; joie }

Vartouhi blinked at the other, at first a bit confused as to why the stranger was coming near. As they mentioned her hair, she looked down, allowing it to fall over her shoulders and slightly in front of her face. She still got nervous over others recognizing her from the news from last year, though only one person ever had. Vartouhi disguised the action by leaning forward into a shallow bow. “Ah, thank you.” She carefully lifted back into proper posture, tentatively meeting the other’s gaze. “Yours is lovely, as well. And so long, too.” The princess forgot herself, sighing wistfully. “I remember when mine was that long. People used to tell me it resembled a waterfall of rose petals. But it got damaged and I was forced to cut it.” Running her fingers through the locks, she pouted slightly. “This is as much as I’ve managed to grow back, over the course of a year.”

Grey feels a burst of pride as their own hair is complimented in return, and they pull the long strands over their shoulder, fingers gently running through it. Their hair is one of the things about their appearance that Grey takes extra care of, and within the past year, it’s grown from their mid back to their lower back, the longest strands almost touching their hips. “Thank you- ah, I’m so sorry to hear that. I’d be devastated if I had to cut my hair. It’s something I’m proud of.” They tilt their head, looking over at the other’s hair once again, smile etched into their lips. “Your hair still looks like a cascade of rose petals, even at this length. Mine gets compared to cotton candy and bubblegum more often than not. But anyway, just keep caring for it and getting it trimmed regularly! It’ll grow back in no time.”

Queen, rather than being startled while walking by, actually felt rather touched by the action. She stopped and took a look at the person in front of her and then at the baby, with a wide grin, leaning down to take a closer look at her little face. “Such a cutie. I’m loving the energy! What’s her name?”

Grey couldn’t help grinning at the friendly reaction-a lot of people don’t take so kindly to children, especially lively ones, like the one in Grey’s arms-and they hoist the child up a bit higher, a pleased hum leaving their lips. “This little troublemaker here is Haneul. The one in the stroller,” they cock their head, pulling the stroller a bit closer even though it was already pressed against their knees, “is Jineul. Fraternal twins.”

The smell of freshly baked pastries and goods of all sorts had been more than enough to draw the curious angel inside the shop, though now as he stood at the counter facing the interesting stranger who’d completely outed him in less than five seconds had him wishing he were anywhere else. “I…what?” He’s startled beyond measure and quickly looks around, planting a nervous smile across his cheeks as he drops his voice to a whisper. “Why would you say such a thing?”

“Well, because I can sense it, of course,” Grey replies, simply, shrugging their shoulders. “Don’t worry, just an observation, I don’t mean any harm. I’m not human, either.” Another shrug, although this one with a bit of faux nonchalance- Grey was dying with curiosity about this stranger, but they weren’t going to frighten them with a barrage of questions when they were so clearly taken aback by Grey’s words. “Anyhow, what can I do for you today?”

Hangil chuckled softly as they spoke, bowing his head just a bit he pushed his glasses a bit further up his nose. “Oh no don’t worry about it. Just ducking out of the weather and.. Getting something to share with a friend.” He grinned. Hangil was never one for hiding himself much to the amusement of his few fans. “Anything in particular you suggest?” He smiled brightly at them, looking over the menu.

Grey has the feeling that this person is someone famous- or somewhat famous, but they can’t pinpoint just exactly who he is, in spite of the familiarity of his appearance. They’re pretty sure they’ve seen him on tv or something. “Ah, yeah. It’s cold and rainy today,” they hum, sparing a glance at the shop windows. “Anyway, my best seller has always been the red velvet cupcakes, but I also recommend the tiramisu. It’s my personal favorite. And maybe coffee or tea, to warm up a bit?”

Grey immediately held their hands up defensively, in spite of the fact that there’s an obvious smile spread across their lips. They’d been expecting a slightly hostile reaction, so they weren’t surprised in the least. Every time they sense another supernatural being and confront them, the reaction is always either surprised admission or immediate hostility. “It’s alright, there’s no one here to overhear. I’m just curious, since Seoul seems to be crawling with extra supernatural activity, is all. I’m not trying to get you in trouble.”

“Mm, I’m doing well. A lot of things have changed,” they laugh softly, tucking a strand of their hair behind their ear. “I’m surprised you recognized me.”

“Oh- well, that’s interesting then. I’ve never seen a shirt like that before,” Grey hums softly, continuing to inspect the garment from afar.

“Maybe I am, maybe not,” is Grey’s immediate reply, followed by a short laugh. Beings as themselves used to be few and far between, but they’ve been bumping into them more and more as of late. “I’m joking, of course. I am not. I can’t tell what you are, though.”

Her first thought had been to drop by the nearest Starbucks to get her caffeine fix before a morning class (8AM, of all times), but that hadn’t worked out too well since it seemed like half the cohort had thought the same too and the queue had been insane. Not wanting to appear for class late (yet again), she drops by one of the quieter bakery that she had passed by numerous times but never stopped to enter– that is, until that day. Hearing the comment from the barista behind the counter as soon as she steps in earns a quick laugh from her. Even they could tell she was exhausted. “I think I’ll pass on the muffin. Give me your strongest cup of coffee though. I might need quite a bit to get me through the day.”

“Strongest? Alright, you got it. A double shot of espresso minus the muffin coming up,” Grey hums, turning toward the espresso machine. It took a moment to start up, since the girl at the counter is technically the first customer of the day. Grey turns to her again once they’ve got the espresso brewing, a smile on their face once again. They take notice of the books she’s carrying, and immediately curious, they ask, “Hey, are you a student? At the university nearby?”