❀。JANE DOE ₊

@irezeout

Spartacus's eyes couldn't register everything right around him, the bright lights, the strange fake snow coming from the ceiling like the gods decided it was funny to mock winter. He barely had time to ask what a "mall" even was before he was tugged by the hand for this event called a scavenger hunt.

He blinked once, twice, dragged forward through the crowd as she declared him keen. "Keen?", Spartacus was left blinking "I do not know how you saw that woman, i barely have time to register what's going around me at the time."

there's no specific location as to where she's taking him, but somewhere amidst the decently-sized crowds and near the middle of the stores, she figures that'll be a good place to start their search. once deep in the mall enough, reze will finally let go of his hand. but she doesn't leave his side, leaning in close with a cheeky grin.

"HEY! I couldn't even eat that."

He isn't too annoyed, just gives a huff, his mouth curling into a grin as he stoops to pick that berry, and a few more, up.

"I uh... Well, this place is called Aevum Isles, but I don't know where on the world it is. Heck, it could even be a whole world of itself!" The angel pauses for a moment, the cogs in his brain slowly turning and then it hits. Wait, this may not be something a new person would want to hear. Oh, oops, uh-

"But, it's pretty peaceful around here for the most part! Oh, and the houses are nice too! I live over at Eterna Village, by the grassy area. It also leads to Aether Reserve, which is one of my favorite places here. But, Seaside Province is cool, too! You can really feel the sea breeze there!" Pit says while he points over to the directions of what places he was talking about were located at.

but ... someone like her, huh. what does that mean now, someone like her ? just a young countryside mouse, far away from the scary city where soldiers or bounty hunters or control are. no bombs, no hybrid form, nothing -- just humanity. she can't remember what that feels like, anymore; it almost feels dangerously ... freeing.

she turns to him, only briefly acknowledging the locations he lists. instead, her expression forces a smile on her face. it's a bit jarring from her earlier personalities, switching so abruptly it could cause whiplash.

「𝔟𝔞𝔫𝔤 𝔟𝔞𝔫𝔤!」- Vash was making his way down the street and towards his place after a day in the fields. He rubbed a hand against the base of his neck and then massaged the small of his back. It was getting to be that time of year again - that time where all of the small aches he felt daily grew into something he couldn't quite ignore as easily as he wished. The cold really didn't do him too many favors...

But when someone called out to him, he raised his head slightly and cast his eyes around for a moment before catching the girl just ahead. For a moment he only blinked.

Someone new?

He smiled broadly and raised a hand. "Oh! Hello! Vash, nice ta meet ya! You must be new, huh? You live in Seaside, too?"

she rubs the side of her neck, marveling at the oddness of her lack of pin; she doesn't think miracles exist, but would it be hopeless of her to want to live even in a daydream ?

"I don't even know. We might even be dead as far as I know. Or in the Matrix. Nobody really knows if we're inside of any Nation like that."

" ehhh, is that so ? " well, in her case, she certainly knows of her untimely end. she would have suspected that her next awakening would have been under makima's control, though she won't complain about being elsewhere. sucks for this guy, though !

❄️— The temporal gardens weren't really a place that he hung around, but even he could appreciate the nature there and the beauty of it.

He had actually taken a break from training to take a walk... A simple activity that he had not engaged in, in quite some time. Really, he still didn't know what to do with himself outside of training. Somehow he had gotten a vague job as a floating bouncer in Rosewood and... he actually found that fun.

However as he was wandering the temporal gardens, Akaza then leaped back as something popped out in front of him. He was ready to fight but... it was just some kid...

...Huh?

Akaza stared at the girl. He looked at the flower ring in her hands.

" pffff ... "

a muffled snicker at first, it does not take long for reze to start full laughing. tears threaten to prick at her eyes. but they thankfully do not fall, should they affect the man's pride. how could a being like this -- perhaps devil in nature, given the familiar yellow eyes and tattoos across his body -- be taken aback like so ? it does not seem like he knows of her true identity; for if he does, she doubts he would speak to her at all. but similarly, she quite frankly has no idea which devil this could possibly be. she doesn't recall knowing any devil with an appearance like this.

" do you see anyone else around ? " she huffs to calm her breathing; her spare hand raises and wipes at the corners of her eyes. even so, she still holds out the flowers expectantly. she glances at them before looking at the male again. " if you don't take it, i'll be sad ... ! "

He thought to say hi when he noticed her, assuming she was new and probably confused about this place. But, her question halted his words, froze him in place as he stared at her with bewilderment and confusion. The more he tries to piece his words together, the more he starts to notice.. small things. The girl's eyes looked like she was somewhere else, yet staring right at him like a caught deer. The tense shoulders..

... Is she scared of him? Why?

"Uh.. No, I'm an angel." He says, letting out a quiet laugh to shake off his initial shock. "I don't know who you're talking about, but I serve the Goddess of Light and Protector of all that is good! Palutena! Or well, kinda cause of me ending up here but, still on the job!" Hopefully, this girl will feel better now! Maybe, it's just her first time seeing an angel? Or maybe she's just cautious of celestial beings. Who knows, maybe alot of celestial beings are evil in her world?

         𝐑𝐀𝐍𝐃  𝐅𝐋𝐎𝐔𝐑𝐈𝐒𝐇𝐄𝐃  𝐀  𝐁𝐎𝐖  towards  the  crowd  as  it  waxed  and  waned  around  him  .  the  gleam  of  coin  -  they  called  them  keys  of  all  things  ,  here  -  flashed  in  the  air  as  they  landed  in  his  flute's  suitcase  —  or  .  .  .  NEAR  ENOUGH  ,  in  some  cases  .  between  songs  ,  rand  stepped  from  his  perch  and  stooped  to  collect  the  dropped  coin  ,  knowing  well  —  TOO  WELL  NOW  —  that  each  and  every  bit  of  it  could  be  the  difference  between  a  full  belly  or  a  night  numb  from  stomach  pangs  .  or  ,  at  least  ,  it  had  been  .  those  long  days  spent  barely  scraping  by  with  mat  seemed  so  long  ago  ,  now  .  another  lifetime  .           still  .  .  .  the  skills  he  had  learned  from  thom  merrilin  were  certainly  useful  .

            one  person  stepped  forward  ,  and  it  was  the  ROSE  that  caught  his  eye  first  .  then  ,  the  girl  who  had  given  it  .  rand  was  unable  to  help  himself  but  to  widen  his  eyes  at  the  sight  of  her  .  Light  !  her  hair  was  PURPLE  !  he  had  seen  plenty  of  men  and  women  with  unnatural  colors  of  hair  before  ,  true  ,  but  it  was  never  any  less  JARRING  .  coughing  ,  rand  schooled  his  features  quickly  .  it  was  the  sound  of  her  that  caught  him  next  .  she  spoke  with  a  foreign  accent  —  and  not  an  aerconi  one  .  A  NEW  ARRIVAL  ,  THEN  ?  that  would  explain  the  look  of  her  ,  no  doubt  .  rand  thought  .  well  ,  there  was  no  reason  to  be  rude  .  certainly  not  given  her  generosity  .

          rand  smiled  .  ❝   kalinka  ?  i'm  afraid  i  haven't  heard  of  that  one  before  .  but  ,  hear  now  ,  if  you  can  hum  it  for  me  ,  i  think  i  can  manage  to  give  it  a  fair  enough shot  .  ❞

" hmmm, let me think. " she taps a finger against her chin, tongue pressed against her mouth as she tries to recall the rhythm. it has been a long time, hearing it on the street from children along the road. it's harder to recall things back when her mind is a slate carved only with warfare and bloodshed, but from somewhere deep within her, she seems to pull something.

" hmm, hmmm, hmm ! " it's a clumsy attempt, half-hearted attempts to hum and then pause for a second. but she catches the melody, hums, and quietly sings under her breath. " Калинка, калинка, калинка моя ! В саду ягода малинка, малинка моя ! "

∞︎︎  𝐆𝐄𝐓𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐓𝐎 𝐊𝐍𝐎𝐖 𝐄𝐀𝐂𝐇 𝐎𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑 / @irezeout ❝ how do you take your coffee? ❞

        𝐑𝐀𝐍𝐃  𝐍𝐀𝐑𝐑𝐎𝐖𝐄𝐃  𝐇𝐈𝐒  𝐄𝐘𝐄𝐒  at  the  cafe's  signage  hanging  above  the  front  desk  .  it  all  made  very  little  sense  to  him  .  there  were  far  too  many  strange  listings  beneath  HOT  and  COLD  drinks  —  and  what  in  the  Light  was  a  bloody  cappuccino  ?  no  ,  rand  could  not  make  heads  or  tails  of  any  of  it  .  not  the  faintest  clue  .  although  ,  the  Light  help  him—he  did  try  .  only  ,  reading  through  these  frappe  and  latte  foolishness  was  the  same  as  trying  to  read  the  bloody  Old  Tongue  .  or  another  language  entirely  .

            his  gaze  once  again  drifted  towards  the  listing  that  read  ‘TEA’  .  .  .  although  he  frowned  at  the  sight  all  over  again  .  it  wasn't  helpful  signage  .  there  were  only  a  few  texts  beneath  it  ,  and  none  were  particularly  descriptive  past  the  option  of  HOT  or  COLD  .  rand  wanted  to  laugh  .  ah  ,  yes  ,  i'll  take  a  spot  of  tea  ,  if  you  please  !  never-mind  that  no  -  one  seems  to  bloody  know  what's  in  it  .  rand  turned  his  attention  back  to  the  main  listings  ,  and  then  returned  it  down  to  the  girl  who  had  asked  him  of  his  preference  .  he  shook  his  head  .

             ❝   i  am  sorry  .  it  is  all  lost  on  me  .  we  don't  have  this  .  .  .  ‘  coffee  ’  .  .  .  in  the  two  rivers  ,   ❞  rand  admitted  ,  sounding  the  odd  word  out  carefully  .  it  shaped  strangely  on  his  tongue  .  he  grimaced  and  shrugged  .  ❝   i  was  told  by  a  well  -  meaning  fellow  that  this  place  had  a  good  selection  of  drinks  ,  but  .  .  .  i  think  .  .  .  i  think  perhaps  we've  got  different  ideas  of  what  that  means  .  ❞

she watches with intrigue as his gaze scans across the entirety of the menu, almost dizzyingly lost in some of trance. her lips quirk upward as if to laugh, but manages to catch hold before she does.