september catch-all { fabric of shame and sorrow's name

[matermali]

WHO: Vanessa Ives (matermali) & Others
WHAT: Friends, food, and fortune.
WHERE: Around town.
WHEN: September
WARNINGS: Cannabis use, blood magic.

( ooc; HMU with a PM or at cherto if you’d like a starter. Vanessa can get up to all sorts of trouble, or maybe even try to help someone out of it. I'll also be throwing her at the meeting log asap.

You may want to check her permissions for possible content warnings and an opt-out. )

Comments

[culver]

[Shopping in general is foreign to Nill; Heine would always just show up with neat packages of clothing from Granny Liza's shop and leave them around the church for her. She's always felt more than a little guilty about it, knowing he was using his own money to pay, since she didn't have any of her own. It's one of the long list of things that makes her feel not only indebted to Heine, but in awe of him.

But this isn't really shopping, is it? No money is required--and she's letting Vanessa make most of the decisions, entirely out of her element when it comes to choosing her own clothes. She likes the dresses made of softer material, the lace, but doesn't want anything as fancy as what Bishop and Granny Liza preferred. She ends up with several bags of clothes, which is more than she's ever owned of anything in her lief.

And shopping with someone else, someone who asks her opinions, is a new experience that she hasn't yet decided if she likes or not. It's overwhelming, but so are most things, here.

They break for lunch, which is a big relief to Nill, and it doesn't occur to her to ask why they're going in through the back door instead of the front. She's never been to a café, after all. She's never been out to eat in the first place. But this place--this kitchen is charming, and the smell of bread and the sight of all the utensils and little knick-knacks is homey. She likes it.

Nill moves towards the island as directed, and then scrunches up her nose as she thinks. A wish? She's just hungry. But she looks around, eventually finding an image of a kind of pastry that looks like it has apples on top, and points to it. How about that?]

[matermali]

[ She had been prepared to read a message, but when she catches Nill scanning the room, she'll quietly follow with her own gaze. Already noticing where the girl focuses before needing to point, Vanessa wears a small but pleased smile at the selection. Another sweet tooth.

Her disappearance is momentary, and when she returns back through the curtain, she's carrying two baked tarts. When one is lowered for Nill to offer her approval or dismissal, she can see that the small tart is filled with berries and delicately arranged apple slices that are gently browned from the oven. Both tarts have been drizzled with a syrup that makes the apples glisten in the light, and they smell as if they could have been baked fresh just that morning.

Vanessa is certainly giving it her vote. ]

Will this suit?

[culver]

[The smile on Vanessa's face tells her that she chose well--which is a relief, even if it shouldn't have to be. Slowly but surely, she's learning that. She watches Vanessa leave and return, and her eyebrows shoot upwards as she spots the fresh pastries the woman is holding. Where did she get them? How were they ready so quickly?

Another unsettling thing about this place to add to the list.

She looks down at the treat; it looks too good to eat, too perfect. Nill feels... a little bad that she thinks such a thing, after Vanessa was nice enough to take her out for the day and now feed her. So at the question she nods emphatically, and delicately picks up the pastry to take a small bite. Her eyes light up, and she nods again--it's perfect, and delicious.]

[matermali]

[ Her chuckle comes in a near-silent huff, charmed by Nill's clear delight in the treat. From what little she knows about where she comes from, Vanessa can guess she didn't have ready access to treats like this.

For the moment, Vanessa's tart is left behind while she drags some stools from the corner over, and she'll even hold out a hand to help Nill onto one should she like, though she'll be subtle in the gesture so as not to seem insulting. They aren't too tall, but it might be an awkward attempt while she's carrying a pastry. ]

Do you know that I did not eat nor drink a single thing for the first three days I was in this city?

[ Once Nill is seated, Vanessa will settle down herself. ]

On the mere chance that consuming anything might damn me here for eternity. A ridiculous notion I now understand, but I was of a different humor at the time.

[culver]

[Nill has seen far more pictures of desserts than she's ever eaten, so she's certainly taking the time to savor this one. But she does pause long enough to accept Vanessa's help up on to the stool, and sits comfortably while enjoying the pastry.

Her eyes go a little wide at the admission, but sympathy soon crosses her face. She knows what it feels like to goes day without food or water, though she's never abstained by choice. It must have been terrible, she thinks, to be in such an unfamiliar place and also not have anything to eat.

Her brows draw together, and she shakes her head slightly, trying to convey that she doesn't think it's all that ridiculous. If Heine and Badou hadn't been here, there's no telling what she might have believed about this place herself. She reaches across the counter towards Vanessa, but stops short of getting close enough to touch her. But the intent is there, even as she pulls her hand back to rest in front of herself.]

[matermali]

[ While she may have first thought to find silverware to enjoy it, she’s one to enjoy the simpler act of eating it as Nill does, taking a little bite while considering just how loathe she had been to even smell such temptations in the beginning. Has she actually improved since then, though? The wrongful focus of her resentments may have only shifted rather than vanished.

The movement catches her off guard, only because it’s toward her, and she feels for a moment as like she had been in the midst of the realm of the fae after all, and had come so close to nearly being touched by one. Or perhaps something like a unicorn—far more benevolent of a beauty.

Though the smile she bears at the motion is small, it trembles, and it takes her a moment longer than necessary to finish her bite. She is no maiden to lure in such sweet creatures, after all, and the poor girl has been tainted enough by dark things. Yet, the very thought that Nill might think to comfort her is enough to tighten her throat and soften her gaze. ]

Worry not, I was eventually convinced to find some sense again; as much as can exist in a city such as this. I can only wonder just how your dear friends must have attempted to explain the nature of this city to you.