kind of head's up about it but it's not going to be easy. Claire found a leshy when she went on vacation to visit an old friend of hers and my mother-in-law's - kind of like a giant forest guardian, spirit, what have you." One hand rose up and he rested his chin in it, eyes on the wall for a moment. "She still hasn't told me the full story, but it was.. it was very hard on her."
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