zzz

paris picture post // day two, july 12th 2015

That was quite an assortment of food. Blake almost commented on it, but stopped himself, offering a slight nod instead. “I apologize again,” he responded, staring down into their blue eyes. Perhaps a bit awkwardly, he made no move to actually move. 

Normally, that would have been that. He would’ve checked to make sure he had caused no damages and then been on his way, but this stranger exuded something that was slightly appealing. It went beyond the state of their physical makeup, it was almost….radiant. Blake felt the familiar urge to cut into something soft and pliable. “Excuse me,” he started, breaking what was about to become an awkward silence. “Are those any good?” He jerked his chin to indicate their slightly crushed bag of chips. It was a poor excuse to extend their brief meeting, but the harpy would take it. 

Theo shook his head, displacing dark curls. “Really, it’s fine. Just enough of my own fault, I wasn’t looking.” He looked at the stranger’s cart, confused a bit by the collection of glass bottles. Didn’t people come to these places to buy… Sustenance? Those powders didn't look like they'd be filling at all. He flicked his gaze between the man and the strange jars, trying to keep the concern off his face.

Blake made his way down the spice aisle with long strides, eying the rows of seasonings with interest. He was running low on black pepper and onion powder at the shop, and a restock was long overdue. Making it to the weekend had been quite the stretch, but now that he had the time to shop he made sure to take care of it first thing Saturday morning. Hardly a soul was at the small grocery store this early, and he preferred it that way. It was easier to shop in relative solitude.

The butcher enjoyed a considerable discount given that he provided Kino’s with a decent amount of pre-cut meat from a reputable source, so he selected several bottles of each spice he needed and added them to his basket. While that satisfied his immediate needs, he still lingered in front of the row of seasonings, expression thoughtful. He picked up a bottle of tumeric and considered a bag of dried sage, imagining how a pork rub would taste if he interchanged some ingredients.

The harpy deliberated the seemingly endless possibilities for quite some time before a passing shopper made him snap out of it. Alarmed, he looked around the now bustling store, teeming with other early birds determined to tackle shopping early on. Deciding to take his leave, Blake quickly returned the few bottles to the shelves and left the aisle. The butcher was so intent on leaving as quicky as possible, he didnt notice the man that stepped around the aisle corner until they bumped into each other

“Excuse me,” Blake immediately apologized, releasing his hold on the cart handle to see if the stranger was alright. “I didn’t see you there. Are you okay?”

Sometimes, he forgot that humans slept. He understood the act, and partook in it quite often, to pass time, but he forgot that the inhabitants of the earthly plane usually did so on a schedule. His lack of need for rest usually just meant he spent nights doing whatever it is he did, mostly sitting in big blanket forts at home with his wings out and playing video games. 

When Theo suddenly ran out of Doritos at 5:30 in the morning, he was of course a bit peeved. Even more so when he remembered that the grocery store didn’t even open until 6. He got up and got dressed anyway, wings in and big hoodie on, figuring it’d take him a bit just to walk there, and he could play Love Live or something until the store opened its doors.

As it turned out, he actually got there a bit late, meandering a bit too slowly through the morning rain. Once inside, he beelined for the desired chips, and then wandered a bit more, picking up his customary random items to eat. Today’s selection seemed to include green tea mochi balls, brownie mix, and an unknown third. He turned a corner to look for something else to try out and inevitably dislike, and turned straight into another being. Father damn it.

For a few silent minutes, Stevie nursed her tea, but she couldn’t properly enjoy it. The gnawing feeling in the back of her mind that she recognised her table-mate was ruining her attempts at clearing her mind with a few hours out of the apartment. Where had she seen him before? Glancing up from her cup for the umpteenth time, she tried to place his face - not at the festival, or at the Pack… Oh! Oh, it was at the pet centre! 

Aaand she’d said that aloud. Quite eagerly, in fact. God, now she’d look even odder than usual. Face burning and fists clenched in her lap, she offered up a meek, “S-sorry…” and cringed as she felt the warm mirth of the demon. In response to her late night shenanigans, it had started staying awake more throughout the day just to needle at her. Really, her tea breaks at the Kahi were her only respite from hissed conversations with ‘herself’ at home - and now she’d made that weird as well.

The angel was hoping that this girl would just sit quietly and drink her tea and then  leave, but hopes don’t always pan out too well. He was trying to catch a bug when she suddenly blurted out his place of employment and he missed. His finger slipped early and the telltale buzz of the pixel creature flying off rang through his ears. Father damn it, that was worth, like, ten thousand bells... He frowned as he looked up, minor annoyance clear in the expression.