Crossing Paths

Solo or RP Format
Counts as 5 RP growth Points
Solo word minimum is 750, RP post minimum is 7

Tendaji may not be bustling like the cities of ages past, but that doesn't mean someone can live their life without encountering someone else who is a bit...different. What is the story of you meeting a person who is going in the opposite direction. Maybe they are traveling and you meet in a cross roads, or maybe they are settling down to start a family while you're getting ready to leave. Or possibly it's someone with such a different personality it's like oil and water. This is your chance to tell us that story and what happens when you cross paths.

[ This prompt is all about crossing paths - briefly and of characters who wouldn't normally find themselves interacting with each other. Explore what happens when two people who are going in opposite directions (figuratively or literally) find themselves briefly encountering one another. We would like to see strangers meet on this one, so take some time to bring your characters out of their comfort zones. ]


The stone walls were wide and bare of any decorations. The slightest sound echoed around the room, from the soft breathing of the lone inhabitant to the scratches of the coal on parchment. A heavy desk sat on one end of the room, and there sat an older woman with deep brown hair pulled back in a severe bun. She was sitting primly upright with her eyes aimed down on the paper she was writing on.

It was almost intimidating!

Kuno strolled in with confidence and a grin, not about to be deterred by some lady who needed a drink. Dang, his steps sure did echo in there. He took in a breath and pulled out the package that he’d been carrying tucked under his arm. “Hey there! I’ve got a delivery here from-”

The woman’s green eyes flashed up coldly, and she raised a finger to her lips. “Shhh,” she hissed sharply. Her eyes dropped back to the parchment and she resumed her work.

Kuno blinked with surprise. Well, that was an interesting reception. He shook off the confusion and smiled again. “Uh, ma’am, this will only take a moment. I just need-”

The woman’s eyes snapped up again. She repeated her previous gesture with much more emphasis in her hissed order. “I. Am. Busy. You can wait.” The voice was just as sharp as the woman speaking! Her eyes lingered firmly before they shifted to lower back down.

Kuno pressed his lips together tightly. He could appreciate being irked at having one’s concentration broken, but she was just being rude!

Fine! He would out-nice her!

The scratching of the coal was the only sound for a few seconds, and then for a minute, and then for two minutes, and then five minutes… Kuno looked around and sat on one of the two chairs provided in the room and winced at the absurdly loud squeak it gave. He didn’t even have time to look up before he heard that harsh shushing once more. Was she trying to order a chair to be quiet?!

A wicked grin widened his mouth, and it took effort to get it under control. If being nice and waiting wouldn’t work… He cleared his throat as softly as he could, and then shifted in the chair until it squeaked out. He could feel the eyes on him and he raised his hand apologetically. The scratching of the pencil resumed.

A few seconds later, he raised a leg to cross it over his knee. The chair let out another pained squeak. He could see the woman tense up at the edge of his vision as she shushed him again. Wow, this lady was something else. He raised his hand again in apology and went still.

Another minute passed with only the sounds of the pencil in the air. Kuno stretched his legs until the chair let out a strained squawk.

This time, he turned his eyes to meet the woman’s gaze. Now he deliberately shifted to squeak the chair.

The woman’s eyes widened at the challenge. Her knuckles went pale as she gripped the coal pencil to restrain herself. With a tiny snort, she put as much focus as she could into her writing. Her cheek was twitching when she reached over for a fresh piece of paper and roughly scraped the coal across its surface.

Gods, that sound was grating! Kuno rocked the chair harder until he had to plug his ears against the noise.

It would have been a sight to see; the muscle bound man rocked the chair he sat in to raise a ruckus of high squeaks while the thin woman hunched over her desk filling page after page with mindless scribbles.

“What in God’s name is going on here?” a gruff voice demanded.

Kuno jumped to his feet with heat on his cheeks as he looked at his boss. “Oh, hey, uh, just… waiting for the nice lady there ta get done an’ drop off this delivery.”

The woman was even more flustered and smoothed her hands over her hair quickly. “Well, I am ready for you now,” she huffed. “Hurry up. I do not have all day.”

Kuno snarled through a smile and dropped the package onto the desk. “Sign here,” he requested through gritted teeth as he pushed a document with the package. He had to scramble to catch the paper as it fluttered off the desk with clearly no effort made to actually hand it to him.

Once the door was shut, Kuno winced at the rough smack to the back of his head.

“Don’t be such a hot-head,” the boss growled. “We don’t have time for that kind of foolishness. We’ve got a reputation to keep.”

Kuno nodded and shrugged. Of all the people for him to cross paths with, she was surely the most irritating one! “Sorry, boss.”

(( Word count: 805 ))