Wanderlust (Marina Elemento x Kiyiya Sakura)

[Player Advisor]

Kaine(Rust) Parker




Rust shrugged on his coat and thought a moment. Looking outside, he saw that the overcast morning was beginning to burn away with the sun's warmth. "Sunny's Cafe is a nice place. It's a bit out of the area, but not too far." He said moving to the door. He checked his pockets of his duster and found money he didn't remember having. He looked at Mr. Ravyn, who smiled and winked at him from behind the desk. Rust did not like to feel like he was given a handout, so he resolved himself to stay an hour late to make up for the generosity of his boss. He nodded to him, and held to door open for Estelle.

 

[Marina Elemento]

Estelle Dominique Lareau


"Okay," Estelle replied with a smile. Before she had left home, she had grabbed a quick breakfast pastry and a glass of milk, not expecting she'd be out long. Nor had she expected to be taken out to lunch. When he held open the door for her, she felt herself blushing again like a silly child. "Thank you," she said to him, walking through the doorway and out into the city air. As they began walking, Estelle stuffed her hands in her pockets casually, walking at his side. She wasn't sure what to say as they walked, but she didn't want it to be awkwardly quiet either. "Thank you for this," she said, "It's very kind of you, after all we've just met." Her golden eyes sparkled in the sunlight.

 

[Player Advisor]

Kaine(Rust) Parker




Rust led the way down the busy, industrial street, heading west. "Yeah, well..." he was beginning to loosen up, "You probably wouldn't want to stay in the shop with that old man. He can talk the ear off of an elephant." He smiled, looking across the street and waiting for the best time to cross it. He took her arm in his, "Quickly now," He said and hurried them both across the street.

On the other side he stood there, his arm still intertwined in hers. After a moment, he realized this and hastily pulled his arm away, afraid to offend her. "Um, it's just a few blocks down this way." He said, once again leading the way.

 

[Marina Elemento]

Estelle Dominique Lareau


Estelle giggled at his remark about the old man and followed him down the busy street. When he took her arm in his, her face grew warm again, but happiness bubbled inside of her. She liked the feeling of having someone at her side, kind of supporting her in a way. Quickly, she hurried across the street at his side.
Her heart dropped a little bit when he let go of her, but she kept her smile on and followed close behind him.

 

[Player Advisor]

Kaine(Rust) Parker

Not five minutes had they been on the road when a big sign came into view. It had a huge, smiling sun peeking over two green hills which bore the words "Sunny's Cafe" Rust looked at Estelle, "Here we are," He got the door and held it for her, following behind her and taking off his coat. The waitress who greeted them smiled warmly.

"Rust! How nice to see you. It's been a while. And who Is this? Can I get you two a booth?"

"This is Estelle, and a booth would be great Mary, thanks." Mary led them to a small corner booth with a nice wide window facing the east, the morning sunlight filtering in and warming the table. They were seated and Rust, after placing his belongings down, stood back up, "I'm going to clean up some. If you know what you want, go ahead and order, I'll be right back." He headed off to the washroom.

Mary arrived again at the table and place the menus down. "I've never seen you around before. You new? How did you come to meet little Rusty?" The woman was clearly out of her thirties, but not yet in her fifties. She smiled sweetly. "Coffee?"

 

[Marina Elemento]

Estelle Dominique Lareau


Estelle walked into the cafe with a small smile. The waitress's friendliness was quite welcoming. All the restaurants Estelle had ever been in were stuffy and boring, with no atmosphere other than the "rich scent" of wine and cigars. This place was much more light and cheerful, and she loved it.

As she sat down in the booth, she peeled off her leather jacket and warmed her bare shoulders to the warm morning sun. She looked at Rust and nodded. "Okay." she replied, watching him as he walked away. Estelle then turned to the waitress, who was striking up a bit of conversation. Her smile returned again and she replied, "I don't usually come to this part of the city, but this is quite lovely. Actually, I kind of just met him back at the shop where he works. He's really nice, though." A giggle escaped her mouth, mostly at how silly her own voice sounded. "Oh, yes please. Coffee would be great." She scanned the menu quickly. "Also, uhm, some apple dumpling pastries, please."

 

[Player Advisor]

Kaine(Rust) Parker


"Comin' right up Sweet Thing" Mary scooted back to the kitchen, handed out the order, and came back with two coffee mugs and a nice, steaming pot of coffee. "Here you are hun," She placed the mugs on the table and filled them up. As Rust's cup was filled, he returned from the washroom, face and hands clean and his unruly hair somewhat less unruly. He sat down and smelled his coffee.

"Ahh, thanks Mary." he said with great appreciation.

"Sure thing Toots." she smiled her sweet smile and looked at Estelle, "your apple dumplings are comin right up," with that, she hustled off to tend to her other customers. At this time of day, the cafe was not too busy, but not necessarily slow. Rust stirred some cream into his coffee and took a sip.

"Apple dumpling pastries huh? That's a very good choice. Especially if you like cinnamon."

 

[Marina Elemento]

Estelle Dominique Lareau


Estelle poured a bit of cream into her coffee and stirred. She never imagined herself being in such a pleasant place. It wasn't too hustling and bustling like the city streets were, but it wasn't dull or quiet like back home. It was rather perfect. As Rust took his seat, Estelle watched him over the rim of her cup. He's even more handsome when he's all cleaned up, she thought with a small smile to herself.

"Thank you very much," Estelle said to the waitress, realizing suddenly that her stomach was aching eagerly with hunger. She then turned back to Rust and nodded. "Oh, I love cinnamon. And anything sweet, really." She sipped her coffee. "What about you? What kinds of food do you like?" What a dumb question, 'stelle, she thought to herself.

 

[Player Advisor]

Kaine(Rust) Parker


After another sip of his coffee, Rust answered, "Pasta." He said simply. "Specifically, good old reliable Mac and cheese. But sometimes I enjoy a nice primavera. Anything with cheese really." He looked out the window, watching people pass by, and wondering where they might be going, and what they might be up to. He did this briefly, turning his attention back to Estelle. Those eyes were rather remarkable. He looked towards the sun, but not directly at it. Not quite the same shade, but her eyes were reminiscent of the sun at sunset.

Mary returned with the dumplings, setting them down in front of Estelle, and setting a plate down in front of Rust, though he had not ordered yet. It was a grilled cheese sandwich, cut in half diagonally with a slice of pickle on the side laid out on green garland. The dumplings were overstuffed with caramelized apples, diced into fine cubes and drizzled in honey, topped with a dusting of cinnamon. "Enjoy you two!" a quick refill of their coffee and she was off again.

 

[Marina Elemento]

Estelle Dominique Lareau


Estelle nodded in agreement. The talk of pasta reminded her of their family trip to Italy last summer. The pasta had been only one of the many things that was extremely divine in that place. "If you love pasta so much, you should come with me to Italy some day. It's one of my favorite places on this planet, next to this city of course." The truth was, Estelle had probably been to many places on the planet, some others could only dream of visiting. This was one benefit of her father's fortune she was truly grateful for, for she loved exploring and discovering new things in the world.

Once or twice, Estelle caught his eye and she smiled to herself again, wondering what he must be thinking. The food in front of her smelled delicious; she was eager to try it. "Thank you." She said quickly before the woman hurried off again. She picked up one of the dumplings, already feeling her mouth begin to water. When she took a bite, she sighed in pleasure at how good it tasted. "Oh wow, this is lovely." Estelle hoped in the back of her head that she wasn't overusing the word 'lovely' too much. "How's your sandwich?"

 

[Player Advisor]

Kaine(Rust) Parker


Rust was already halfway through his first part of the grilled cheese when Estelle asked him about it. His mouth was stuffed, looking at her helplessly as he tried to hurry and swallow the mass to answer her. It took a while, and he nearly choked, but he swallowed the bite and breathed. "Delicious. As per the norm." He was certainly very hungry, but that was usually the case. It had been more than two weeks since Rust had enjoyed a solid meal. He had been living off of rice and beans, having to pay extra on his rent to keep the temperature up in his poorly insulated apartment.

The bustling noise of the cafe came to a silence and another waitress turned up the radio. What usually was broadcast was the popular music station, but now it was an emergency signal. A news speaker came on, "Attention people of New York, this is not a test. Please remain calm as were bring you an updated." Rust looked at Estelle, eyebrows raised. The man continued, "As we all know, tensions between Britain and the U.S. have been rising, and war is on the horizon, but this just in, a strange wave of occurrences have begun popping up. Natural Disasters all over the southern east coast have people evacuating to the west.The disasters seem to be heading north. We urge everyone to prepare for evacuation at this time, but in a calm, and orderly fashion. That is all for now." the emergency frequency cut out and the music resumed. There was a strange silence in the cafe for a few long moments, before the simultaneous sounds of chairs and silverware being pushed and dropped as people hurried out the door. Rust pulled what he owed out of his pocket and waited at the booth for the crowd to disperse. "Should I escort you home? This seems to be urgent."

 

[Marina Elemento]

Estelle Dominique Lareau


Estelle tried not to giggle as he attempted to swallow the huge amount of food that was in his mouth. Estelle, you idiot, you don't ask people questions while they're eating! she thought to herself, watching him and smiling when he finished. It hadn't occurred to her before that he would be this hungry... did he not usually have any money for food? She watched him carefully for a moment, before realizing that it had become very quiet. At the soft buzz of the radio, Estelle turned her head and listened.

Natural disasters? Prepare for evacuation?? Estelle's head hurt with all the thoughts and worries that slowly began to process in her mind. Her knees shook nervously, but not at the danger that approached them, rather she was afraid of what her father would do if he found out who she'd been with all morning. Coupled with disappointment, her stomach churned and her heart sunk. She really hadn't wanted this day to end so quickly. She looked at Rust, nibbling her bottom lip as he spoke to her. "I suppose so..." Mother's probably worried sick... Slowly, she slipped on her leather jacket, glancing out the window at the streaks of sunlight dancing in the road.

 

[Player Advisor]

Kaine(Rust) Parker


Rust had to admit to himself, at the look of disappointment Estelle showed, the t he was reluctant to end this day also. He stuffed the other piece of the sandwich in his mouth and went to Estelle's side of the table, offering his hand. He kept his eyes on the road, the sun glinting off of his sapphire eyes as he surveyed to outside. People had yet to crowd the streets in panic, but it was a matter of time.

His eyes widened as he remembered Mr. Ravyn. "I'm sorry, but could we detour to my workplace? I would like to see if Mr. Ravyn needs to be warned or not." He looked genuinely concerned for his boss, his brows knitting in the middle, creating a rainbow like wrinkle there in his forehead.

 

[Marina Elemento]

Estelle Dominique Lareau


Estelle found herself staring at him as he held out his hand to her. His eyes sure were mesmerizing, but she snapped out of it and took his hand, sliding out from the booth and to his side. She followed his gaze out the window. She could see it now: the hurl of panic to evacuate, the sea of people crowding the streets and rushing home. Estelle shifted uneasily, then blinked at him when he mentioned his boss. "Oh, of course." She watched his face go from intent to rather concerned. It certainly was sweet of him to care so much about someone.

 

[Player Advisor]

Kaine(Rust) Parker


Rust sighed and they exited the cafe. He gave a quick glance to Mary, who was busy helping close up the shop. He hoped she would be alright, and he turned out onto the streets. They headed back towards the shop, but people were hurrying the other way to the train station. They were nearly run down by horse drawn carriage, but Rust pulled the both of them aside before the four sets of hooves and set of wheels could trample them. He shouted some profanity at the driver, but his voice was lost in the roar of people.

As the crowd grew, Rust pulled Estelle closer to him, hoping his larger frame would act as a shield. It seemed to take forever, but they managed to reach the shop with little incident. It was locked up, and there was a note hung on the door. He picked it up, "Rusty my boy, consider this a vacation. Unfortunately, I could not get you a paid one. I'll leave your check in your mailbox at your apartment before I leave, but I must see to my family. You understand my boy. Be careful, Hope to see you again,

Rodrick Ravyn."

He read it in his head, his eyes scanning over it quickly. He then shoved it in his pocket and turned to Estelle, "He's left already, we can go. Where do you live?" He knew she was rich, but he never payed much attention to the news when it concerned her family's person affairs.