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"Annette, is something burning?"

Not exactly the sorts of words you want to hear in a bakery, but Audley was shouting them nonetheless as a curious smell issued from the back room of the bakery. The strawberry-blond was running back and forth frantically - as usual on the days when Laurence wasn't required to show up - and had forgotten to check the ovens in all the small talk he had been making. But now with the customers gone and the shop temporarily empty the smell which he had been so adept at ignoring had reached him.

While her guardian ran around like a madman (which was an accurate word to describe him even when he wasn't running around) Annette peered at him curiously from the front of the store, where she had been wiping off a table. She said nothing, her expression bewildered as if the question hadn't quite registered with her. Oh, maybe something was...

Thankfully his panic was superfluous, for upon wrenching open the door Audley found the tiny cakes to be just fine. He'd thought it didn't seem likely they'd be burning after only twenty minutes. He wandered back out with a pondering expression and leaned upon the counter next to the register, watching pedestrians doing their pedestrian things and bums bumming and birds birding and all other creatures doing their daily existing.

"Very odd," he remarked in a quiet and curious voice with Annette's full attention, "I was sure I smelled something burning!"

"I keep a close watch on this heart of mine. I keep my eyes wide open all the time. I keep the ends out for the tie that binds. Because you're mine I walk the...." The soft singing had abruptly come to a halt as the woman ralized that she wasn't exactly where she thought she was.

Blue, wide eyes gazed around in a confused, but then embarrased, look at the three people who occupied the shop."Oops...Sorry, must've walked into the wrong store..." her words were mumbled, but definitely audible as she stood in the doorway, papers in one hand, a bag in the other, and the door propped open with her hip.

Afternoon rush, perhaps? With class canceled, Adam had decided to take a walk, and his meandering path had led him to Moon Cakes bakery. Maybe it would have been better to stay on campus and study, but it was one of those days. The air tasted sweet and the streets seemed to sparkly.

He was smiling as he entered, a crafted expression, rarely gone from his face. Noticing the two women already inside, he moved slightly away, not wanting to look impatient, and knowing that clustering closely might turn the small group into a line. He was content just to stand anyway.

Scanning the place, he nodded, seemingly at nothing. The old fashioned feel was warm and welcoming, and he only wished that his busy schedule would allow for another visit.

Maybe he'd have a chance to bring Drake, some day soon.

Erin smiled at the other man that entered, slightly embarrassed that she couldn't make up her mind and not wanting to start a line, she backed off and went toward one of the coushiony chairs. An avid cafe goer herself, she just wanted to take in the surroundings of the bakery before doing anything.

The other two people that had entered seemed caught up in their own world. Fascinated by this, she simply watched the other two, studying them. Their mannerisms, their physique, everything. However, she was curteous enough to look away if they were to glance in her direction so they wouldn't feel strange. She did this because she was an artist, or at least liked to consider herself such, and often studied people for inspiration.

As he was already smiling, Adam couldn't exactly return the other woman's smile. But he nodded to the two women, the gesture polite but obviously habitual, and moved forward to take the space that one of them had left for him. And with the other suddenly deciding to sit down, well, why not approach the counter?

Shrugging his heavy yellow backpack into a more comfortable position, he examined the displayed sweets, considering the merits of a danish as compared to a scone, and finding that he wasn't sure what he was in the mood for after all. He'd just wanted to walk.

"Any recommendations?" Adam spoke in shades of gold, a low soft voice full of warmth. The smile grew, just a hint, and if it was rehearsed, that didn't mean it wasn't sincere.

Alright, no response. Well, Adam hadn't exactly expected the women to leap forward with an anwer, even if he'd hoped for a little casual conversation. It would have been nice to have someone to chat with over tea. He turned his attention back to the counter, and the energetic man behind it.

"A scone, please." He requested, after a moment more of hesitation. It was something to order at least, and he just wanted to sit down at this point. It was a long walk back to campus, and he still had one more class before the day could be declared over.

"No. No no no. No.. ye Gods no. What are you giving me to work with here?"

Three figures walked brisquely down the street, surveying the surrounding buildings critically. Two men flanked one woman, who was much shorter and less imposing than them. Yet somehow, if watched long enough, it seemed as though the woman was leading them by some invisible leash, tugging every so often to get them moving.

The man on the left had a ledger, and was scribbling intently into it, looking up only when the woman uttered another response. The man on the right had a camera, taking pictures here and there. Both were dressed in gray business suits, with a slightly haggard look to them. They had likely been carted around town quite a bit.

The woman stopped, and placed one hand on each of the men beside her to stop them in their tracks. She was looking up at a large, windowless building, whose wall they faced was painted white and reflected the sun back at her victoriously. She winced visibly and closed her eyes, but she was smiling.

It wasn't a friendly smile. It reminded the man on the right of something, but he couldn't place it. His name was Carl, not that it really mattered.. and he snapped his fingers as it suddenly hit him. That was a shark's smile.

Right before it bit your leg off.

"This is it, boys. This is where the mural's going." She murmured quietly, shielding her sensitive eyes from the sun.

Hailing from the downtown SoHo District of New York, Alania had been commissioned to this small town to do an artistic mural that would raise the property value of the surrounding county. She had little hope that there would be a canvas to suit her needs, or her brazen ideas, but this spot gave her hope. Additionally, she could quelch the bright sun as it echoed off the white paint of the building.

It was like a twofer! She couldn't say no.

"Mm, but the other side.." The mural she had envisioned for this quaint town was two part, and each part reflected off the other. Which meant..

She swiveled around on her heel to look at the area behind her. There was a small bakery in the way of her vision. It looked new, and there were only three barely interested customers inside.

"Easy enough."

She dropped her hands and the men stumbled as they attempted to follow her into the bakery. The three headed straight for the counter, but both men hung back a few steps, letting Alania address the issue herself.

"Hello." She chimed out, smiling sweetly at Audley from the counter. "I would like to buy your shop."

Did she say.. buy from your shop?

No.. no she definitely said buy your shop.

Uh oh.

Audley was quick to retrieve the scone - after asking about the desired flavor, since he was offering several varieties, and smile in a friendly manner. Something about the boy struck him as odd. His severely repressed yet still undeniable tendency to psycho-analyze every customer who walked into the shop had him wondering if perhaps the boy had some painful secret. Well, of course he does, said his inner psychiatristrational mind. Who doesn't? But he wouldn't say anything, since one didn't simply walk up to people and ask "do you have any mental or emotional issues you would perhaps like to express?"

"Thank you very much!" he said with a crooked smile as he handed the bagged sweet to Adam and glanced out the shop's large, panoramic windows. There outside was a woman and two men, and they were headed for the shop. How nice, more customers.

... customers for real estate, actually, not sweets. Audley could not contain his surprise, which leaked into his expression and changed his smile to look of confusion. He shifted some, one eyebrow raised at the curious woman. Annette watched quietly from where she had a hold on Audley's shirt, her expression grave. He caught sight of it from the corner of his eye and gave her a reassuring pat on the head.

"Ah, miss, I am quite..." he searched for the correct word, although it was not a very hard one to find. "Quite stunned by the proposition, but I fear the bakery is not up for sale. Might I inquire as to why you would wish to make such a purchase?" he wondered as politely as he could, murmuring in his mind I only just acquired it myself, after all.