escordvi | (no subject)

Who: Kaveh and YOU
Status: Open
Where: Surasthana Cafe on Eltrut!
What: The grand opening of a book cafe.
Warnings: God I hope not.

[Kaveh hasn't talked much about what he's been working on for a few months now, because he wanted this moment to be a surprise (and because he didn't want to be scolded for overwork). It has finally paid off, now, with the grand opening of the Surasthana Cafe, just in time for the deep end of the fall season. The cafe is cozily furnished and warm, the smell of lovingly brewed coffee floats through the air, and soft music plays from Mehrak.

Kaveh isn't expecting a huge rush on any given day--this was done for his own sake more than anything, but now on weekday afternoons, the little book cafe can be found and people can stay a spell, enjoying expertly made coffee drinks and some light reading in a ridiculous plant paradise.

If you have any requests for new kinds of books, or wish to purchase various accessories, stop by the front counter! The owner is happy to accommodate you, after all.

ooc: you may also treat this post as a mingle and toplevel accordingly, just mark if you are doing so! Otherwise, Kaveh will be coming for you!]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Alhaitham gives a small hum of understanding here, nodding at the same time.] I've been trying to find similar material myself, but I've only managed to obtain a handful of them even after all this time. [And even then Alhaitham can't help but feel like they're a bit outdated... there was a small initial rush of riftfarer related materials when they first started appearing about five years ago, but now they've become much more of a norm so that novelty isn't quite there anymore.

There's also the possibility that actual riftfarer accounts might've been embellished into fictional works, which frankly only makes things harder to figure out. How can he tell what is truth or fiction when he doesn't even know what the 'truth' is in the first place? It's something he's slowly trying to puzzle out, but the nature of fiction definitely does not make it easy.

He glances at Xehanort then.] Maybe you'll have better luck with that, since you have actual experience in that area.

If you'd be willing, I'd like to borrow one of those books sometime.

[ it's a question he ventures carefully - they've only just met, after all. lending out carefully obtained material to some kid who happened to visit the cafe might be a bit of a stretch. but even fictional accounts would be something to fill the time and hopefully allow xehanort to expand his knowledge without having to go and talk to too many strangers.

he lets out a long sigh, feeling much more at ease than he had been before walking into the cafe, despite some of the unpleasant thoughts that had bubbled up in their conversation. having even a few worries assuaged - or at least sidelined - lifted some of the weight from his shoulders. ]

And I'd like to play again, another day.

[ with a gesture to the chessboard. it's a roundabout way of saying thanks, i had fun, and can i come visit again. ]

[Well Xehanort doesn't have to worry on that front, because Alhaitham only needs a second before he's nodding, easily agreeable both of those requests.] Sure.

[Perhaps for the other its a surprising move, but for Alhaitham it makes perfect sense. Xehanort has experience in traveling to different worlds, which is already far more than Alhaitham can say about himself, and the chess game has shown his skill and intellect quite well. Of course it also helps that Alhaitham finds him to be a rather agreeable person to be with, which is rare enough as it is.]

I'm usually here as long as this place is open, unless I have something on. [Usually a job from the board, but Alhaitham doesn't take those that often—only the ones that interest him, or if he wants to earn some extra on the side to get some silly thing or other to infuriate Kaveh.] You can always ask Kaveh on my whereabouts if I'm not around.

[ he had honestly been expecting a rebuttal, or at the very least a more hesitant acceptance, so alhaitham's easy response makes him feel... a little embarrassed, actually. it's a strange feeling, one he hadn't felt for a few years. the feeling of making a friend.

it's difficult to mask an unexpected emotion like that, the pleased little smile on xehanort's face refusing to be tamed even has he shifts awkwardly and looks back out the window. it would've been nice to still have some coffee in his mug to hide his face behind. he doesn't really know how to be friends with adults - he barely understood how to be friends with his peers, not that any of them had ever minded. this, too, would be something else to learn.

he's looking forward to it. ]

If any texts about other worlds catch my eye, I'll bring them to share as well. [ that's what mutual interests are for, right? ] Though I don't think my experience will make much of a difference. It's not a magnet.

[Mutual interests are definitely good. It's perhaps the easiest way for Alhaitham to be able to talk to people in a way that doesn't feel exhausting after its over. Of course, it can only do so much, but its still a far better start than nothing at all.

But with that having been said, Alhaitham definitely finds himself not minding Xehanort at all. It's an almost refreshing change, really, seeing as how he finds himself disagreeable with most other riftfarers—even the ones that come from his own world too. For all that Alhaitham does not care about being agreeable to others, he won't deny the lack of constant friction is nice, in its own way.]

That may be so, but it'll at least help to filter out some of the noise from everything else. [Seeing as how Alhaitham has no experience about the topic at all, any little bit of it is pretty much invaluable to him right now. Xehanort being willing to share and help only makes it better.]