After he was sure that the little girl was satisfied with his answer, Zac resumes his work, entertaining patrons while they waited for their orders. It was a job he thoroughly enjoyed. Sure, it wasn't a big venue, but he didn't care about that kind of thing. Entertainment was his passion. As long as he could entertain people, he didn't care if he wound up poor. And, as an entertainer, he couldn't stand seeing someone upset.
While he was entertaining a couple as they waited for their orders, he couldn't help but notice a young, dark-haired woman leave the cafe. He wasn't sure why, but something about how quickly she left felt off to him. He quickly finishes up his act and walks over to the barista, saying, "Hey, I'm gonna take my break." The barista nods before turning to a customer while Zac heads into the staff room to grab his jacket before walking out of the front door and into the pouring rain.
Thankfully, due to the rain, it wasn't all that hard for Zac to find the umbrella the young woman had with her when she left, heading toward what he thought was Shiny Park. Pulling the hood of his jacket up over his head, he follows the umbrella into the park. He watched as the holder of the umbrella made her way to a spot near the center of the park, a bench underneath of a tree, where she sat. Even from where he stood, he could tell she was incredibly sad. Before he could move, however, a man approached her with an umbrella. The two spoke for a bit before the girl gave the man something and he began to walk away, toward Zac. The young magician would have just walked away, but, something about the girl's body language led him to believe she still wasn't as happy as she could be, so he began walking toward her.
On his way, Zac brushes shoulders with the man, who turns to him with a bashful smile as he pushes his glasses up his nose, apologizing. Zac merely grins back and says, "Don't worry about it," before facing forward once more as he steps in front of the young woman.
"Hey, miss," he gently says as he stands in front of her. Reaching out, he gently rests a hand on her shoulder and asks, "Are you okay?"
The Mistress of Death stares up at the unknown man who had approached her with a gaze that looked on the verge of tears. As seen by her watery eyes, Zac could quite clearly see that the girl's sadness might've been more intense than first thought. However, she seems to be calming drastically, having watched the young man who passed by Zac walk away. She nods slowly as she rubs her eyes, inhaling with an almost violent-sounding quiver in her breath, followed by several more deep breaths, causing her lungs to fill with cool, sharp air once more. The feeling was piercing, but at the same time, it was... strangely soothing. However... it also made her feel cold, metaphorically speaking.
"I-I'm OK," she answers, rubbing her hands together and breathing into them, "I'm OK... I'm just a bit shaken up, that's all... My friend's brother got into a crash today, s-so I'm a little shaken up. I'll be okay, I just need a moment..."
How many times would she use that excuse today? The thought made her feel even worse, though it didn't show anywhere but her eyes, which she wiped clear using her yellow and black scarf. "Sorry, I'm n-not usually like this..." She chuckles for whatever reason, wiping her eyes again as she tries to establish a sense of calm so the stranger wouldn't have to be brought into her little nest of sadness. Though she didn't know it, Zac was precisely the kind of person she needed right now, yet she wanted to do her best by not bringing him down, too.
With a forced smile, Ryoki looks up at the man who'd, unknowingly to her, come to her rescue. A prince, though not exactly in shining armour, had come to save her from herself, as well as the demons she housed, if only temporarily. Shou had done his part, and now it appears a new figure would come to deliver his...
"Achoo~!"
... as well as a cute case of the sniffles, too. Seems she'd been out in the rain for longer than she'd bargained for, and had become susceptible to a new kind of demon - the cold. She wraps her scarf around an extra layer, so it now covers her nose, hiding the red on her face that had formed out of embarrassment.
'Note to s-self: umbrellas do not save you f-from the sniffles...'
Even though the black-haired woman said she was fine, one look in her eyes was enough to tell Zac that was definitely not the case. Taking a seat next to the girl, he can't help but chuckle as she sneezes and covers her face, though he could still see a tinge of red on her cheeks. "Sounds like you might be catching a cold," he says, stating the obvious.
Rising to his feet, he gives the girl a warm, friendly smile despite the chill in the air and says, "Let's get you someplace warm before that sneeze gets worse. I'm Zac, by the way."
"Oh, n-no, really, I'm oka- achoo~!" Ryoki sniffles. She'd caught a cold. How on Earth that had happened, she had no idea, however it became rather apparent rather quickly. "... M-my name's Ryoki. Pleased to meet you, Zac." She says with a smile that was much more natural, standing herself as she withheld sneezing again. "Since we're in Shiny Park, there are lots of places we can go... Do you need an umbrella, by the way? You can share mine, if you want, until I buy one for you."
'Stupid sweets giving me the cold... Stupid, stupid, stupid!' She was a little annoyed at herself for sneezing like this, but at least it was a step up from being down in the dumps and weeping to herself. At least now her mind was on the present, and not the past. At least now, she was talking to someone who seemed genuinly concerned about her well-being, despite the two only just meeting. At least now... she wasn't crying.
Seeing a more comfortable smile on Ryoki's face, Zac smiles, himself, happy he could cheer her up at least a little. Hearing her question, he chuckles and says, "Oh, you don't have to buy me one. This jacket's enough. But, since you're offering, I wouldn't mind sharing your umbrella."
Slipping his hands into his pockets, Zac starts to walk alongside Ryoki, smiling as he listens to the rain against her umbrella. Looking down at her, he asks, "So, you know any good spots around here? I've only been here for a couple of weeks and I'm still trying to learn my way around." Which is a chore in and of itself, considering my lack of direction, he adds silently.
"Well..." She trails off as she thought of all the places they could go, before coming to a pretty easy conclusion. "How about the arcade? My sister might also be there, DJ-ing for the comp that's going down." The choice was easy, really. She wasn't hungry, and didn't feel like doing anything else, so playing games and catching up with her sister, who needed a talking to almost as much as Ryoki did, was about as good a call as any. "So you're new here? Well, I can't exactly give the best tour at this time of year, though perhaps when it's a little less rainy I could show you around...? I grew up in this city, but Upscale Heights is my specialty."
If he knew of Upscale Heights, then he'd know that it was filled with rich folk. That meant one of two things: either Ryoki was a thief, or she was also rich, though of course if he didn't know the area then neither would occur. "It's funny - normally I'd be flirting with him by now, but today it's different... Must be the weather..." She accidentally thought aloud, speaking her mind as she looks down in thoughtfulness.
Zac grins and says, "I'd definitely appreciate a tour. Though, I'm not entirely sure if any directions you give me would stay in my mind for long. I'm not the best navigator out there."
Hearing Ryoki think aloud, Zac can't help the blush that comes to his face. Clearing his throat, he opens his mouth to reply, only to stop as they come across a store. Looking into the large window, Zac sees that it's an anime merchandise store. "Oh, I didn't know this was here," he says with a grin. "I might have to swing by here sometime."
"Well, maybe we should get you a map, then?" Ryoki jokes, though in all honesty it wasn't a bad idea. "Or maybe a GPS...? That way it might help you better..." She appears to be giving the idea some serious thought, though her attention is pulled away from her thoughts as soon as he mentions the store, causing Ryoki to stop...
... and stare... very intently...
"Z-Z-Zac, please t-tell me that b-book in the window... I-it's the next issue of T-the Sixth Brave Flower, right...?" She asks as she points out a book in the bottom corner of the stores window. She doesn't even wait for him to reply as she suddenly charges at the window, slamming her cheek against it as she becomes overwhelmed by an intense level of excitement that was rare even for her. "Oh my god, this is the best day ever! It's been ages since the last novel; I absolutely, positively, must buy it now, right now! There is no greater pleasure for me as I imagine the incredibly handsome Adler Mayet as he fights the hordes of demonic monstrosities all by himself -- not with the aid of his friends, but by himself -- as he single-handedly works out who the fake in the group really is! It's glorious!"
... And all that was said in under fifteen seconds...
Her breathing turns heavy, as she stares with a creepy intensity that went unmatched by any and all stalkers, as she spun right around, grabbed Zac by the collar, and dragged him inside to help her in her exploit.
Hearing Ryoki's excited voice, Zac tries to look at what she was looking at, only to suddenly be pulled into the shop with a surprised yell, giving him no time to try to figure out what Ryoki was talking about. Once inside of the shop, he's pulled over to the shelves of manga, where he finally sees the object of Ryoki's excitement: The Sixth Brave Flower. Seeing it, he can see why she's so excited. "I didn't know this came out!" he says with a grin, pulling the manga off of the shelf. Holding it in front of Ryoki, he says, "I didn't think you'd be a fan."
"Of course I'm a fan! It's like the best thing to come out this year!" Exclaims a rather excited Ryoki as she bounces around in a giddy, almost childish excitement, making her chest bounce around all the same. "Please tell me there's another copy somewhere...!" She smiles as she searches the shelves which they'd found it on, though unfortunately, no such luck. "Aww... There's no more...?" She asks, looking to be on the verge of crying again, though this time it was the kind of sadness one had when something bad, but not exactly horrible, had happened. The kind of sadness one would get when the strawberry on their cake had been stolen, for example.
Seeing how happy Ryoki was about the manga, Zac can't help but grin. He wasn't sure why, maybe it was the energy she seemed to have, but he found himself drawn to the young woman. When he saw her become disheartened after realizing that was the only copy, he felt he had to rectify the situation. Plus, if it goes well, then this wouldn't be the only time he'd see her. "I have an idea," he says. "I'll buy the manga and you can read it. Then, when you finish, you call me and we can meet up somewhere so you can give it to me?"
At hearing the idea, Ryoki's eyes went wide with surprise. She'd bought all the copies up until now, and really wanted to own her own version of this one, too. However, with the situation so dire, the Raven couldn't afford to take any chances, and knew that requesting she keep it would be a whole new level of selfish for her. She wasn't going to pass this up, though.
"Alright! You've got a deal! Though I'm paying for half!" She says, her excitement giving way for a newfound kindness in her tone. The truth was, she couldn't quite afford to pay for half of it. If she did, she'd be putting herself in financial trouble until she-
'Wait a minute... I have a shift at the casino tonight! Yes! Haha! Screw you, empty wallet!'
With her thoughts made up, she produces her purse and takes out the amount of yen that roughly equates to half of the manga's price, rounding upwards, just to make sure. Though it left her purse with little more than pocket change, Ryoki was feeling very good about herself and making this transaction. Yes, this was perfect! Her ominous giggle confirmed it so!
Zac holds out his hand and accepts the money from Ryoki before reaching into his own pocket for the rest of it. His own wallet felt considerably lighter afterwards, having yet to get his first check from the cafe, but the prospect of making this young woman happy, as well as the fact that he'd get to enjoy the manga afterwards, though he'd gladly 'forget' about that part of the deal, outweighed the cost.
Leading the happy and energetic Ryoky to the counter, he pays for the manga before turning to her. Checking the time, he says, "I still have a good half hour, forty five minutes left until I have to be back at the cafe. Anything you wanna do?" He wouldn't complain if he was late, though, even if it were his first day. He enjoyed Ryoki's company too much to care about something like that.
"As much as I want to go home, hide under a rug, and read through my bible (Rokka), that's just a bit disrespectful." Ryoki grins a childish grin, like she were tempted to do it, anyway. "But there's lots we can do before that: gaming at the arcade? Maybe going ice skating? Or perhaps a little shopping spree? Though admittedly, I don't have much money on me right now." She giggles and smiles at Zac as they head out of the shop. "Maybe visit an Internet or manga cafe? Ooh, or maybe a show! You're an entertainer, right?"
Zac laughs as he listens to Ryoki animatedly give him suggestions on what they could do next. "Well, a manga cafe doesn't sound too bad," he says. "It'd give you a chance to read through that, after all. Either that or we could find somewhere and I could put on a little magic act for you." Grinning, he adds, "We wouldn't have to bother paying for a ticket that way, either."
"Both of those are great! Wait a minute..." Her tone takes a sudden turn - inquisitive. "Aren't you on your break? It's not fair to have you do a show on your break. Unless you want to practice, which is fine by me." Ryoki seems more inclined to go to the manga cafe, though realises it would probably turn out antisocial and boring, unless...
"Hey, I just realised: if we go to the cafe, we can read the manga together! That sounds pretty cool, right?" She asks excitedly. It might be a little weird, but at the same time, Ryoki thought it'd be fun. It'd give the two time to do something they both enjoyed, whilst giving Zac the break he needed, as well as getting a head start in 'The Sixth Brave Flower'. "Sound fun?"
Hearing Ryoki ask if Zac was on his break, he tilts his head in confusion. Then, in a moment of worry as he remembers he had a job, he checks the time, sighing as he sees he still has time left. When she makes her suggestion of the both of them reading the manga together, he grins and says, "That's actually a great idea. You know a good place nearby?"
In all honesty, he didn't mind what they did together. Zac was enjoying the time they were spending together and he'd be lying if he said he wanted to go back to work any time soon.
"Of course I do! I know this place like the back of my hand! Shine Junction has a section that's a lot like Akihibara, and there's a manga cafe in there." She says as she begins leading Zac by the hand, having unknowingly grabbed it as she started speed-walking ahead. "C'mon! Let's get going!"
Today really had turned out very much like a roller coaster for Ryoki, but despite all of the downs... the ups were all worth it.
When Ryoki takes Zac's hand and begins to pull him along, the young magician can't help but smile as he follows, his fingers gently curling around Ryoki's hand as his face reddens. When he followed that sad girl just a short while ago, he hadn't expected to become such fast friends with her. Of course, he thinks, I don't mind being friends with a cute girl like her. That said, he increases his speed until he's walking side-by-side with Ryoki, holding onto her hand only as long as she would want him to.
She doesn't seem aware of the fact she had him held by the hand until he walks side-by-side with her, at which point she suddenly comes to the realisation of what she'd done. With a yelp a lot like a puppy's, Ryoki retracts her hand and recoils, using it instead to calm her beating her. "I-I'm sorry, I didn't realise I grabbed your..." Her face flushes a deep red; Ryoki's social awkwardness and complexity knew no bounds, it seems. She doesn't let this impede their progress, however, as she begins a steady march towards the manga cafe, be it with Zac's hand in hers or not was up to him. She didn't really mind the fact they'd held hands, though admittedly she should've asked him first.
Zac chuckles and rubs the back of his head sheepishly, saying, "It's alright." His face steadily growing redder, he looks away and adds, "I mean...if you want to, I wouldn't be opposed to holding your hand..." After a moment, he looks back and asks, "What other manga and anime are you interested in? I recently saw one show about a badass vampire."
Ryoki gasps exasperatedly, making a comical sound that is something of a surprised screech. "You mean Ultimate Hellsing, right? Right?!" She asks excitedly. It wasn't often she could openly talk to someone about anime and manga so freely, so Ryoki wasn't afraid of making her interests known. "It was really scary, that anime, but I liked it! I get scared by a lot of things, you see, especially stuff with lots of death, but that anime, huhuhuhuhuhuhuuuuuu~!" She spoke with haste, as though she had to get out what was on her mind, before recalling what he mentioned about holding her hand. "Oh, uh, sure! I hold hands with people all the time, so it's no big deal!"
That was another half-truth. She only really held hands with family or Kaori - nobody else. Although it was slightly strange for her, she wasn't as effected by the close contact as most would. After all, growing up alone in a mansion for seventeen years of your life will make you just a little socially inept.
Zac laughs and takes Ryoki's hand in his once more as he says, "Yeah, that's it. I've only seen a couple of episodes of it, but I read the manga. I gotta say, I didn't really expect the turn it took with the Nazis. That was something."
Soon, the two of them arrive at the cafe and step inside. After checking the time once more, he says, "I have half an hour to spend here, as well as the money I have in my wallet." Grinning, he says, "Let me know if there's anything you'd like to eat or drink and I'll get it. I still have enough for that, at least."
"Oh, don't worry about that! I've already had more than enough to eat already! A girl needs to watch her figure, after all." Although Ryoki wasn't always overly concerned by her weight, seeing as it always went to the most important places, she still wanted to keep it in mind. She knew genetics could only hold out for so long, and she was willing to bet she was approaching her limit. Once they enter, Ryoki locates a nice double booth for the both of them, taking a seat at the table for two as she tosses her things under the table. "Ah, I love coming here...! It's always so nice...!"
Feeling a little fun, Ryoki smirks as she lets Zac in on one of the manga cafe's biggest secrets. "Hey, wanna hear something cool~?" She asks in her signature, devilish tone. It wouldn't take a genius to figure out there were some dirty implications behind her words. "The booths here are soundproof. It helps keep the atmosphere here calm and relaxed, but... well, there are some activities you can overhear people committing in the booths beside you if you listen hard enough." Ryoki giggles naughtily. Well, this was a sudden change in her nature for Zac...
"But that's not important. C'mon, sit! We need to start reading!"
Just as Zac was slipping into the booth next to Ryoki, she asked if he wanted to hear something 'cool'. Thinking it would be about some anime she saw or manga she read, he turns his attention to her, only for his face to turn scarlet when she mentions certain 'activities,' accompanied by a naughty-sounding giggle. Unsure of what to say, he pulls out the manga he bought for them and says, "Uh, I-I see...That's certainly, um...interesting..."
