Tea Stained Letters

The violet flames retreated and Pandora smiled. She loved to be obeyed. The words of submission…Beautiful. Even if it took a threat to get there. Satisfied, she released her grip on the man’s shirt and instead used her hand to point one clawed finger at the box on the table.

“Open. The. Box.” She spoke slowly so the buffoon could understand. Seriously, how hard was it to open a box? Of course she could do it herself, but why do that when that fool was there.

✉ - “Alright, yeesh...” He hated to admit it, especially when it came to a little brat like this, but Dirk might have been a little spooked by that fireworks show of hers. Just a bit. But he doesn’t show it as he obediently heads over to the box, casting a brief glance at her over his shoulder before opening it.

Once he does, he raises a brow.

Well, well, well. A bassist and a singer. It looked like Billy got lucky. That is, if this guy wasn’t exaggerating his musical skills. Billy chose to be an optimist and believe this Dirk guy wasn’t full of shit. Sitting up, he began to text back.

[ To: Dirk ]: perfect [ To: Dirk ]: i dont suppose you play drums too [ To: Dirk ]: seriously tho, when are you free to meet up

✉ - Dirk whistles as he turns a corner and leans against a wall, deftly typing in a response to the next few messages that came in.

Billy was scrolling through social media when a message popped up. It looked like he got a response to the request he put up. He was starting to think he wouldn’t get a response and his dream of having a band would be crushed.

[ To: Dirk ]: yeah

[ To: Dirk ]: im billy whats up

[ To: Dirk ]: what do you play dork

[ To: Dirk ]: *dirk

✉ - Dirk was pleased to see the guy respond back so quickly, almost alerted by the speed with which he messaged back. But the mailman wasn’t complaining, whistling as he starts to type in a response.

...Only to choke on air when he sees the guy’s typo. He... was pretty sure it had been a typo, at least. It had to be. This dude didn’t know him---what reason would he have to rag on Dirk already?

Shaking his head, he renames Billy’s contact in his phone and responds.

The sound of rain was somewhat soothing. It was nice to not have to worry about having to water the flowers. Of course, even during days like these, where not much outdoor farmwork had to be tended to, there was still the farm store that had to be managed. His boss was out currently, so it was just him today. He didn’t mind managing the store, although he preferred to be out in the fields.

The bell over the door rang as someone stepped in from the wet outdoors. Lest turned and greeted them with a smile.

“Hello there- welcome to Greenhill Farm. How can I help you today?”

✉ - Rain, snow, sleet, or shine. Such was the life of a mail carrier, tasked to deliver the mail regardless of weather condition. He understood it. People needed their mail, and it was important to get it to them. Dirk just wished he didn’t have to get drenched in the process...

Which, honestly, was kind of on him. He was the one who forgot to check the weather before heading out this morning, so he failed to bring an umbrella along. Hopefully he wouldn’t end up catching a cold.

Once he makes it to his next stop, Dirk finds the main building and heads inside, a bundle of letters for the owner in his hand.

Pandora narrowed her eyes angrily. The impudence of this mortal! If he thought he was getting away that easily, he was sorely mistaken. This delivery boy would be allowed to leave once he finished his job and opened the box.

“Halt!” Before he could walk away, Pandora grabbed the back of his shirt. “I will not ask again. I assure you that you do not want to get on my bad side.” Her hand began to heat up, flames ready to emerge.

✉ - A choked gasp leaves Dirk as he feels himself get roughly tugged back by the collar, coughing as a bit of spit goes down his windpipe. Angrily, he rounds on the girl, ready to tell her off, when---

A brilliant flame bursts into life, right before his eyes.

The sight is alarming enough to give him some pause, and he grumbles after a moment, straightening his collar. Either she was all talk and showy as hell, or she meant serious business. Whatever her intentions may be, Dirk wasn’t really in the mood to get burned.

@pxstalservice​

*ﾟ:*:✼ ❀ — Gentle rain drops danced outside and tapped on the windows and doors of the cafe, asking to be let in. It was that time of day when the busy chatter shifted to a lull of customers while the employees began cleanup for the next busy day. 

None of these sounds registered in the blonde’s ears. Laney sat at one of the tables with a book she had been working on since the moment she stepped in. On the table sat one and a half cups of finished tea and the remainder of crumbs from a biscuit she had finished hours ago. Had the contents of the book not picked up within the last few chapters, she would have disposed of her trash hours ago. 

Just one more chapter, then I’ll clean up. But even this thought perished from her mind as she dove deeper into the plot. 

It wasn’t until someone began to take her dishes for her that pulled her out of her trance. 

He’d worked around as a waiter for years, even before purchasing his own restaurant, so he was pretty used to the ins and outs of the job. Rowdy customers, high maintenance people, the ones who gave incredibly generous tips, the ones who wouldn’t give not even one extra coin... he knew ‘em all, like the back of his hand.

Even the customers who lingered at their tables for just a bit too long without ordering anything, clearly finished with their food, but still taking up space for whatever reason. Though, space wasn’t too much of an issue, now that the cafe was reaching closing time. The issue was that Miss Goldilocks wasn’t leaving—she was the last customer left, and they wouldn’t be able to close up until she was gone.

As cute as she was getting all absorbed in that book of hers, Dirk had to cut the fun short. He heads over and starts cleaning up her dishes, chuckling nonchalantly at her offer.

“A new job,” she repeated to herself under her breath. The suggestion had come unexpected but it wasn’t a bad offer. It was just… a little too late. Clorica was already working multiple jobs and to add another on top of it would be insane. And she had been at her current jobs for so long that she felt she couldn’t up and leave them. “It’s tempting,” she added to entertain the idea. She had no intention of moving jobs yet, but if she did it was nice to know there was a place she was able to go.

“I don’t think you’d want them. Checkers is especially a troublemaker and will cause a fire,” she laughed. The cat, however, did not find it as amusing and let out an upset mew in response.

✉ - “Oh...? But not a tempting enough offer to take, huh.” He says playfully. He’d noticed the lack of confirmation on her part, but also the lack of rejection. Dirk didn’t mind either way---Clorica was a pretty hardworking girl, so he had no doubt she already had plenty on her plate. 

When the topic turns back to the cats, Dirk lets out a nose of disbelief, right alongside Checkers’ mew of disapproval. The mailman leans down to scratch the cat behind its ears, thanking the Goddess that it actually wasn’t shying away from him for once. “Whaaaat? You look like such an angel, though! Clori’s just overexaggerating, isn’t she?”

Alex looked in the direction his friend was pointing and nodded enthusiastically. He was a little tired from the exertion of the last wave and had expected a bit of a break before the next one appeared, but he would never be one to waste a good wave. After all, you never knew whether it would be the last good wave of the day.

“Hell yeah! Let’s go, dude. Race ya!” 

He began spiralling his arms before he’d even finished his sentence, giving himself a head start. 

✉ - Dirk was beginning to feel a little spent himself, but he could never deny the thrill of a good surf. It wasn’t often that he got to do it, so made the most of whatever chances he got. 

As the new one rolls in, Dirk begins to race Alex, lagging a bit behind thanks to the other man’s early start. But with a mischievous grin, the mailman triggers a bit of his time magic, speeding his movements ever-so-slightly to pass Alex. Since they were on Leuda, it wasn’t something he could abuse too much, but it didn’t hurt to use the tools at his disposal when he could.

They both stared at the board for a few minutes, at the notice urging volunteer voyagers to rent a boat and explore the seas. Lily felt like the words were taunting her. What kind of explorer are you?

Maybe that was why she said what she said next. “Would you perhaps be interested in joining me on a voyage at some point?” 

Impulsive, yes. She had just barely met the guy five minutes ago. But she liked to consider herself a pretty good judge of character, and many people signed up to voyages with strangers separately. Besides, what was an adventure without a little risk?

✉ - Dirk had been on the fence about trying out one of these expedition things, but after speaking with this woman, he was beginning to see just why it had such a wide appeal. Her question is the tipping point he needs, and with widened eyes, he turns to her, expression quickly shifting into a grin.

“Sure. What the hell, right? It could be fun.” And from the sounds of it, she was pretty experienced with this sort of thing. If Dirk wanted his first voyage to be with anyone, it was definitely with a seasoned explorer like her.

She watched the man bring in the box with a critical eye. His attitude wasn’t to her liking. It was as if he wasn’t appreciative to be serving the almighty arch-sorceress herself. As soon as he set it down, he was ready to go, but Pandora wasn’t done with him yet. 

“No, your work is not done. Open the box.” Pandora was curious to see what her roommate had bought. Most likely, it was something trivial like clothing. 

✉ - Dirk raises a brow in disbelief. “Whaaaa---are you serious? That’s not my job, lady.”

Though she looked more like a kid than anything. Was starting to act like one, too. He shakes his head with a frustrated sigh, long past the point of putting on niceties. First she kept him waiting outside lugging that heavy thing, and now she had the gall to make him do her bidding? Please.

“Don’t encourage them,” she smiled, shaking her head. At the same time, the cats began to meow as if they understood what Dirk had said about them. But with how intelligent they were (sometimes) she had a feeling they did know he was complimenting them. “They’re all troublemakers,” she chuckled.

Clorica took a bite of her slice and smiled at the rich flavor. Once again she had outdone herself in the kitchen. “But it was worth it. A friend on his birthday deserves the best cake and they helped me to make it.”

✉ - “Hey, hey, even troublemakers deserve a little encouragement, too! Take it from a seasoned one.” He chuckles, giving her a playful nudge before taking another bite of delicious cake. Damn, this was some good stuff. Almost gourmet levels! Almost.

Alex could hear Dirk’s exclamations of excitement as he surfed the wave and let out a few of his own, trying not to destabilise himself in the process. This wave was slightly more turbulent than the last and he struggled to keep his footing, but managed to hang on until the wave flattened out. He dived off the surfboard in a way that looked purposeful, just in case his friend was watching.

When he resurfaced, he looked around for Dirk and saw him some distance away looking like a figurine bobbing in the waves. He climbed back onto his board and began to front crawl towards him so that they could continue their wait for another wave. 

The day was getting on a bit, but they still certainly had another wave or two left in them before the tide changed.

✉ - Despite his warnings to Alex, Dirk is the one to wipe out in the end, being thrown off of his board once he reaches the end of the wave, too caught up in his excitement to keep his balance amidst the turbulence. But it was all in good fun, so he didn’t mind it. Too much.

He resurfaces with a gasp of breath, shaking his head when he sees Alex dive off his board. Tch, show off.