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Prompt 9: Small custom shops and stalls always seem to open up this time of year, and Destiny City has no shortage this year. Several seasonal themed shops have already received raving reviews, and among them is a small cafe. Outside it looks like a cute vintage cafe, but inside, the shop has been decorated so convincingly that you feel like you've just stepped into a snowy northern forest. They have an array of delicious, cold drinks, and the trip would be worthwhile for that alone--except, shortly after the first sip, anyone who has ingested the drink will find that they sneeze a flurry of tiny snowflakes. The more drinks consumed, the longer you will find you are sneezing little snowflakes. It feels like there is a tickle up your nose for an hour or longer, depending on player choice; drinking more can also lead to longer effects. There are no negative impacts--just the need to sneeze often, and a little burst of cold snowflakes along with each one. Surprisingly, the shop still doesn't have any bad reviews.
Orias was bored. He'd gone along Christmas shopping with Reggie, to "get out of the house" as it were, but his view of the holidays and his human's didn't exactly mesh. See Orias was a huge fan of capitalism and consumerism, but it was hard for him to support anything that was associated with the holly jolly fat boy object of his ire. So whereas Reggie was often quite pleased to be out in the festive hustle and bustle, Orias had a scowl on his face as he rode draped around Reggie's neck like a living boa.
At the suggestion that maybe he go find something he did enjoy as he was carted through an outdoor market, the Mauvian hastily agreed and dropped off to wander about on his own. When what to his wandering eyes should appear but a pop-up cafe and people congregating, with beer! Orias's eyes went round with delight, perhaps this holiday shopping wasn't so bad after all.
Trotting through the throng of legs and through the front door, the Maine Coon was sure he'd been teleported into some wintry alpine forest. Trees dominated the interior, complete with snowfall and drifts on the floor. Wet fur had better be worth this brew, but the crowds seemed to indicate it would be. Deciding it would be in the spirit of the season to actually pay for something, Orias lifted a few coins from a pouch and thunked them on the bartop before calmly pulling down an unattended drink. Its previous owner chattered away to some pretty girl, blissfully oblivious to his loss.
The feline plunderer found a quiet spot in some frosty underbrush and sampled his legitimately-obtained holiday brew. Not bad, it definitely tasted like those microbrews that hipsters were always on about. Wasn't his favorite to be sure. What was all the fuss abou-
ACHOO!
Unbidden, a monstrous sneeze exploded from the Mauvian, accompanied by a small flurry of snow.
"Oh you've gotta be kid-"
His next sneeze was decidedly less composed, more of a snorting gurgle followed by pathetic snowflakes drifting lazily through the air. The next one he tried to stifle, only to lightly frost his foreleg in snot and rime.
"Damn hippies, I should've known. Who messes with beer this way? How is this possibly," a sneeze, "fun?!"
Rather than dumping the rest of that liquid trash into the snow where it belonged, Orias decided to get into the spirit of the season and giving. He trotted as best he could back to the counter, sneezing snow flurries along the way, and replaced the drink where he'd found it... just minus a kitty swallow. He wouldn't want the original owner to miss out on all this fun.
It didn't take long to find Regula, the man had hardly moved from where Orias had left him. Figured. Anything to do with Christmas and the burly man was all over it. Taking a flying leap at the human, the Mauvian dug his claws into Reggie's coat and ascended back to his original perch. As a gift for the suggestion that he go find something he'd like out in the market, Orias's next snowy sneeze went right into Reggie's hair at the back of his head. Merry Christmas.
