It was another normal day for Emilia. She was woken up by her aunt coming into her room, "Emilia, it is five past nine. You must get out of bed and do something productive." With a gentle groan, the "princess" rolled back over and faced away from the door, "I will just get up later.." It had been a week since Emilia's aunt had arrived in Boston. A week away from Terrasphere... She grimaced ever so slightly as the sound of clicking heels sounded, her blanket flying off of her body, revealing her angelic white (the color of innocence) pajamas. Despite having arrived a full week ago, Emilia's aunt had planned to stay another three weeks, as it made up a whole month. As soon as Emilia's blanket flew off of her, she sat upright. "Give it back!" The smug grin that plastered upon her aunt's face radiated through the modernistic room. "Get out of bed." At the command of her aunt, Emilia internally rolled her eyes before swinging her legs over the edge, "Okay, fine. Just.. Leave my room." As soon as Emilia's aunt left the room, Emilia stood up and off the bed. She started into the activity of what she did every morning. She made her bed, before getting ready for the day. Productive......While my aunt is here she does not let me go on Terrasphere.. I suppose I will just have to go into town to escape my duties... Normally her aunt would make her sit down and work, yet today it seemed as if she were lucky. Aunt Miranda is telling me to do something productive.. I can just make up the excuse of showing the company's face off... That way I can just take a stroll and be out all day.. That way I will not have to deal with her annoying voice. It was then Emilia's turn to have her lips plaster into a smug grin. She got her stuff ready, and set her platinum black credit card into her phone case. She put her phone into her hidden pocket under her clothes, pet Choji goodbye, and left the room. "Aunt Miranda! I am going out into town!" Emilia explained her "false" purpose, and a delighted aunt let her leave the house. ~~~~~~~~~~ It was not long until Emilia found herself onto the streets of Boston, the busy town looming out before her. She was just walking along the streets until she saw a small cafe. My father used to take me here.... Looking around, she took note that it was not too crowded. If I recall, this cafe is nothing fancy. Just simple foods, beverages, and nothing too expensive.. Opening the door, she took another note of the bell chiming as the door moved. @Zelrius
Another day another time. Zelrius got up and watched the living room TV a few hours after his parents had left the house for their own various reasons. It was the only time the man could get some peace and quiet without them absolutely drilling him about the direction his life was going. The news droned about something regarding another death in Pennsylvania in a College over there while testing new VR Technology. Figures. Was the platinum haired man's only thought, as he knew that this would only fuel the flames against VR and AR Tech, and thus keep games like Terra further underground. With a sigh, he told himself that such was life, and there was nothing ol Zelly could do about it. Or well, nothing Rayvil could do about it. He caught himself once again using the Terrasphere name to refer to himself in real life. And though as a general rule, he still introduced himself as Rayvil to everyone he actually met, it was a growing issue that he'd use Zel to refer to himself more often than not. People probably think I am weird... He thought, as the slight red hue of his cheeks began to glow against his pale face. It was a stark contrast in color, and the man could more than feel it, deciding that maybe getting out of the house for a moment was probably a good idea. Besides, he didn't want to still be there by the time his mother and father got home, or it would turn into another lecture about "You were such a great kid, go make something of yourself." With that he headed down the stairs, swung the door open, turned the lock so that it would lock shut as he closed it, and then swung it behind him on his way out, a brisk pace toward the nearest cafe or something. ~*~ The short walk to somewhere to get something to eat was chilly, to say the least. He was wearing nothing more than sweatpants and a grey t-shirt that was maybe a size too small for him. This was exemplified by the small breeze that rolled through the already cold northeastern air ruffling at every gust, lifting the shirt ever so slightly up, and a frustrated Rayvil constantly pulling it back down. He was still holding it down in closed fists when he walked into the crowded Cafe and sat down at one of very few open tables. As always, this place was usually crowded in the early mornings like this, people trying to hustle and bustle to get their daily coffee or donuts, teenagers using it as a breakfast or hookie spot, and old folks using it to just gawk at the world as the number of people in it increased exponentially and turned their already crowded Boston into an almost Tokyo-like shoulder-to-shoulder experience. It wasn't long after ordering a small amount of food, not really having much money to be spending, that a woman walked in, and begin to scan the area. For a moment, he froze, examining the woman and trying to place a name to her. Of course, he couldn't but she was definitely someone he had seen on the news and in Business Magazines throughout his life. Pretty important then... Were his thoughts as he realized there were no open tables. A more ballsy and confident man would probably have invited her over to his nearly empty one, but instead, Zelrius merely stood from his in a rather loud fashion, to notify her that he was leaving, even though he hadn't even gotten the stuff he had ordered yet. No sense in someone like me taking up a seat anyway, he justified in his head I can stand and eat, no biggy...
It had not taken Emilia very long for her eyes to scan the whole premise of the small cafe, the smile that dotted along her facial expressions appeared, No news reporters.. I should be fine here... Yet the one thing that left her uncomfortable was how many people were in the small cafe. Emilia wove in and out of people until she reached the main counter, her own voice spilling effortlessly over the hum of the various conversations going on around her. "One cup of Assam tea and one blueberry scone please.." She reached for her phone, passively slipping out her credit card and handing it to the cash tender. After having paid the right amount she slipped it back into her phone case and hid it among her clothes. The loud noise of a chair scraping the ground nearby, cause Emilia to look for the source of the noise. Her eyes befell upon a rather tall man, he seemed to be about five inches taller than she was, which caused her to look up at him. He had a rather skinny appearance, with one of no fat, particularly he could have been called "lean" if she were to place a single word to describe his outward body shape. His clothes seemed rather... interesting. He had on a pair of sweatpants and a grey t-shirt that seemed as if it had gone through the wash and shrunk, as it clung to his body in a tight-fashion. If only I were permitted to wear something as casual like that... The man himself had rather long platinum blonde hair, leaning towards the color of fresh snow rather than platinum blonde. His eyes were green. They were the kind of green that somehow always managed to push through the large piles of gritty snow to remind you that spring is coming. The kind of green that budded on the captives of winter, livening the branches and bringing life back to the world. The churning, chaotic green that the ocean turns after a violent storm. The color of the bright forest leaves after it rains. The color of the ripples in the pond, created by the tiniest of tadpoles. The shade of green that brings life and hope into the very universe Emilia stood in no matter what has happened. Yet looking into the forest green eyes, Emilia could see the devastation and sorrow that the man felt deep inside, and it brought to her a different variation of his pain. With a wave in his direction, taking note that he had no evidence of having received his order, had he ordered anything she spoke to him, "Sit with me, I assume you have not received your order? I could use some company as an excuse if my aunt were to ask if I have done anything productive today."
For a moment, the two exchanged a glance. That glance was seemingly stretched into eternity as Rayvil began to have a semi panic attack of sorts. The brief glance; her almost seemingly glowing violet eyes, trained and honed to focus and absorb anything, including his attention even for that brief moment. And even as his own green orbs fluttered away in immediate embarrassment, not one to ever keep eye contact for very long, he still held the image of them in his mind, occasionally flicking his eyes back to steal a glance of hers so he could better understand them. The almost lavender colour that they were was captivating, truly, and they almost held an iron grip, Rayvil finding hard to keep flicking away hoping she wouldn't notice him directly. Too late, his little act with the chair had fully caught her attention, and she made her way over to make action upon that, taking up his offer of the seat. To be honest, the man didn't even remember what he had ordered, now far more interested in this woman than most things. Which that alone was enough to shoot guilt throughout his body, feeling bad for his interest in a female figure at all, even if it wasn't a romantic or sexual interest in the slightest. His thoughts traced back to the woman he loved, who was gone now, causing the man to kind of shrink against the wall a bit, slowly drowning in his own sorrow of the memories again. That was broken as she spoke, his eyes widening all the way back up and then looking around, hoping that she was talking to someone else. Another glance at the woman, who was now at the table, revealed that in terms of hair, they were actually quite similar. Her's was a deep set silver, a hair colour he had seen becoming increasingly popular around Boston, though for what reason, he didn't know. Like his own, it was bright, though his had a more pale yellow tint to it, which was almost a bit more natural than hers, but not by a lot. Also in hair similarity, the length of which, but a more self-assured Zelrius would have definitely made a game out of it to compare where eachother's hair ended compared to the other. However, he wasn't that kind of person, to be joking around with strangers much anymore. She invited him to sit and talk, and once again, any normal person would have rejected, but to be honest, Rayvil didn't want to. He was entranced and interested in the woman, and he really didn't want to stand here all day, and really really didn't want to be at home, as his mother could arrive there at any moment. So he pulled a chair out far from the table, sitting at it with a large gap between his knees and the surface, continually flicking his eyes about the room, occasionally landing them on her before quickly looking away again. "P-productive?" He asked to keep the conversation light, trying to hide the slight shake in his voice. Maybe I was wrong about who she is?
Hearing the slight stutter of his own words, Emilia smiled encouragingly, [color=##BB8DCE]"Yes, productive. If I were not to be productive I would most likely have nothing to tell my own aunt, which would result in me lying, might as well have fun and be able to tell the truth."[/color] It had not taken Emilia very long to ascertain that the man seemed to rather have a low level of confidence. "Here, how about to make it easy I introduce myself and then you do. My name is Emilia, and to make it even easier, I will start up a conversation. Here is the first question I will ask you, that will lead to a rather interesting conversation. Do you have any plans for the rest of the day?" Emilia shot off her first question in a rather assertive manner, contrasting against the man's own personality slightly. As if it were written across the front of their foreheads that they would clash against one another. Emilia seemingly did not care as she could use some company, hopefully she would not be the only one to get something out of their own communication. I feel like Terra has been changing me ever so slightly.. I think of what other people would get out of talking with me...
"I uh, ehm..." He wasn't sure what to say, this being a really nice change to how he thought his was going to go. Rayvil just wanted to get what little food he could afford, drink something, and then probably head back and coop back up in his childhood room and run away to Terra for the day, hoping to all god that his parents would just leave him alone like they usually do. He normally kept them at bay by doing part time at a Gas station not too far down the road, but quickly lost that as a trump card as he started calling in sick, especially during the Siege of Astorea and all the things that led up to it. So, he wasn't going to outright decline, but he also wasn't going to out right agree. So instead he just pulled the chair up a bit closer and kind of listened, twiddling his thumbs and his head looking downward, just focusing on the ground and not much else. She introduced herself, and Rayvil was sure that was the name of the person he was thinking of, now wondering if anyone else in the area immediately recognized her, and if so, why weren't they swarming her? "Re- Eh, Ray?" He sounded unsure of his own name, but it was his name enough, or atleast, the nickname friends attributed to him. "And, uh" He thought back to his home situation, deciding that if he could just be out of the house for the day, maybe his parents would leave him alone tomorrow. "Not really? I-I suppose I might get a new shirt.." He voice trailed off, and his poor attempt at a joke fell short, atleast, in his own mind.
Emilia's gentle gaze seemed to focus solely on Ray, even when some sort of waiter came and brought out both of their food and drinks. "Ray, it is a lovely name." Emilia was thankful that the guy seemed impartial to her, What a nice change of environment.. In fact, she had been quite surprised not to have a single person walk up to her and ask for her autograph or a picture. Yet she deemed it was due to the fact that it was rather busy in the little cafe, words being piled effortlessly on top of each other. Emilia took a small sip of her tea before grinning at Ray's sense of humor. "Well, I suppose I could just happen to stick around you for the day, I myself have absolutely no plans. Normally on a day where I have nothing to do, I spend all day inside... But, ahh alas, my aunt is home for the whole month, which means she never lets me do much of nothing. She has me constantly working, never sleeping in as late as I want to, and never staying up as late as I want to either." Emilia rather somehow "forced" her own presence upon the boy as a relief for herself, "Although, since you rather have nothing to do for the night, I think you might like some company. Besides, interactions with people are good for one's health, right? And they need to be non-stressful interactions.." Emilia added on the last part only for herself, to gain favor in her own eyes, Stressful interactions being news reporters and fans swamping me entirely..
The look she gave him made him feel even more uneasy, never quite being good with being the center of attention, though he was quite good at it in Terrasphere. Between the Snefrid fight and his contribution when the whole Rescue entourage together, he felt like quite the Hero type, To the point where both Trinity, the NPC mascot of the game, and Kijin had used the word on him. That kind of attention was good, and this was little different, he supposed. Basically, he was an entertainment piece for her while she avoided doing work, which was something Rayvil could sympathize with, but wasn't exactly thrilled about. She was going on about sticking around him for the day, and while that wasn't exactly an issue with him (She was fairly pretty afterall, and no guy would be mad about that) It was more that he wasn't exactly the most equipped to be handling stuff like that. "I uh, yea that's fine, but eh?" He stopped and pointed outside. "We'd either be walking everywhere, or have to stroll back to my place to get a hold of a vehicle? That is unless you're okay with a bit of cold.." That last part was dumb and he knew it, no one wanted to walk around in the chilly morning air. He didn't mind personally, and kind of hoped she wouldn't but was more than happy to oblige to his new found 'Daypartner.' Nonstressful Just her wording reminded him of Vina, and how she was around the man. It made him narrow his eyes and wonder what it is Emilia here did in her free time, other than harass local townsfolk. A question for another time. He finished his hot cocoa and the pastry he had ordered, leaning back in his chair more than content to actually just sit here for a while, and only occasionally make eye contact with the girl, before quickly moving his head to stare at random things throughout the room.
Grinning from ear to ear, in a rather elegant expression, Emilia took another sip of her tea before taking a tiny bite of her lemon scone. "Well, either is up to you, the only reason why the cold might be bad on my part is that I am in fact wearing a dress and it is quite breezy out..." Emilia retorted quite obviously, "If you want to pick up a vehicle at your place that is fine, or we could just take the hyperloop or a cab.. My treat." Emilia's grin turned to that of a smirk, "Plus, parking in Boston can be a pain in the ass. What if we see the perfect little shop for your new shirt, yet we cannot go inside because of bad parking!" Emilia spoke with a dramatic infliction in her voice, taking advantage of her own personal skill in public speaking and acting. Most of the time she had to act happy in front of all of the people she did not want to meet. She had to act happy in front of cameras, and random strangers who would walk up and say "hi". Emilia was smiling as of right now, out of pure enjoyment. Strange, normally I do not find happiness with communication unless I am in terrasphere.. Where people know not of me.. Emilia shrugged off the thought as she caught Ray staring at her numerous occasions before his eyes would flicker away as if he did not want to be caught, "See something pretty?" Emilia attempted to lighten the mood with her sense of humor, adding a cute expression. One that resembled a wink and a tongue sticking out, showing that she was in fact joking around.
Her grin seemed geniune, only causing Rayvil to form his own and listen as she answered his questions. Her idea was better of course, its just that the man wasn't going to request that of her directly. It was untactful, to say the least, to ask someone who he had only just met to go on, and then pay for, public transportation like that. And to be honest, he always wanted to know what it was like to roll around in a real cab service. Of course, the man had used mobile phone app Public Transportation that allowed for you to basically turn anyone willing to drive you into a cab, and that was awfully convenient, but it also just wasn't the same, it didn't have the same professional Feel to it. Her explanation, along with the dramatic sting to it pulled a small laugh out of him, as he conceded the point. "Fair enough, how about we finish up here, and step outside and wave one down?" He then begin to think on locations to get a real shirt, and hopefully throw this one away. He leaned back in his chair, visibly more comfortable now, though that was almost immediately broken by her comments. He hadn't realized how obvious it was that he was looking at her, and instead tried to diffuse the situation as best he could. "As if," was his immediate response, though his eyes widened as he was worried that it'd be taken as an insult. "No, I mean- Yes. But not for the reasons that you may be thinking..." That didn't help any, good job idiot.
Emilia smiled as they spoke of possible means of transportation for when they would leave the cafe. "Yes, lets. I enjoy riding in cabs, besides I would not mind at all." Upon hearing his retort, her expression turned to one of pure humor, "You are all good. No need to try to reword. It was a mere joke on my part, I was unaware that my humor would go unnoticed. Nice retort by the way, shows you have a sharp mind." As if to further their own conversation herself, she brought up a single question, her mind sharp as she boldly asked, "What do you like to do on your free time?" Emilia smiled kindly and brightly, letting her own optimistic nature shine through the cafe. Her own posture never changing from the upright, proper posture that she had been raised to have, only relaxing her lower torso to become comfortable. Her hands remained neatly in her lap unless she lifted them to continue eating and drinking. Her eyes remained on Ray as she talked, taking the polite gesture rather than that of someone who was easily unfocused. Emilia's thoughts were instantly brought to Choji, something that she spent most of her free time with. Her own cat, her closest relationship. Quite sad now that I think of it.. Choji is my closest friend, yet it is my cat.. Emilia adored all things cat, such as bows, yarn, ribbons, tails, etc. It was just a part of who she was. It was one of the reasons she had been so keen on all of the fantasy games that allowed one to play as a cat person.
He drummed his fingers nervously, now buzzing with a million questions of his own. Something about the way she spoke and carried herself just ebbed high class, and probably a life full of learning those habits. It was funny, to Rayvil; he was sure that aristocracy wasn't a thing in America, and hadn't really ever been, but the wealthy always seemed to have a way of acting like Royalty in their own special way. He didn't say much follow his comment, only resting his cheek in his hand and scanning the Cafe. People milled about, trying to squeeze into slightly more comfortable and out of the way spots, and some weren't nearly as courteous, just stopping in the middle of walkways and passages in order to wait for their food and gaze at their phones. It was not ideal conditions for a meeting with someone like Emilia, and to be quite honest, Rayvil began to feel bad and uncomfortable with the setting, his brain somehow making it seem like it was his fault. Another thought cut short by her voice, one that was good at instantly grabbing his attention. He looked to her, knowing the full answer to her question, but also knowing full well that he couldn't answer it directly. So, he tried to obfuscate "Eh- Ehm, Kind of a nerd..." He started with a sheepish smile on his face. "I just kinda, play video games. RPGs to be exact." Terra, His mind whispered, now over and over, begging for a chance to be reimmersed back into that world. It prompted him to ask her in return, wondering what it is the Upper class did. "So what do you Nobles do when you aren't down here bugging us peasants? Fight crabs on the beach?" The final part of that question being an inside joke for himself, quite amused as it was exactly what he had done not too long ago, except in the game. Of course, she probably would just see it as him being an arse about asking what it is they do.
As soon as Ray spoke the words mentioning fighting crabs on a beach, Emilia's own thoughts carried her to the first meeting in a RPG video game, one of the things that Ray did. It is just coincidence.. She had met the honorable hero, Zelrius.. Or rather.. Zelly... Emilia laughed on the inside at the nickname she had given her friend. Yet, her own first meeting they had fought crabs on the beach.. Maybe it is not a coincidence.. Although, I am sure more than just Terra has crabs on beaches... Emilia stared at Ray, shrugging off what might have been there, [color=BB8DCE]"Actually, we do not. Although I bet that is what you do as you play video games!"[/color] I MUST NOT let anyone know that I play video games.. I mean yeah, it would promote our full dive gear, but Terrasphere is the uproar that caused our company so much strife... Emilia still remembered when people would blame her and her company for the release of Terrasphere. The US' Department of Virtual Regulation and Safety had been on her case for months when everything about the unknown game disappeared over night. Something that only companies like mine or hackers could do... Emilia still did not know who made the game, and what the purpose of it was.. She did enjoy it however, but if people knew she played Terrasphere, then the whole thing would blow up in her face.. again. Instead, Emilia answered his question with a more reasonable reply, "Well, when I do get free time, which is not very often.. I like to play around with my cat, Choji. I also enjoy locking myself in my room, trying to stay away from work... Emilia still had yet to find out what Ray did for a living, yet she was not so sure he could say the same about her.. Without a second thought, Emilia spoke once more. "Being a nerd is nothing to be ashamed of..." Emilia was not only comforting Ray but herself as well. "Shall we head out now though? I think other people would like to take a seat at a table.."
His thoughts ran back to the several people he had met in Terra. People like Mizuki, the now ever hateful Kaede, the small but amusing Harveste, the mischievous Ilya, and the Heroic type Alric. Those people were all quite amazing, to be honest, and were all, as a general rule, a lot nicer to him than most people he had met in recent years in real life. It was one of the many reasons he wanted so bad to be always in the game. But alas, maybe this was a nice change of pace for him. To hang out with someone in real life, especially someone like Emilia. He laughed at her joke and looked out the window a bit longingly. "You'd be surprised at what games can offer. Wolf Queens, Frogs, Mudcrabs, Dragons, blobs of glitch fluid." He stopped and looked back to her, still grinning ear to ear "It's actually always quite the adventure." He listened to her answer for his question which only prompted another question as, in his mind's eye, he had imagined her just sitting on the floor and petting her cat for hours. "What do you do when locked up in your room? Phone games, movies, books?" He was actually genuinely curious what the girl spent her time doing outside of working. "I suppose you're right. I am not ashamed of it, I just remember making fun of those kinds of people back in Highschool." He made a fake cringe gesture, as a sort of way of exposing guilt for having been like that back then, but not actually regretting it, mostly because he wasn't a bully or anything, just liked to poke fun. At her request. he nodded and stood, feeling the compulsion to move over to her help pull her chair out as a kind of gesture of politeness. Treat her like a noble, I guess? He told himself, unsure of how she wanted to be conducted when they were hanging out together on this day.
Grinning at Ray's reply she thought of what she did locked up in her room, Think up an excuse... "When locked in my room, I do test out some.. products..." That was right, Emilia did "test" out products. After all, Roberts Inc did produce full dive gear, right? "Haha, so you were one of the people who pokes fun at people then?" Standing to her feet, without the help of Ray she grinned ear to ear, turning away from her newly found human person she walked out of the cafe and into to snippy cold breezy air outside. With one hand being used to keep her skirt down, she used the other to flag down a taxi. Looking around, Emilia took note of how much she loved Boston. Tall buildings, traffic and so many people! It had not taken long before someone prodded at Emilia while the cab started to pull in to pick her and Ray up. "Mom! Mom! It's Emilia Wobewts! The really pwetty giwl on tele!" A small three year old was tugging at her mother's cloak. Emilia smiled nicely at the girl, as the mother hushed her over excited daughter. "I has pictuwe wif Em-Em?" Emilia's cheeks turned bright red, So adorable!!! She silently swooned as the mother told her daughter that Emilia was probably busy. [color=BB8DCE]"Actually, I would not mind at all."[/color] The little girl shrieked with excitement, "One day, I wanna be just wike you!" At the small girl's exclamation, Emilia smiled brightly turning a shade darker. The picture was taken just as the cab managed to make its way into the pick-up spot. "Well, it was nice to meet you.. ---" Emilia asked the girl of her name, in which an excited voice said, "Lily!!!" "It was very nice to meet you Lily, but my cab just pulled up, so I have to go now." Before Emilia could make her way towards the cab, Lily gave Emilia a big hug, which caused a genuine smile to appear on her face. Nodding towards Ray she ended the hug and went into the cab.
