Orion Dysmas (intoashes) wrote in afternightfalls, @ 2019-02-15 08:59:00 |
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Entry tags: | orion dysmas, rosalie allaire, type: thread |
WHO: Orion and Rosalie
WHEN: December 2018
WHERE: Christmas Market
SUMMARY: a run in
WARNINGS: none
Although she hadn’t been in the city for very long, Rosalie couldn’t imagine a more beautiful time in Prague than the winter season. With fresh snowfall every couple of days, the whole place seemed like something out of a snowglobe, or maybe a storybook. She had grown up on a steady diet of fairytales, but Rosalie had never seen real castles until she made her way to Prague. And seeing it like she was right then, with the snow sparkling in the moonlight and reflecting back what seemed like a billion nights from the Christmas Market, she considered again whether or not she should settle down in a city and do her searching from a single location. It didn’t take long to brush the thoughts away though, and to focus on the sheer amazingness of Prague’s famous Christmas Market. There were dozens of stalls, a giant lit tree in the square, merchants selling everything from Christmas treats and hearty meals to handmade toys and custom-tailored clothing. Rosie’s credit card was tucked safely in her pocket, but the temptation to draw it out and make good use of it was becoming a serious thing. She resisted only because she knew that she had hours to wander and decide on her purchases – which would probably be gifts for herself, since only a couple of coworkers were close enough to her to warrant gifts for Christmas. She had only settled on a single purchase, which she finished paying for with relish – a delicious-smelling cup of cider and a bag of warm glazed chestnuts. --- The cool weather drawing the populace toward warm stalls and heavy clothing did nothing to affect the young man wandering the Christmas market. Coat opened, many eyed him suspiciously along with his cousins who all stood in a close knit group arguing over the prices of things. Bright blue eyes scanned over the crowd, away from his family. Orion breathed in the strong scents of supernaturals scattered amongst the humans. His gaze caught that of a girl, a smooth on his lips but his sleeve pulled to keep him moving with the group before he could say anything. Back at their own grouping stalls, signs hung over dried herbs, concoctions, and bottles of various liquids all promising to help with a variety of problems. A small sign announced a fortune-teller in the back, but nothing else indicated towards it. Orion made himself comfortable on a back table, closest to the fortune tent, a leg swinging back and forth. --- It was a nice bonus when the Christmas Markets came with attractive guys, although it was sort of a fleeting bonus. Just a glance up, a second of shared eye-contact, enough time to smile. And then whoever he was, he disappeared back into the crowd, much to the redhead's disappointment. It was easy to differentiate between the 'professional' merchants and the people who spent less of their time hand-crafting stalls. Some of the booths were elaborate and expensive-looking, filled to the brim with stock that someone clearly spent all year either making or purchasing. Others were more like the one that Orion's family had set up – stocked with one-of-a-kind things, items that were really created by people that didn't need to spend several thousand dollars just to make a pretty stall. And while Rosalie loved the lights and browsing the stalls in general, she lingered much longer at those less-glitzy places. The things they had were more interesting, more real. And some of them, like the Romani-run stalls, raised the hair on the back of her neck. Rosie hadn't ever been able to quite put the feeling into words, but she knew it when she felt it, like a tingling somewhere in her brain. Like recognizing like, she guessed, although the Gifted were definitely low on the rungs of the supernatural social hierarchy in Prague. Whatever tied them together, it pricked at Rosalie's senses. That, combined with the sheer interesting-ness of the things being sold, kept her in the grouping of stalls longer, browsing when other shoppers moved on. It was the little sign for the fortune-teller that raised her eyebrows, and she stopped to give the tent a long look. There were real fortune-tellers, she knew, but she had never been to one herself. The Gifted in the city with that particular talent tended to charge high prices, and she didn't need to devote that much of her disposable income to something she wasn't 100% sure about, right? Right. "Is it real?" She asked before she turned toward the person seated on one of the tables. The sense of recognition was swift... and a little jarring. Not because she had a problem with running into a nice-looking guy twice, but because of the familiar feeling that came with the recognition. Like recognizing like. --- The Christmas market had a friendlier air than most other markets they had been to. A sense of familiarity came with the stop, something from Orion’s father’s life that he would never remember or know but always feel in the background of his current life- or so the family told him. In this life he had been brought up as their family and no one could argue differently. They protected him and he helped with the animals as much as possible. Orion did not necessarily recognize what type of supernatural people were. He recognized levels of mana within them- a special kind of energy supernaturals gave off. Pure humans were dull in their mana compared to others. The girl in his booth was less jarring to him than it seemed to be for her by the way her expression flickered. The boy felt the subtle hum of her mana differentiating her from the next person over. It was normal in his life, the Romani family around him consisted of shifters, witches and gifted humans. “What gives you the feeling it isn't real?” Whether Baba Violetta gave them true readings or not was not under question, but the reality of her gift. Orion had to laugh at such a question. “Do you want to go in and find out? She can't bite anymore,” he went on, his tone a dry humour. --- “The lack of a posted fee,” Rosalie smirked, nodding toward the sign again. “In Prague, people with the Sight expect to be very well paid. The fee is hefty and up-front.” It hadn’t been so much the realization that the young man was something else, but that he was both the young man she’d been considering hot and something else. For a moment, she bit her lower lip at his question, considering it. Did she want to find out? Maybe the fee was always just an excuse. If the Sight told her that she would never see her family again, what would she do? “Better not,” she shook her head, redirecting her attention to the assortments of herbs on the table. They looked to be good quality, and the selection was good. They would probably help out at the shop… “The city gets expensive. I think I would appreciate rent instead of my future told… especially if the Sight is wrong.” --- “Ah, well, the people of Prague know about sights.” The tone of his voice made it uncertain if he was being sarcastic or not. “It’s up to you, though Baba Violetta is one of the best. And, rent is overrated. It takes at least a month for them to kick you out.” Sitting forward from his perch, his smirk came with a touch of natural sleepiness. Dark brown hair a mess normally referred to as ‘bedhead’. Orion had the energy of a twenty foot bonfire within him, but the winter still had that hibernation affect. “Just here for the Fairytales or have an idea of what else to spend your rent on?” --- His tone was vague. Was that snark, or flirtation? Wishful thinking on her part, probably. Either way, her lips curved with amusement even as her eyes dropped away to the table again. Very blue, they were in stark contrast to the wisps of fiery red that peeked out from beneath her hat. “Baba - she's your grandmother?” It sounded like a grandmother name; her own had lovingly been referred to as ‘Lala’ when she was a child, not that she would have shared such a thing. “There's plenty to spend money on,” she shrugged. “Girls and shopping, I guess? But I need most things about as much as I need my fortune told.” Not that it would keep her from looking longingly at some of the more interesting goods -- handmade corsets with real boning, skirts that looked worthy of princesses, baubles that glittered temptingly. She could justify a few gifts for herself, but not everything. Still. When her eyes came back up, they were on the tent again. “The fairytales, though… those are the good part.” --- “Baba means crazy old woman that cures with spells.” Again his tone had that quality of sarcasm that made it uncertain to others if he was purposefully joking or not. The word in Romanian had many meanings, but it was used in his family as an honorific for the crazy old woman- a grandmother as much as she could be for him. His crystal blue eyes- bright as the flame of his other form- matched the storm of blues behind the edge of her hat and smirk to smirk. “We might have a charm for bringing in money; if you’re interested.” He shifted in seat as his gaze wandered suddenly away, then over to one of his cousins who stood close by. Jumping down from the counter, he held out his hand to the girl. “But you’ll have to step into the back of the next booth.” With his other hand, Orion pulled back a fabric curtain with bells and charms stitched into it, revealing a makeshift back room with specialty items on the shelves. “I think I’ve heard Cinderella in three different languages since the market started.” --- There was probably at least one fairytale making the rounds with a warning about stepping into the backs of makeshift shops with strangers - Romani strangers, no less. Her memories of the Travelers seemed long in the past, in the years when her parents had traded them a safe place to camp and supplies for transient work on their farm. Cutting wood, building fences, harvesting - things that they probably could have hired boys from the village for, as most others did. Her mother always laughed that the village boys were too spoiled for hard work, though, and nearly every year until she had been taken away there had been camps on the edges of their property. “Only three? Unless it's the one with the iron slippers, you haven't found the good storytellers.” Prague was always full of fairytales, ironic considering the number of creatures that called the city home. “The old, gruesome stories are the most fun.” Stories or not, though, Rosie took the offered hand, ducking behind the curtain to survey the hidden stock. --- “My favourite is the pale servant girl with the green eyes and rose-red slippers.” It was not the more gruesome of stories, but a deep part of him connected with being a different breed of servant in a strange land. That part of him tended to overcome his heart with sorrow, but he hid it well, reminding himself that he had no choice in what the fates have planned. Letting the curtain down behind them, Orion gestured towards the shelf of amulets. “Spend a little money to gain more money. They’re the best charms a witch can give.” Amongst the shelves beyond where his hand directed the eye, were various potions of a higher quality than the childish means of the potions on display for tourists. A few bottles in the corner glowed in various colours, their labels misnomers of their actual content but distinguishable to a trained eye. “So, what kind of human are you?” He asked nonchalantly. --- “The merchants from further north tell stories about Valkyries,” Rosalie offered, letting her fingers slip from his once they were past the curtain. Its soft jingling was enough to let her know that it had fallen back into place behind them. It was only a small barrier, but the difference was clear. The potions and tinctures displayed at the front of the booth were fine, but mundane. Here, they hummed with an essence of their own. Rosie might not have been a witch, but she had seen enough potions. They changed hands nimbly in the shop, disappearing into pockets or bags, paid for in cash or trade. The redhead was expected to avert her eyes and keep making soaps and shampoos, brewing concoctions to restore moisture and glow to tired skin, and generally keeping to the mundane side of things. But she still had a decent eye for things. His question earned him a look over her shoulder, lingering before she turned her attention back to the bottles. “Not such an interesting kind. I’m good with herbs. I’ve got… my mother would have called it a healer’s hands.” Another little shrug, this one self-conscious. “The fairytales are more interesting. I don't even have a wicked stepmother…” --- Orion would have preferred a less interesting fairytale for his life. Though, his family told him all that Talbot had told them of how the fae treated him and his time as a slave to them. They gave Orion all the warnings left behind by a Phoenix who had a gift of the gab, but there was a difference between heeding warnings and being forced to. Orion appreciated that his cousins kept close eye on him when they were at such markets that many supernatural creatures might walk amongst, making sure to keep him hidden from the Fae out there, he merely wished to stretch his wings more often. Stepping up behind her, a light smirk on his lips, he took up one of her hands again and examined it. “Healing hands, eh? That’s fairytale enough for the theme of this year’s Christmas Market. “I’m a healer too, though, I mostly work with our animals. My cousin, Bitsy, would like you. She has a natural talent for healing potions.” --- Rosalie found herself blushing when he took her hand again, letting him keep it until it had been thoroughly inspected. "There's not much magic to it," she demurred, her tone just a little self-conscious. And there wasn't, really. Not the way there was magic to what the witches did, or the Fae. She hadn't seen too much of the latter, but she knew that they had particular magic of their own. "Are you witches, then?" There were witches that dabbled in divination, after all, and others who specialized in healing. "Your family, I mean." Was that even okay to ask? She enjoyed his appreciation for healers; some people in the supernatural community tended to look down on them a bit, or to see them as weak. --- “We are a unique mix of things.” His laugh a deeper tone of amusement. “Picking up cousins from all over, we found our differences make the familia stronger.” Orion would not go into details about the span of supernaturals in her family, but ‘cousin’ was a generalized term that they used for most other travellers. His family more accepting of the various clans than others. He had shrugged at her admittance of not having much magic in what she did. He had not expected her to be a witch, he supposed, but she had more mana than a human and there was something different in her eyes. “Healing is an art that does not necessarily need the magic of a witch.” He paused. “I’m Orion.” --- “Very true,” she admitted, her lips quirking with a little smile. “Rosalie - it’s nice to meet you, Orion.” There was something about his manner that she found pleasantly steady. She’d had rather enough of brash, arrogant men in her life; Orion had a much more humble air about him, and Rosie enjoyed that. “Even if you’re trying to sell me money-making charms.” Honestly, he had done that well enough. She would have to buy one just to have an excuse to come back, either to buy another or to report on its effectiveness. “Prague is full of different types. Most of them are alright,” she offered, intentionally turning her eyes back toward the charms, browsing them. Buying one was already decided, but which was still up in the air. “But it’s always good to know a couple extra healers. There’s always something happening, it seems… there’s a lot of… politics, I guess.” --- “If they aren’t trying to eat or enslave you,” he joked. There was a pretty long list of the types he had to stay away from. The cousins could make deals, but Orion’s position in the family was not so much one of the men that went for odd jobs or making trades. “We try to stay out of gadje politics. Healing is for those in need not just those that want it.” He meant so much more than what was said. Vampires did not need healing but always wanted ways of making themselves stronger. Fae were fickle creatures that thought so low of anyone that wasn’t them. Orion’s family would help humans, witches, gifted and shifters before any other creature. A surge in the level of the mana around them came from just outside the small back room. Instinctively, deep red and orange feathers folded out of Orion’s skin on his arms and disappeared back again. There was a fae nearby or a group of high mana creatures. Either way, the Phoenix’s natural reaction came through. His breath caught in his chest and he froze, blue eyes snapping toward the curtain, even with the knowledge that the charms would keep them out. --- That comment brought her attention back, one red-gold brow arched. That wasn’t something she heard every day, she had to admit. Although she guessed it wasn’t untrue. Rosalie tended to steer clear of vampires, but she knew of more than one in the city who liked collecting humans with interesting gifts. The Fae, as well, had a habit of viewing gifted humans as collectors items, pets to be kept and showed off. It wasn’t an appealing existence for her, although there were some that seemed happy enough to be kept. They enjoyed a certain quality of life, at least until they became boring to their keepers. “Fair point. What does ‘gadje’ mean?” Her own accent made the word even stranger on her tongue, a French lilt only somewhat diminished by her time away from her homeland. The question ended up becoming unimportant, though, at his response to the change in energy. Her other brow went up, but after a moment she stole toward the curtained entrance, peering through the tiny gap to see what was outside. Fae, a handful of them browsing through the market. They didn’t look finely dressed, more like… oddly-made-up hipster club-goers. Not part of a Court, most likely. But Rosalie could sense their energy, and their appearances gave their race away -- their exotic looks, their almost ethereal beauty. Fae, certainly. “Just looking,” she soothed in a murmur after a moment, stepping back from the curtain. “They like looking at herbs and things… they come into the store all the time. I think the smells draw them.” --- “Who?” Orion’s ability to sense mana did not distinguish enough to tell the whats exactly. He had run into a few other creatures in their travels that had the same mana level as Fae, so a part of him always hoped that it was those creatures out there and not the Fae. Orion’s entire demeanor changed. When she had looked out the curtain, he had jumped back further into the small room and his arms twisted behind his back to hide the feathers that tried to give him his wings back to escape. --- “The Fae,” Rose offered, watching him move further back, observing his reaction. It wasn’t entirely difficult to believe -- he wouldn’t be the first creature to come to Prague as prey, and he probably wouldn’t be the last. “Just a few of them. Are you… is there someone looking for you, Orion?” It wasn’t an aggressive question; her tone was very gentle. But it seemed important to know if she was planning on hanging out with someone hunted. And his feathers hadn’t gone unnoticed. “I think only the vampires bother shifters, if that’s what you’re worried about…” --- Orion scoffed at her comment about vampires and ignored the previous question. She was cute and not gullible in the short interaction, but secrecy was an important part of his family life. He did not know where her own loyalties lay either; that had not been the point of any of the conversation. To hear her so easily talk about Fae coming into her shop did not breed trust in his panicked heart. “I’m not a shifter…” He murmured. “I need to go into the trailer, uh… did you want to get something from back here?” The further the Fae moved away the more he returned to the relaxed demeanor he had started with. Closing his eyes momentarily, he took a deep breath and when he opened them he had become focused again. His smile came back to his lips. “Unless you want something better. Bitsy probably has something conjured up.” --- No, the conversation hadn’t give him much -- that the shop wasn’t hers, for instance, or that she had no say at all in who or what came and went. Or that she viewed with a natural mistrust of her own, given their predilection for taking interesting humans as pets. “Oh.” He didn’t volunteer what he was, if he wasn’t a shifter, and Rosalie picked up on the idea that prying maybe wasn’t a good plan. Especially given how uncomfortable he seemed, how ready he appeared for her to leave. “Um, sure - yes, I was just… I’m not especially well-versed in charms? So if you have a recommendation…” She couldn’t see the Fae anymore, not since she had stepped away from the curtain, but she could assume that something had changed. Just the change in his demeanor was enough to tell her that. “Or if you think Bitsy would…” --- “Well, what do you think you need in your life?” That ease came back into full swing. His distrust hidden. Orion leaned over to one of the shelves and picked up a small charm with snakes moving in the four directions in gold. “This is one of the better for drawing in money, the only catch is that you need to have some adventure in your life to gain the correct energy. So if you’re into a more mundane existence it won’t work as well.” --- “Is falling prey to charming salesmen adventurous?” Rosalie’s smirk was amused despite the comment, and she moved to peer at the offered charm. “I try to stay as mundane as possible. Anything else is just inviting trouble, don’t you think? Some people with gifts enjoy being kept as pets, which is generally what happens to humans who flaunt their power too much.” Her nose wrinkled in distaste; that lifestyle really just wasn’t for her despite the praises a few sang of it. “There are too many things in the city that like that sort of thing.” --- “Not exactly the kind of adventure I meant, but to each their own. Not every adventure needs literal magic in it.” He laughed. “Falling prey to a charming salesmen would depend on how it ends. You might need another charm for that.” Orion teased. He would have Baba Violetta look into the girl to know if he needed to cut off any further interactions. Though, if she did go running to a Fae about him, they could easily pack up and go. It was what they were good at. Honestly, Orion needed friends that were not his cousins. “There’s a lot of cities that have those crowds hidden under the surface. I look for more nature driven fun… and some raves… but mostly cliff diving, hiking, bonfire type things are what I meant.” --- His laugh triggered her own grin. It was nice, a sound that she enjoyed as much as she enjoyed his more relaxed nature -- she hadn’t been entirely sure what to do when he had closed off. It had been so different, and so sudden. But then, perhaps he had a bad past with the Fae, or with some other group. Plenty of people did. There were shifters in the city that devolved into complete panic when they smelled a vampire, and other humans that felt the same about the Fae. Everyone had a history, she figured, and it wasn’t her job to go snooping around in them uninvited. “Ah, now that’s a much better sort of adventure, I think. And there’s lots to do around Prague, so you’re in luck. The parks are worth exploring, and there are places outside the city that are beautiful. And the rivers, of course -- the whole city loves the water.” Turning away, Rosalie retrieved her euros where they were hidden, tucked just inside the strap hidden beneath the top of her dress. They were safest there, of course, where they would not be slipped from her pocket or stolen with a purse. “It will do, and I’m sure that I’ll be back to discuss something more with your cousin when I’ve gained minor wealth from this one,” Rose teased in her turn. “How much money am I spending to make more?” --- “I've been here once before. Different Christmas market theme. We're actually just outside of one of the parks near some factories since they have more space for us to park our trailers.” Orion shrugged. “She has a talent, what can I say.” Orion did not dwell on the upset of the Fae presence in the market. His outlook on life came with a very fate driven ideal. Focusing on past pain did nothing for the future, even if it was caused by vague memories from another life. “20 euros, for a fellow healer.” --- “Not too much of my rent,” the redhead smiled, peeling off the notes and offering them up. “Money well spent, I’m sure.” If it would allow her to see him again, even moreso. He seemed a nice enough person, and it didn’t hurt that he was easy on the eyes. Besides, the idea that his family might be made up of many different kinds of creatures was interesting. He had suggested himself that a little adventure might improve her life, albeit in a roundabout fashion, and she didn’t think that she disagreed. She had been spending too much of her time in Prague working rather than living. “In Karlín? There are some interesting places popping up there. It’s a good part of the city,” Rosalie nodded. “I work in the Old Town, in a botanicals shop -- if any of you like that sort of thing. The owners source everything organically, they’re very eco-friendly.” It was no wonder the Fae were fond of the place. Although its products might have been refined, they were much less ‘corrupt’ than most things of that nature. “They make money, I make soaps,” she joked, completely aware that it was just the slightest bit lame. --- “Edge of Holešovice & Letná,” he offered. The city was split up into as many pieces as London had been when they travelled there. Most European cities had that quality really. Prague had a lot more parks though since the river ran through the middle. “We grow our own herbs, makes for better charms and portions when the ingredients know you and were brought up by you.” The statement while correct had a strange feel on his tongue. The concept felt Fae-like and something his last life's owner would have said about anything made from his tears or blood. “But, maybe I'll grab Bitsy and we'll come visit random botanical soap shop.” --- “Even nicer,” she offered approvingly. Karlín really wasn’t a bad area, but it was further from Old Town, and she personally enjoyed the more residential neighborhoods better. They were lovely, with interesting old buildings. Out of her price range, largely, but nice to visit and daydream about. “That makes sense. The things I make aren’t as serious as potions and charms, though. If I ever own my own place, then I can grow my own things.” There was a little shrug. “For now, it pays the rent.” The idea that his family traveled was turning slowly over in her brain. Perhaps if she saw him again, she would inquire about whether or not they had ever encountered anyone else like her. Or perhaps she would just pay the old woman for her services. Either way, the family could be a valuable connection to make (even without considering attractive young men of an age with her.) --- “See you around, Rose.” Pulling back the curtain, he let her out of the back room before nodding to her and disappearing into the trailer hidden by planks of wood that created the double stalled merchant booth. Another, older, man had replaced him out, front his gaze suspicious as the girl passed, and his demeanor far more gruff than Orion came off as. Slipping back into the trailer, Orion heard Baba Violetta call out for him. He'd get a run down of the dos and don'ts tonight… again. --- |