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Post by Stella Riordan on Aug 2, 2014 17:59:18 GMT -5
”Ah. Thank you.” A girl in a green jacket spoke in a polite manner as she had received her beverage. Stella was rather fond of coffee, though she found the coffee here never held up to the coffee she had at home. It was a shame this was the only cafe in death city that she knew of. Honestly, the girl hadn’t spent much time exploring the city. ”So, Cecil, do you come here often?”
The person the girl spoke to sat in the seat opposite her. Cecil Amier, demon weapon “extraordinaire” as he would say. Her partner, to be specific. The two had just come back from a mission in Quebec, where they had obtained their first kishin egg. It had certainly been the experience, as Stella had been severely injured at the end of the fight. But nonetheless the team had won. Stella really only found the injury as a slight annoyance. ”I was going to drag you to a cafe in Quebec, but that would have proved to be rather difficult.”
After she spoke these words, the girl took a sip of her coffee. Though she didn’t expect Cecil to comment on these words, he certainly had ample time to do so. However, speaking of such things had reminded her that they’d have to decide what kind of mission to go on once the girl had healed. She had picked the last one, so she figured it’d only be fair for Cecil to pick the next one. Despite the fact the boy most likely did not wish to speak about such things right now, probably still a bit shaken up about dealing with the wendigo-esk kishin, Stella would ask him anyway. She was no longer shaken up by the whole ordeal, after all. ”So, why don’t you pick our next mission? Anything in particular you have in mind?
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Cecil Amier
Weapon
Demon Butterfly Swords
All the world's a stage, and I the leading actor
Posts: 46
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Post by Cecil Amier on Aug 4, 2014 3:03:46 GMT -5
"Yes, thank you." A boy in a blue scarf said as he and Stella were served their beverages. Though his words and tone were polite, he gave the maid waiting them a subtle, cold look, almost as if to convey something of a sensitive nature. Cecil was rather indifferent to coffee; back home there were a lot of cafes but none that seemed particularly appealing to the young Demon Weapon. He thus didn't have a very refined taste for different sorts and blends.
"Me? No,I wouldn't think to come to a place like this on my own. I'd rather not associate myself with the kind of folks who are regular patrons here." Cecil answered, bringing his attention back to the person who sat opposite of him. Stella Riordan, meister of the one and only Demon Weapon Extraordinaire. The two were still recovering from their mission in Quebec. It was an awful experience; unpleasant weather, a gruesome beast, and perhaps worst of all, Stella had been injured in the ordeal. He also had to eat his first Kishin Egg like a plebeian as a result. Eck.
And Cecil had to dispose of the clothes he had worn that day; so caked with blood, it was far less effort to get rid of then to try and wash it all out. And even if he could have, he likely wouldn't think to wear it again. He rather felt that he didn't need to be reminded of that experience.
Cecil took a small sip of his coffee, trying to keep his nerves calm and collected. Stella was acting rather nonchalant, wasn't she? "Quite." He replied simply. Rather difficult? More akin to impossible, given he was the one who had to "drag" her around after that fight.
The boy had been avoiding direct eye contact ever since they go back from Quebec; frankly, he was expecting at any moment for her to reprimand him for allowing her to get hurt like she had been. What sort of extraordinary weapon lets their meister sustain an injury like that? He should have done something to prevent it. He should have done a better job at keeping her safe. And the fact he couldn't, the fact she suffered because of his incompetence, was filling Cecil with all sorts of layered and conflicting emotions to deal with. "Hmm? Fine. How about this time we go for somewhere more urban. No more wilds for a while. Air conditioning is always a perk, as far as I'm concerned." He answered. Truly, he'd just rather they not wander so far away from civilization again; carrying her unconscious body a long distance, bare-chested, didn't exactly leave him thrilled at the prospect of more out-doorsy missions.
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Post by Stella Riordan on Aug 4, 2014 14:48:00 GMT -5
”Yea, that makes sense.” Stella said in response to Cecil’s reasoning for not coming to this cafe very often. The place was a maid cafe, after all. Kind of odd for Death City’s seemingly only cafe to be such, as a lot of people didn’t like the sort of company said kinds of cafes invited. Herself included. It was a good thing she was with company, as the girl didn’t know how she’d fare if she was confronted by a creep or something.
Cecil seemed to be a bit distraught by something. He seemed to be constantly looking down, and also seemed rather distracted by his own thoughts. The latter didn’t bother the girl that much, but the refusal to look directly at her was beginning to get tiresome. Was he mad at her or something? Perhaps it was because the boy had had to sacrifice some of his clothing to stop her bleeding, or perhaps it was because he had had to carry her while she was unconscious to safety. Those events were more than worthy to be mad over. It would just be a matter of time until the boy mentioned it...
Trying to figure out what people were thinking was difficult. Stella wasn’t very good at it, either. So, for now, she’d just ignore any of her suspicions. However, this was made significantly harder when Cecil had replied to her question. Stella quickly darted her eyes to the side. So he was upset about them having to be so far away from any civilization last time? Truly he was mad about having to carry her then... ”Ah, right. Sure.” She said.
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Cecil Amier
Weapon
Demon Butterfly Swords
All the world's a stage, and I the leading actor
Posts: 46
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Post by Cecil Amier on Aug 9, 2014 14:41:36 GMT -5
Cecil took another slow sip of his coffee. Why was Stella being so quiet? She darted her eyes away in response to his last comment. What's her deal? Granted, he wasn't looking at her straight either, but still. His grip on his cup tensed in irritation. He quickly took another sip.
Why hadn't his meister said anything? Was she holding back disparaging comments simply because he got her to safety in time? That wouldn't have been an issue if he had done his job properly in the first place! Stella didn't owe anything to him. He assured her that he'd be the finest weapon she could get her hands on, and he betrayed his word! She'd have every right to drop him as her partner. But she hadn't so much as commented on his failures.
For as much Cecil hated it when people were not around to recognize his strengths, his triumphs, he hated it oh so more when people would act as if though he did fine when he hadn't. Sure, he certainly acts as such, typically. But that doesn't mean he simply ignores his reception. And he'd rather be jeered off stage than be faced with silence. That was the greatest insult, he felt. It meant that no one cared... no one cared at all.
Taking a deep breath, Cecil tried to relax his muscles. Was that it? Was Stella so disappointed in him she couldn't stand to so much as reprimand him? Does she have so little faith that he could improve upon his failings? Was she content to let him stew in his mediocrity? He set down his cup. "You're not doing me any sort of favor by doing this, you realize?" He let slip from his mouth in a flat tone. He was beginning to quietly seethe, and wasn't entirely privy to the fact he had said that out of the context of his own thoughts.
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Post by Stella Riordan on Aug 9, 2014 16:09:45 GMT -5
Cecil continued to appear agitated. It was getting worrisome now. He was all tense, though the boy might have figured Stella wouldn’t notice. Though now that she thought about it, she was tense as well. Perhaps Cecil was simply picking up on her negative vibe and acting accordingly.
Stella would have loved to fully believe that to be the case. Of course, she knew it not to be true. She had been acting fairly calmly until she noted how tense Cecil seemed. Eck. He was really mad with her, wasn’t he? Not good. Hopefully the two of them would be able to patch things out before Stella had fully healed. But, what if they couldn’t? Would Cecil go to find a more skilled meister? That’d make sense for him to want to do... It certainly wouldn’t be difficult. Stella wasn’t skilled in the slightest. The problem was that she didn’t really know anyone who she could possibly partner up with.
If the girl wasn’t already worried, her partner’s next words certainly would have caused her to panic. Not doing him any sort of favor? What did he mean by that? Stella blinked. She was staring at Cecil, her face seemed mostly confused but also a bit panicked. This stare only lasted for a few seconds, however, as the girl quickly shifted her eyes back downwards. It looked as though she had basically ducked, actually. The movement could be defined as rather cute if there wasn’t as much tenseness in the air.
”Uhm...” The girl begun, still avoiding eye contact. What on earth was she supposed to say? Stella didn’t even know what exactly he was mad about! There were so many things for him to be ticked at her for. Eck. She could just apologize in a vague manner. Asking Cecil why he was so upset didn’t seem like the best of plans. So, Stella looked back up at him, tried to make eye contact but still felt her eyes drifting off to the side, and spoke in a rather quiet voice. ”Well, sorry, then.”
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Cecil Amier
Weapon
Demon Butterfly Swords
All the world's a stage, and I the leading actor
Posts: 46
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Post by Cecil Amier on Aug 12, 2014 19:20:18 GMT -5
"Sorry?" Cecil repeated, "you... you're sorry?" He set his eyes on Stella , who seemingly shrunk down into her seat. He set his palm, splayed, onto the table, "don't be so absurd!" He cringed, and pinched the bridge of his nose. He leaned back in his seat. "Being sorry doesn't help at all!" Crossing his arms across his chest, he looked back down at his coffee, "...even if you were to have something to be sorry about." he added under his breath.
Before continuing on, he took another sip of coffee. Getting mad at Stella would help nothing either. "Just... just fix the problem." He said with an irritated twinge to his voice. He put the coffee cup back down, and refocused himself on the cowed Stella, leaning forward in his seat. "Well? Lay it on me!" He tensed his fingers and his gaze faltered, "t-tell me off already! Yell at me, whatever." His voice was gradually lowering alongside his head. "Tell me what I could've done better, where I went wrong. Just don't ignore me... surely you must think I failed you. That a better weapon than I would've kept you safe."
His eyes started to moisten, and Cecil kept his face firmly hidden away. Some hair fell out of place, falling forward. Typically he would've swept it back into place, but not this time. He was too busy reprimanding himself for going on like that. He just seemed even more pathetic now, didn't he? This wasn't in the least bit admirable, heroic, strong.... extraordinary.
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Post by Stella Riordan on Aug 12, 2014 22:48:14 GMT -5
Stella’s apology had not exactly been well received, as it seemed. She wasn’t expecting it to, honestly. But now Cecil was even more worked up. Eck. She should have just stayed quiet. This wasn’t going well. Cecil’s words made Stella sink even further into her chair. Being sorry didn’t help? She knew that. He didn’t need to remind her.
Soon enough after his initial outrage, Cecil spoke again. “Fix the problem”, he said. Stella had absolutely no idea what this meant, so she once again looked up. Cecil begun to speak again, though his eyes never met hers. Probably for the best, as Stella would have ended up ducking for cover again if they had. Cecil’s words were certainly surprising, though.
He was pinning all the blame on himself? How was that even possible?! Cecil had had no control over the situation. Every movement Stella had made were her own decisions, and therefore she was the one who had to pay the price for them. It made no sense to her for Cecil to blame himself.
But, in a way, it was also kind of funny. So, Stella was scared that Cecil was mad at her, and Cecil was scared that Stella was mad at him. A simply misunderstanding that had caused the two quite a bit of worry. The whole thing was so funny that Stella begun to quietly giggle to herself. She tried to muffle the noises with her hand, but soon enough the noise was loud enough to have without a doubt be heard by Cecil.
Once the girl had ceased her laughing, she spoke up. She had to make it clear that she wasn’t laughing at him, after all. ”Sorry about that. It’s just kind of funny, is all.” She spoke in between short breaths. ”I mean, I thought you were going to reprimand me for messing up. I didn’t know you thought it was your fault...” Her last words trailed off as she took another sip of coffee.
Stella was still kind of fumbling for the proper words. When did she get so bad at this sort of thing? Eck. Whatever. He had to get the gist of it, right? Cecil wasn’t an idiot. Stella looked up at him again just to see if his expression had changed at all. Instead, she noticed something off. His hair was all out of place. Odd, Stella was sure she had never seen him without perfectly kept hair before. So, the girl reached out and fixed it for him. There. Much better.
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Cecil Amier
Weapon
Demon Butterfly Swords
All the world's a stage, and I the leading actor
Posts: 46
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Post by Cecil Amier on Aug 15, 2014 2:53:18 GMT -5
Cecil kept staring down, absolutely awash in bitter disappointment, mostly in himself. That was, until he heard... laughter? What? Did Stella think this some sort of joke? What could that girl be thinking? Granted, she'd never seen Cecil act in this manner before... perhaps it would be best if he tried playing it off as one? Save some face. Yes, all just a jest! The Demon Weapon Extraordinaire does not show any weakness, it was but a simple ruse!
He slowly looked up, his hair for the most part covering his still moistened eyes. Reprimand her for messing up? Why, that was absurd. She performed very admirably. The odds were oh so stacked against their favor and she pulled through. Of course he was to shoulder the blame, it is the Weapon's job to keep their meister safe! If he had been more diligent in directing her, if he had come up with some better plans before hand, she wouldn't have been injured like she was. Not to mention Cecil's little... outburst, in the middle of the fight. The fact she was able to keep her cool in the midst of his panic attack surely saved them both.
Well, it seemed like the tension in the air eased up. That helped calm Cecil's nerves. He straightened his posture out and flexed his fingers a bit. And then Stella reached forward. What. He was too stunned to pull back, as her soft fingers caressed his brow slightly, pushing his hair back in place.
With a slight, but evident, blush upon his face, Cecil leaned back and averted his eyes. "E-excuse you," he uttered, haltingly, running his own hand through his hair to make doubly sure every strand was in place. He grabbed his cup and quickly brought it up to take a sip, glancing briefly back at Stella. Oh darn, he was about out. He set it back down, "but... thank you." He said under his breath, in apparent reference to the grooming, but also in helping set his mind at rest for the time being.
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Post by Stella Riordan on Aug 15, 2014 13:11:47 GMT -5
Cecil hadn’t said much in regards to whether he understood what Stella was saying or not. He simply remained quiet. The only response Stella got from her words was Cecil seeming to loosen up a tad. She also felt less tense, at the very least. At least he wasn’t calling her an idiot, or something. It also looked as though the two would be fine to continue to be partnered. That was also good. It looked like she had nothing to worry about.
The action of her brushing his hair to the side finally caused him to speak up. As expected, it had bothered him somewhat. The boy blushed slightly, clearly embarassed for not being able to manage his own hair. Stella stifled another giggle. Cecil was quite the easy one to read sometimes, even for her. Stella wasn’t exactly the best at reading others’ emotions, but she supposed she was decent at it when she knew someone well enough.
”No problem.” The girl spoke, in an unusually honeyed tone. A tone meant to be jesting at Cecil’s defensiveness, though he might have taken it a different way. Stella was a bit oblivious to such things, though. Besides, she was getting bored. Now that that was out of the way, there wasn’t much for the two of them to talk about. On top of that she had just about finished her coffee. So, the redhead stood up slowly as to make sure to not stretch out her side at all, and spoke. ”How about we get going, then?” Then she remembered something. Eck. They still had to pay, didn’t they? The girl paused in her a movement for a second, then turned her attention back to Cecil. ”You’ll be paying, of course.”
((Annnnd thread end))
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