You feel a tingling sensation in the back of your head. Someone attempts to make contact with you.

You have established contact with Ophelia.

The image of Ophelia sits in the garden, an empty glass on the seat beside her. "Erika, are you busy?"

To the image of Ophelia, Erika shakes her head, and says, "Just finishing up giving standing orders. What's going on?"

The image of Ophelia says "Dalt said we needed to talk. Can I come to you?"

To the image of Ophelia, Erika nods, extending a gloved hand.

You offer to pull Ophelia through.

Ophelia grasps your hand and you pull her through.

Ophelia has arrived.

Erika grins. "Hey."

Ophelia brushes off her behind as she stands from the seat and steps through. "Hey." A glance around. "Have you ever been to this really nice coffee shop they have in town here? It's got a dueling strip down the middle of it, and the best hot cocoa."

Erika's grin widen, and she shakes her head. "Lead the way, I'd love to go there though. How are you doing?"

Ophelia smiles at Erika and turns towards the street, walking with her towards the cafe. "I'm doing just fine. You know the ball is tomorrow?"

Ophelia heads west, deeper into the city.

Ophelia has left.

You head west, deeper into the city.

The Calisian Boulevard -- Arquael

     Leading away from the city center, Calisian Boulevard is the entrance to the residential quarter of the city. The cobblestone lane is lined on either side by apartment buildings, townhouses and, further down the way, tenements. All of the buildings here exhibit the Moorish style of construction that is the norm for Arquael; wide archways, domes, and intricate mosaic work. Street traffic here is a little less than that closer to the city's center, but passage along the busy streets is still by no means an easy feat.

Contents:

Ophelia

Obvious exits:

Merchant's Square Noble Steed Cafe

Erika says, "Yeah, I was going to ask about that among other things.What type of dress is acceptable in Chaos? Don't do anything like wear lots of red, right?"

Ophelia nods, "Right. What are you thinking of wearing?"

Erika shrugs. "Nothing that I have. Or maybe just that oriental one I got a while back. I just wasn't sure if people wore dresses, or, you know. Just shifted and flew around." She pulls out her cigarette case, offering one.

Ophelia takes a cigarette. "I intend to shift. But you and Dalt can't come that way."

Ophelia pushes open the doors, and enters the Cafe.

Ophelia has left.

You push open the doors, and enter the Cafe.

Noble Steed Cafe -- Calisian Boulevard -- Arquael

     The delicious smell of fresh brewing coffee, and the equally rich scent of hot cocoa greet your nose as you enter the cafe. The walls are whitewashed, with rather simple but well-done geometric designs. The floors are of some dark, fine-grained hardwood. The place is lit mostly by lanterns at night; during the day the large stained-glass windows that front it let in plenty of muted sunlight. Seating is mostly by booth, with a smattering of tables here and there. Down the center of the room, however, is a broad strip of pale wood, perhaps 6 feet wide and thrice that in length. The patrons seem to avoid treading upon that area.

Contents:

Ophelia

Obvious exits:

Calisian Boulevard

Ophelia sits down at booth by the back wall.

You say "I guess I'll know who you are by the fact you're the only demon that close to Dalt?"

Erika allows a grin as she takes a seat.

You go over to join Ophelia.

You sit down at booth by the back wall.

At your table, Ophelia smiles. "I guess so. I don't know what I'll wear yet, though."

At your table, Erika slips out a lighter, gloved fingers snapping rapidly to bring a flame that she offers. "I guess I'll figure something out on the last minute. Anyway, tell me about Arms, ltd.?"

At your table, Ophelia leans forward light her cigarette from it. "It's an old company, with a convulated infrastructure and Radegast is a stubborn bastard with a knightly streak through him."

At your table, Erika says "I don't think I've met him."

At your table, Erika says "I can hardly remember names though."

At your table, Ophelia shakes her head. "You probably haven't yet. Before you have to go to work convincing him to give up Armaments, we need to just sit and have a friendly dinner with him."

At your table, Erika lights her own cigarette, exhaling smoke. "Sure. I mean, I wasn't going to do it for at least a little bit. Dalt gave me a couple of days to go back to Vrokk, relax." She smiles behind the halo shw forms with smoke, "Just have to go through the motions on this party."

At your table, Ophelia says "We probably won't stay long. Dalt doesn't have the patience for crowds of people babbling inanely."

At your table, Erika says "He'll want me to stay, I'm sure."

At your table, Erika says "The cocoa here's good, you said?"

At your table, Ophelia flicks at the butt of her cigarette, letting the cigarette smolder without drawing from it after it was lit. "Yeah, it's good." She leans back in her seat, lifting her hand to get a server's attention.

At your table, Erika says "So how's life outside Arquael been?"

At your table, Ophelia says "It's been alright. Dalt and I saw Lord Mikloshe, the Keeper of the Logrus yesterday."

At your table, Erika says "You going to walk it?"

At your table, Ophelia nods, "In a couple of weeks. There is something I need you to promise me."

At your table, Erika says "Yeah?"

At your table, Ophelia says "Not everybody lives who tries this. Not even the second time around. If anything happens to me, Dalt may do something stupid and so he might not be around. Will you help Wulf look after Kateryn if that happens?"

At your table, Erika pauses. "You ain't dying on me, are you?"

At your table, Ophelia says "That certainly isn't my plan."

At your table, Erika says "Okay."

At your table, Ophelia says "I just want to know that my baby is going to be okay."

At your table, Erika says, "Well." She looks at Ophelia, and an odd, not-seen ripple as she offers a toothy grin, "Shit. Sure." She pauses, and says, "Seriously, yeah. I will."

At your table, Erika runs her hand through her hair.

At your table, Ophelia nods, watching Erika a little uncomfortably before she looks up at the server who finally comes to their table. Ophelia quietly requests two cups and one pot of cocoa.

At your table, Erika offers a smile, then. "I have faith. You'll be fine."

At your table, Erika says "Can I meet Kateryn?"

At your table, Ophelia nods, "I'm thinking of taking her to the ball."

At your table, Erika says "I still need to take you to this club I used to frequent."

At your table, Ophelia shifts a little in her seat, eying the door. "It's not in Vrokk is it? I don't go there."

At your table, Erika shakes her head.

At your table, Erika glances at the door, then Ophelia. "What's wrong?"

At your table, Ophelia shrugs, "Nothing. Waiting on cocoa."

At your table, Erika inhales, exhales, fingers reaching out and dragging patterns in the smoke. "What's Hendrake like?"

At your table, Ophelia says, "Quiet, dark and rotting."

At your table, Ophelia stabs out her cigarette, most of the cherry gone anyway, before the cigarette was three-fourths gone.

At your table, Erika stabs out her cigarette as a reflex to that, curling fingers together and resting her chin on top of them. "YOu go there often?"

At your table, Ophelia shakes her head, "Almost never anymore. After Rya."

At your table, Erika says "Where do you go? Or do you stay in Castille a lot?"

At your table, Ophelia says "Castille is my home. I stay home."

At your table, Erika nods, letting it drop. "You must really like the cocoa here."

At your table, Ophelia gives the server a smile of relief as he sets the cups down, pours, and then leaves the pot.

At your table, Ophelia says, after the man leaves, "I usually feel pretty safe here."

At your table, Erika says "It's nice here. Will be sad to go, though it'll be nice to stretch my legs again."

At your table, Ophelia says "I thought this kind of place would be the sort you'd enjoy at least a little."

At your table, Erika says "Oh, I do."

At your table, Erika says "I'd enjoy it more without an army to run."

At your table, Erika grins.

At your table, Ophelia smiles, "You'd enjoy it more with Santiago. This is his home."

At your table, Erika says "Where'd you grow up?"

At your table, Ophelia shrugs, "On the ocean. My mother was on a vendetta quest. We travelled a lot."

At your table, Erika glances at the cocoa. "This is the brew, huh?"

At your table, Ophelia drops two sugar cubes into her, to crush up with a spoon. "Yeah. I'm not so much in the mood for it now, though."

At your table, Erika says "Hey, cocoa will help."

At your table, Erika says "Honest. I know things about cocoa."

At your table, Ophelia takes a deep breath and lets it out in a hard sigh. "I'm getting wound up, now that I know it won't be forever before I face the Logrus again."

At your table, Erika says "Hey. Things'll be fine. You're tough."

At your table, Erika says "And you got me rooting for you."

At your table, Ophelia says "Last time was hell."

At your table, Erika says "You think it won't be easier the second time?"

At your table, Ophelia confesses, "I think it's going to be harder and I am scared to death."

At your table, Erika goes to take a sip of the cocoa. She says, "Tell me about it."

At your table, Ophelia crushes the sugar cubes with the edge of her spoon, making noise. "It's terrifying. There isn't anything you can do inside to make it better. You're ripped apart and the pieces are weighed and judged, and then put back together a different way than you went in. I mean that literally, Erika. Not everybody who survives comes out whole or with all of their pieces intact."

At your table, Erika keeps her eyes on Ophelia, setting the cocoa cup down and reaching and offering a gloved hand. "You know what I think?"

At your table, Ophelia takes Erika's hand nervously, obviously agitated. "What?"

At your table, Erika just gives a firm grip, a brief, attempted reassurance, and says, "I think that you're probably more stubborn than you'd let on."

At your table, Erika says "THe universe will have a hard time changing that."

*Fwalah, my net connection dies.*