pawntakesking | IC Inbox

WELCOME TO YOUR PRIVATE CHANNEL, REGULUS BLACK. FOR SECURE COMMUNICATION, USE 079.07.1663.55 * REGULUS BLACK has joined 079.07.1663.55 <ToujoursPur> This is the current address of Regulus Arcturus Black, formerly of London. <ToujoursPur> Please leave any messages here, and I will respond as soon as I can. Alternatively, ask at the Kit-TEA-Kat Café if you wish to see me in person. <ToujoursPur>** Yours, R.A.B.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

From:

icy_veins

[Maybe he can barter for a portal spell, then? He wonders just how hefty the cost of a greater portal spell will be.]

I will have to look into these trades with Mana, I have heard of them, yet I have not acted upon them yet.

And I... do not know where I am happier. There is something to be said about familiarity and the comfort it brings. To go back to my family, my job, my power. It is still a world sundered by war and politics, but at least it is what I know. Here, I am no one and nothing. I am no mage, I am no patrician. I am just a beast.

I will heed your word though, and be more patient. Maybe time will answer more of my introspective questions.

[He almost double-takes at the offer, and nervousness claws at his chest.]

Yes, I am familiar with the café.
Are you... perhaps Regulus? I apologize just, well, my wife Rosefica is employed there. That is my only guess.
I would be happy to meet with you, if not for heavier topics, than to just speak with a fellow past-magician and feel a little less alone.

From:

pawntakesking

There is something to be said for being no one. It allows you to become someone new.

For example, yes, I am Regulus, and I do own the café. Believe me when I say that I would never have been permitted to do anything so proletarian where I come from, and yet it's become a source of some pride for me.

I'm afraid, though, that I wasn't aware Rosefica was married.

From:

icy_veins

I see. I held office within my people's government before, but now I am a bookkeeper for another organization.
Surprisingly, the work just about the same, but I think I understand what you mean.

As for Rosefica, yes, we're married though really in name alone. This place has driven a wedge between us, and we've separated. Perhaps another reason I wish for things to return to how they were.
I am no longer the man she married.

Nevermind. I find that I am speaking with you more candidly than I had imagined, it's almost embarrassing.
Will you be in the shop today? Perhaps some tea in person would be better, rather than laying my heart so bare over the network.

From:

pawntakesking

If I had outlived my father, I believe I would have held a government office as well. But it would hardly have been the same as earning something for myself.

I'm sorry to hear about your marriage. I hope I didn't touch a nerve - it certainly wasn't my intention to hurt you.

In any case, yes, I will be in the shop from dusk until dawn. I'm afraid anything outside that can be quite difficult - a stray sunbeam is really a nasty thing to a shade - but if it suits you to come then, that would be ideal.

From:

icy_veins

Worry not, I was the one who brought up the topic.

Perhaps we can talk more on this in person, though.
I will come this evening.

—————

[Perhaps he is a bit early, as patience hasn't been his strong suit since his first changes upon coming to Ryslig. Yet, as Eridanus stood before the door to Kit-Tea-Cat, hesitation keeps him from opening the door. Was he ready for this? Regulus had said so many things that touched much too close to home, and for the first time in a long while, the things he had tucked away into the back of his mind had reared themselves.

But he had come all the way here, so what point is there to let anxiety win now?

With just the smallest bit of apprehension, Eridanus' opal talons curl about the handle, and he slowly pulls the door open. A chime rings above him and his long, tufted ears perk at the sound. He shouldn't have been spooked by it, with how many times he's visited the café by now—still, it makes him jump slightly. Nerves, must be.

Eridanus walks up to the counter, not yet noticing any "shades" (he had yet to see one, honestly), and rang the bell that sat beside the register. Hopefully he hadn't come too soon.]

From:

pawntakesking

[There is still enough daylight that it's best for Regulus to stay in the back, where it's safely dark, unless he's needed. There's plenty to be done - there always is - and it's a moment before he emerges into the shadowed space behind the counter, the darkness coalescing first into the dim shape of a robed figure, and then the clear form of a pale young man, still wiping his manicured hands on a dishcloth.]

[He offers a polite smile and a small bow to the newcomer.]

Good evening. What can I get for you?

From:

icy_veins

[The figure that manifests from the shadows surprises him at first, but whatever wide-eyed ogling he had bared is quickly replaced with a polite smile. He dressed well enough, a plain black suit where the black iridescence of his opals both blends and stands out from his attire, each time they catch a sliver of light.]

I apologize, I arrived a bit more hastily than I anticipated, but I was rather eager. [Eridanus clears his throat and smooths his jacket before offering his hand to shake,] I'm Eridanus Sungazer. It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Regulus.

[His smile turns a bit sheepish, but he maintains it regardless.] Ah, and if it isn't too much trouble... could I get just a black coffee?

From:

pawntakesking

[Regulus glances down at the proffered hand, and shakes it briskly. His own hand is ice-cold and barely there - a strange sort of solid smoke that gives under Eridanus' grip in a way that flesh shouldn't.]

Of course. [His own smile doesn't entirely reach his eyes, but it's polite enough.] And the pleasure is mine. Don't worry about being early - it's better than being late, or so I've always believed.

Have a seat, won't you? I'll just be a moment.

From:

icy_veins

[A shudder floods Eridanus' arm at the feeling of Regulus' hand within his. It's unsettling, to feel something not-quite-there in his palm. When he draws his hand back, he has to resist the urge to rub it across the fabric of his suit jacket just to cleanse the sensation from his skin.

With the gesture, Eridanus pushes another smile across his visage, the first faltering slightly at their handshake. He turns and finds a table away from the windows of the café, in a comfortably shaded corner as the setting sun shines its last rays of light across the wall behind him. As he waits patiently, the sounds of clinking cups and boiling water has his long ears twitching.

Eventually, when Regulus returns, Eridanus clears his throat.]

I appreciate you meeting me on such short notice, I feel as if my head has been stuffed with cotton. Too many thoughts and feelings constantly flooding me. I was rather relieved to find someone who has had experiences similar to mine, both here and... prior.

From:

pawntakesking

[Regulus is not unused to that reaction, and his own polite expression doesn't falter at Eridanus' shudder. He takes a moment before returning, a black coffee in one hand and a pot of tea in the other (the teacup and saucer float a little way behind him, apparently unsupported).]

[He sets both down, and shifts into the seat across from Eridanus. It wouldn't be quite accurate to say that he sits - that implies a movement that never quite happens - but in any case, he is standing by the table one moment, and sitting at it the next, his pale hands folded on the painted wood.]

Yes, it can all be very overwhelming. I felt much the same, when I first arrived - although, I'm sure, not quite for the same reasons.

And I did at least have the advantage of knowing that I wasn't alone in my experience.

From:

icy_veins

[Eridanus accepts the cup of coffee with a mouthed word of thanks, his opal claws clutching at the delicate handle to bring it to his lips for a tentative sip. He listens to Regulus with ears perked to attention, his verdant gaze unblinking in their curiosity of the fellow.

It is still hard for him to conceive of his companion's ethereality, but he manages to sober himself from gawking.]

Perhaps you are right, it's as they say — misery loves company. [The words unfurl the ache of melancholy in his chest, his memories swimming back to when he had first come to this peninsula, and he reunited with Rosefica in the sewers.]

Still, it is barely the soothing balm for my tumultuous feelings. It seems as though you've managed to acclimate, though. An acceptance of inevitability? Or something else?

From:

pawntakesking

Yes and no.

I had another advantage. [He sips his tea, frowning down at it as if expecting to see something reflected there.] When I came here, before it was ever explained to me where here was, I knew I had neither the capacity nor the wish to go back.

You see, I had just died. Under rather unpleasant circumstances, in fact. Being alive again, even without magic or connections, was more than I had expected.

[And not entirely a welcome surprise, but he isn't about to say that. This is already a lot of emotional openness for someone he doesn't know, he's not about to add his actual feelings to the mixture.]

It helped me to look for the best in the situation, and to find something here to believe in and work towards. Although learning to do anything without magic was one of the most trying experiences I've ever had.

From:

icy_veins

[As Eridanus listens to Regulus' story of arrival, his own thoughts drift back towards his own. How empty he had felt waking up without his magic, how determined he was to simply survive, without a thought for how he felt about it. He had been like an animal then, and perhaps he never returned from that.

His gaze lifts, and Regulus' mention of magic earns a soft, understanding laugh from him.]

Tell me about it. I've never thought about cleaning something before, until I lost my magic. Others do not understand our particular plight. To spend your whole life relying on, and being defined by something, only to suddenly have it stolen from you.

[Eridanus' somber countenance falters into a sad frown, his broad shoulders slumping slightly as he brings the bitter coffee to his lips to wash the taste of far more bitter reality from his tongue.]

I hadn't died prior to my arrival here, and for that, I find myself caught in the middle. The wish to go back, to see my daughter and to have my magic... but I know that I am no longer the man I was there, and I do not know if I could ever return to him. [His gaze lifts, to meet Regulus' ethereal eyes,] it's pathetic, isn't it? This would be far easier if I had died. At least then, I could have been like a phoenix, like you.

From:

pawntakesking

I wouldn't call it pathetic.

I wouldn't call myself a phoenix, either. [He sets his cup back on its saucer with a small, flat clink. His expression is dour, steady - unreadable.] The past has a way of catching up with one, even here.

[He doesn't seem to be aware of the small, subtle movement of his hand to his sleeve, his palm resting flat over the suggestion of a glow from beneath the pitch-black cloth. He shakes his head, and clears his throat.]

It must be very difficult, though, to leave a child behind. I'm sorry. How old was she?

From:

icy_veins

[Quietness befalls Eridanus at those words, his own expression tightening as he feels shame coil in his belly. He doesn't usually voice his inner monologue so candidly, and now that he is, he may perhaps be feeling a bit embarrassed.]

Yes, I think you are right, there. [He mutters, noticing the way Regulus touches at his arm, but making no comment of it. Everyone here has their pasts, and their own wants for some privacy.] That the past catches up with us, even here. In a way, it seems as if by coming to Ryslig, any walls a person might have built around themselves comes crumbling down — and you have to keep yourself from being crushed by the rubble.

[Eridanus takes up his cup and enjoys another sip of bitter coffee, before mention of his daughter almost catches the drink in his chest. He sets it down with a quiet clearing of his throat, trying to regain himself without hacking up a lung, before giving Regulus a half-smile.]

Thank you. Her name is Eucryphia... she will be five years old in spring. [So, young. Far too young to be without her parents.]

From:

pawntakesking

Merlin...

[He doesn't quite mean for that to escape him - a low murmur of sympathy and shock - but it's out now. Four years old. Even Regulus, who would gladly admit to having no idea what age a child should be independent, can recognise that four is altogether too young to be left alone in the world.]

[He takes a long drink of his tea, hoping to cover his momentary lapse of etiquette - to hide the horror and sympathy that crosses his face, which he's sure will not be appreciated in this situation - and clears his throat.]

I'm sure she will be all right, for what it's worth. [He lies with the smoothness and ease of someone who hasn't even considered that it's a lie, and quickly moves back from the subject.]

But you're right, of course. Ryslig has a remarkable way of breaking down the armour we construct for ourselves. It's a frightening thing, and can be a painful one - but if you can only learn from it, it can be a miraculous thing, as well.

I'm an entirely different man to the one who arrived here two and a half years ago. A much better one, if I do say so myself. Even losing my magic, it was...

Well, it was a lesson. For example, I can cook now. [A small attempt at lightening the mood. The corners of his mouth twitch in a tiny smile.]

From:

icy_veins

[Eridanus catches the way this revelation affects Regulus, and it's a small comfort to know that he has those sympathies. He certainly hides his grief of the matter better than his wife does, and for that alone it has become a question if he even misses their daughter. He does, everyday, he tells himself.]

Eucryphia is safe, and that is the only solace I have in this situation. My younger brother is caring for her, and if anything happens to him, I also have my son who is an adult. Both love her to ribbons, so she will never want for anything. I simply pray that she doesn't hate me for leaving her. [He stares down at the blackened pool of coffee within his cup, the wafting warm scent one that dredges up memories of sunny mornings with Eucryphia playing at his feet. He swallows down the memory when he brings his drink to his lips, drowning it where it won't pull a more sorrowful expression across his features.

Regulus' change in topic is not lost on Eridanus, and he smiles his thanks to the man across from him. A laugh bubbles from him at the mention of cooking,] I am still an awful cook, but I hope to become better. I have to admit, from what little I've done of it, I do enjoy it quite a bit. Perhaps I can find other hobbies too, in my time here. Something to distract from the grim. I've only been doing as I've always done: reading, chess, work. I'm rather boring, I must admit.

From:

pawntakesking

Chess, you say?

[Regulus smiles back, one dark eyebrow arching.]

Perhaps we ought to play a match, one of these days. I'm something of a chess player myself, as it happens.

Besides, there's nothing wrong with being rather boring. It's done me well enough, so far.

From:

icy_veins

[Eridanus' brows go up at that smile, and while it looks odd on such a nebulous countenance, it is still a comfort. His mind has been in its own haze for weeks, and suddenly it dawns on him how much he needed to just sit and have a cup of coffee with someone kind.]

Perhaps, I am very good you know. In my homeland we have a game much more advanced than human chess. It's called fethesi.

[A somewhat dark chuckle leaves him, as if relishing in the thought of conquering yet another opponent in stratagem.]

But... yes. It would be nice to play sometime, I think I would like that. Did you play it often before? I am curious what games existed in a land of magic that is not my own.

From:

pawntakesking

[Regulus nods, and, after a moment's consideration, holds up a slender, pale finger, reaching into the pocket of his robes. He brings out a small silver box - a travelling chessboard, engraved with elegant designs along the edges.]

I played it often enough, in fact, that this is one of the few things I have asked for from my own world. If I say so myself, I was quite good. Hardly a grandmaster, of course - I hadn't had nearly enough time to reach that level, I was only eighteen - but certainly able to hold my own.

Though I always had to muffle some of the enchantments. Chess is so... loud.

From:

icy_veins

[Once more Eridanus' brows go up at the reveal of the traveling board. The silver is carved beautifully, and he has to keep himself from gawking awkwardly at it. In a sense, it reminds him of the gold-gilded fethesi board he has at home, in his study.]

I've never heard someone call chess loud before. [Eridanus laughs, the sound pleasant and full of mirth. He takes a sip of his coffee as he watches Regulus' ethereal hands smooth over the box.]

I enjoy winning, I won't lie, and I've made stratagem my hobby no doubt. Yet, in my humble opinion, the battlefield of a chess board is more interesting when it is used as an arena for two great minds to embrace one another. You can learn a lot about a person by how they play.

[Eridanus lowers his cup from his mouth, one brow quirking with curiosity,] would you like to?

From:

pawntakesking

[Regulus considers the troll for a moment, then nods.]

Why not? I don't doubt I'll be outclassed, but I can at least try to give you a fight.

[With a small smile, he moves to set up the board. It's a slightly clumsy operation - really, the board is supposed to come with a whole battery of charms to resize it, not to mention that when it was properly enchanted, the pieces would set themselves up - but one he's done before, and although the pieces are a little too small for comfort, they aren't so small as to be unmanageable.]

Would you like a fresh pot of coffee, if we're likely to be here a while?

From:

icy_veins

[Eridanus watches as Regulus sets up the board, and there's a curious gleam in his eyes as he does. The symbols inscribed on the box itself are ornate, but he wonders if, in the context of the other's realm, they are symbols of magic. Unfortunately nothing would come of that knowledge, seeing as how they are both magical victims of Ryslig—but the thought is still there, of what magic in other worlds is like.]

I wouldn't discredit yourself, who knows, you may be me just yet. [He smiles at Regulus and pulls his mug back towards his lips for another sip.

At the query though, Eridanus' ears perk. His gaze drops to the bitter black liquid that pools at the bottom of his cup and he gives a lazy half-shrug of his shoulders.]

Well, if you don't mind, more coffee would be lovely actually.

From:

pawntakesking

[Regulus nods, placing the last couple of pieces, and stands.]

Why don't you take white? You can make the first move while I put the coffee on.

...If any of the cats try to get up on the table, just push them off. The last thing we need is paws on the board.

From:

icy_veins

[Eridanus' angled gaze watches with idle curiosity as Regulus sets the board, his mind still trying to fathom at just what point does his body solidify. It almost distracts him from those words, were it not for the scrape of wood against floorboards to catch his attention.

He smiles up at his host, and gives him a small understanding nod,] no, it would not.

[He eyes the board and, after a moment, moves a pawn at the far left of it forward. Then he lets his gaze wander the shop.

Eridanus has been within its confines a handful of times before, but never at night. The streetlights beyond the wall of glass windows cast dim light into the interior, across the furry bodies of sleeping cats who've made beds out of a few tables. As if by premonition, a soft mewl catches in Eridanus' ears before one jumps up onto the table.]

Oh, no, no little one. [He softly chides as he scoops the feline into his lap instead. Living with Lucius has given him more of an appreciation for the creatures, that's for certain. He pets at the cat with gentle claws,] Regulus would be unhappy if you messed up our game so soon.