Caution: What Happens In France... {closed}

[DesperateDark]

Note: This takes place two years in the past in Arras, France. Angst and woe warning.


Reyes had come far since the morning, traveling from Arles to half of France away, landing in Arras around noon. Early tomorrow morning he was supposed to take a flight to Germany where he would meet up with Roblin, who would erase him for the second time off the face of the earth. From there, it was all one big, foggy mystery to him. He didn't have anywhere to go, or anybody to go to.

The Japanese man picked up a fresh, bright red tomato, inspected it and placed it back in it's pile. Reyes felt guilty; he should've known better. He'd known how much danger he was constantly in, yet he allowed himself to bring somebody into his life anyways, after the pain and woe that had followed the first time he was forced to abandon his own existence. He could only feel worse since poor Caleb was, at best, helpless as a child.

A deep sigh as his phone lit up like it had more then several dozen times since this morning, the caller ID reading 'Takki-chan'. He pressed a button and the phone call was rejected; it took all his will not to pick up. Reyes had left Caleb with more the enough money to get back to Japan if he so wished, and knew that despite his very limited English (let alone French), he could easily get a job as a bartender since Reyes had taught him all he needed to know.

But he still felt the guilt.

Reyes continued to look at the fresh produce at the outdoor marketplace. He loved the brilliant colours and uncommon foodstuffs he managed to find, and it cheered him up somewhat. He soon found himself in a small fresh flower stand run by a local farmer. He loved flowers and especially loved to know what they symbolized; most people only knew red roses meant love and passion, not many knew that pink roses meant friendship and yellow meant zealousness. Even less people knew that, despite red roses meaning love, red tulips was actually the flower that meant declaration of love.

He headed to the back of the store, where he sniffed a bouquet of striped carnations--they meant refusal. The place was mostly empty, and he began to name off the flowers and their meanings under his breath as he walked through the stall. Reyes was beginning to feel a bit better, but the cloud still loomed ahead, and that was what kept him anchored to earth instead of wandering off into his own imagination.

[Aras|Ofelia]

The gods certainly had a cruel sense of irony for leading her to, of all the possible cities in France, a city called Arras. To make matters worse, the trail had gone cold. She seemed to have reached a complete dead end when it came to any further information about her brother. She'd lost the actual, physical scent trail weeks ago; a Scottish deerhound wasn't built for tracking anyway, especially in populated, urban areas where so many feet walked over the same routes that all the smells became tangled in one giant inextricable mess. But now, even the merest hints and whispers had ebbed away, leaving Sonia with nothing but her doubts and the relentless, creeping sense of despair.

Wandering the open-air marketplace, she clung to the vain hope that her mobile phone would go off, with one of her contacts' voices at the other end telling her they had found a lead. Or perhaps one of her other siblings would call with far better news than she had to offer. Or she might casually strike up a conversation with some stranger who just happened to have the information she sought.

Or maybe she would spend all morning staring at the little potatoes they were selling here and wondering whether she should buy a fresh loaf of bread so she could make a sandwich for lunch.

Cradling a jar of local honey in her palm, she stared at the label, not really seeing the drawing of the happy bee or the elegant French lettering. It wasn't that she couldn't read the words--she remembered enough of high school French to at least make out the word miel--but she was too distracted to really care about whether the jar she was holding did indeed contain the best honey in all of France.

The seller's enthusiastic chattering was all but nonsensical. She must have been standing here too long to have passed off as a vaguely interested passerby, she realized. The man was saying something about quality, and about lavender, and--oh, all right, it would be rude not to buy it since she'd been examining at the jar for a full three minutes, by her guess.

Weighed down a bit with a jar of honey, Sonia continued to navigate the marketplace. A large flower stand, pots brimming with striking colors, caught her eye. She meandered in, nose wrinkling immediately at the sweet scent. It was one of the disadvantages of having a canine talisman; even in human form, certain smells that would be enjoyable to most people came off as cloying or simply too strong for her liking.

She nearly collided with the man standing near the back. "Ahshi-- I mean, sorry," she quickly corrected herself. A quick glance at the man: tall, Asian, and with an air of all-too-familiar guilt and misery. Had she not felt pretty much the same way, she probably would never have noticed.

Sonia's smile was forced, but her intentions could hardly be said to be malevolent. "Awful day, huh?"

[DesperateDark]

Yellow carnations for disappointment and rejection, colchicums for my best days fled. Deadly nightshade for falsehood, harebells for humility and grief. Reyes continued to sift through the pots overflowing with flowers, ignoring the flowers that meant happiness and looking through the flowers that meant despair. It was unlike him to be this way, but with what happened as of recent, he had every right to.

Reyes had just picked up a small pot of yellow hyacinths when somebody bumped his elbow. He ended up dropping it and was about to pick it up when the stranger apologised and said: "Awful day, huh?"

He paused, looking at her for a moment, before stooping and picking up the small pot. She was smiling, though it looked a tad forced, but friendly enough to not be too wary. Reyes managed a small, short chuckle and a slight nod. "Yeah, got that right." How she knew was beyond his comprehension, but he felt too out of it to try and figure it out right now.

At second glance, the woman didn't exactly look too cheery either. Maybe it was just something about him that made people sad, or maybe she had her own problems. It seemed that everybody was despairing today. "Guessing you're not feeling too dandy yourself, eh?"

Reyes was attempting small talk, though if it was working or not was beyond him. All he was trying to do was distract himself from the creeping guilt and misery he felt, the fear of what lay ahead. If he was lucky (of course not), he would maybe distract this woman from her own woes for the time being, if she had any woes to begin with.

He offered her a handshake. "Hey, my name's Reyes, by the way."

[Aras|Ofelia]

Ah, so he spoke English. The possibility that he might not have been able to hadn't crossed her mind until now. Sonia was rather thankful that he could; she could do with a distraction, and she didn't feel quite up to nodding cluelessly as she tried to puzzle out a string of French words spouted at her by a stranger.

Her smile remained plastered in place. She was well aware that it looked unnatural, but at the moment she couldn't figure out how to make her cheerful expression look genuine. She never fancied herself a skilled actress, anyway; sternness seemed to be her default expression, and if her smiles were fake, people tended to notice.

"Guessing you're not feeling too dandy yourself, eh?"

Like this guy.

Her laughter was brief, with a harsh edge. "You could say that."

Her eyes fell on the pot in his hands. Yellow hyacinths. She knew a giver of purple hyacinths was asking for forgiveness, but what did yellow ones symbolize? Yellow wasn't a very common color for hyacinths, either.

A quick scan of the multitude of blossoms on display was enough to show that this stand had quite a generous variety of flowers. Come to think of it, what was this man doing in here? Sonia knew she was stereotyping, but a flower shop wasn't exactly a place where young men tended to hang out. Not without looking bored out of their minds, at any rate. And not when they were feeling downcast.

He had a firm, steady grip, Sonia noted as she shook his hand. "And mine's Sonia."

She ran her fingers over the soft ruffled petals of an orange marigold. "Are you buying flowers for someone?"

[DesperateDark]

Ah, so her name was Sonia. Nice name, though nothing way too unique, but it was easy to remember. She had turned her attention to some marigolds, and he figured that this was as far as their small talk was going to go until she spoke once more. ”Are you buying flowers for someone?”

Whatever faint smile that was left on his features quickly disappeared; his lips pressed into a thin line. His brown eyes went dark and glassed over, as if he were on the brink of tears but not quite there yet. There was a lull as he just stood there like that, before he turned away from the woman and instead picked up a bouquet of orange lilies.

“…No.” Reyes’ tone was a bit sharper, a bit more despairing then he intended. The lilies in his hands were beautiful, a vibrant orange with little black specks and bold green leaves. But behind all that, they really meant hatred. He sometimes wondered why certain striking flowers had such sad meanings.

He would’ve loved to be buying flowers for somebody, and only a day ago he would have been buying flowers for Caleb. But to him, he might as well think it a long time ago. His talisman told him to forget about Caleb, to leave it and let it collect dust; it would be better for him in the long run anyways.

Reyes replaced the lilies to the bucket of water they were held in, inspecting a bundle of yellow carnations now. These would’ve made a nice banquet, made better if he actually had somebody to send them to. But he was heading to Germany tomorrow; he couldn’t buy a plant to keep. When he did settle down somewhere though, he was sure that he wanted to keep a garden; maybe one with a pond full of koi and cherry blossom trees like his home back in Japan.

“And how about you?” He turned back Sonia, trying to look better then he felt but somewhat failing in that aspect. “You looking for something?”

[Aras|Ofelia]

Reyes' expression darkened, and an internal struggle seemed to take place before he finally turned away from her. Sonia felt a sharp pang of guilt; she knew immediately she had asked the wrong question. She might be having an harrowing time as of late, but that didn't mean she had license to make someone else's day even worse. And by the looks of it, this man didn't need anyone's help in depressing his mood even further.

“…No.” There was a certain bitterness to his tone that spoke of a pain that Sonia thought she only knew too well. He had someone important, then--someone for whom he would have spent the time and thought and effort to buy flowers. Had. Whoever it was, Reyes no longer had her, or him. Sonia had to blink back tears when she thought about how easily her story could be juxtaposed with his. Except she wouldn't have bought her brother flowers. A novel, maybe, but not flowers.

Still rubbing the petals of the marigold between her fingers, she used her other hand to wipe her eyes dry. It wouldn't do to shed tears in front of a stranger. He seemed the type who would worry over people he barely knew, and he definitely had more than enough on his mind right now. Besides, it would be embarrassing, to say the least.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to pry." She stared blankly at the rows of flowers, the vivid blots of color on a green-and brown backdrop. The scent still bothered her. Her talisman sneezed.

“And how about you? You looking for something?”

"For someone," she said tersely, mentally chiding herself for the way her voice caught. "I... I'm not having much luck."

What a gross understatement.

[DesperateDark]

"For someone," Sonia corrected curtly, and Reyes caught the way her voice hitched. She didn't sound like she's been having such a great day/week either. He could relate to that. "I... I'm not having much luck."

"Oh... Sorry to hear." He was about to ask who it was that she was looking for, and that if he was to hear anything, then he would help. But if he had said that, and then somebody asked him who it was, he might just have either broke down crying or punched the person in the face. Maybe it was just him, but Sonia seemed like she might go for the latter, so he refrained from asking.

"If there's anything I can help with..." The corners of his lips twitched up for a second, but returned to a flat line. This was none of his business, and he had no right to butt in. Reyes had his own problems right now, and the last thing he needed was to be involved in somebody else's, no matter how commonplace it was.

Reyes was beginning to get that intense craving to eat one of the flowers, or at least their leaves. To him (and his talisman), it all smelled delicious. When one had a herbivore, especially under the family cervidae (or deer in general), one usually craved vegetable matter; grass and the likes. Actually, grass didn't taste so bad to him, though it often earned him odd glances.

He picked up a small pot of hydrangeas to distract himself, but smelling them only made him hungrier. He wanted to get some for Roblin as a thank-you gift for doing this for him, but he didn't know whether they would allow plants onto the plane. Probably not, he put the flowers back down. He'd just get some flowers once he was in Germany.

Instead, he picked up some heather and brought them up to the owner of the stand. 12 Euros for a small bouquet of heather, which was more or less expensive, but he had the money. "Heathers for luck," Reyes handed the flowers to Sonia. "So good luck."

[Aras|Ofelia]

"If there's anything I can help with..." The faint hint of a smile appeared on the man's face for the briefest of moments before it faded. He sounded so sincere, though, that Sonia had to return the smile. At least this time, it came more easily and was actually more of a smile--albeit a rather sad one--than a grimace.

"I don't think there's anything you can do. But it was very sweet of you to offer." Finally moving away from the marigolds, Sonia examined the pimpernels. Scarlet ones. They were lovely, but the blossoms were small; they would have been lost among the green of their leaves were the petals not so vibrant.

A bouquet in hand, Reyes was speaking to the shopkeeper, leaving Sonia alone for a minute or two. Without the distraction he had afforded, it was difficult to keep her mind clear of its recent turmoil of thoughts. It wasn't usually in her nature to worry, but she had had more than enough reason to as of late.

Thankfully, he didn't take long. "Heathers for luck," he said as he held the bouquet out to her. "So good luck."

There was a moment of astonished silence on Sonia's part before she graciously accepted the flowers. The petals were a soft, creamy pink-purple, and the fragrance was light enough that it didn't irritate her sensitive nose. "Thank you," she said softly, and her face lit up in the first genuine smile anyone had seen for weeks.

"Hold on." Choosing a different bouquet--it was somewhat smaller, but she had the feeling that Reyes wouldn't mind at all--Sonia paid the shopkeeper and gave the flowers to the Asian man. "Chrysanthemums. For hope. And for being a wonderful friend, even to someone you barely know."

[DesperateDark]

There was a lull and for a minute and Reyes thought he had done something terribly wrong by offering her flowers. He would never forgive himself at this rate if he had made Sonia miserable then she already seemed to be. Did the person she was looking for happen to be named Heather? Or did he or she love flowers? Reyes was just about to apologize when Sonia's face lit up in probably the first genuine smile he had seen form her--and anybody else for that matter--all day.

She thanked him quietly and told him to "Hold on." while turning back to the shelves of flowers. Reyes watched as she picked up a different bundle of flowers, a bit smaller, but still just as pretty. He was thankful that he hadn't made her any more depressed with the flowers, which in turn made himself a bit more cheery.

"Chrysanthemums. For hope. And for being a wonderful friend, even to someone you barely know." Sonia then handed him a spray of about five chrysanthemums, all different but vibrant colours. Reyes brought them to his face and smelled them, restraining himself from taking a bite out of the white bloom. Chrysanthemums were good for tea, but there was no way he was making tea out of these; they were from somebody he considered a friend.

"Thanks," he nodded and took a last glance around the stall. He was ready to move on to the next one, but was a bit afraid to leave because he didn't want to part ways with Sonia just yet. She provided a pleasant distraction from all the wrong that was in the world.

Taking a glance at his watch, Reyes saw that it was a little past noon. "Sonia, you want to get some lunch or something?"

[Aras|Ofelia]

Though he didn't smile, Sonia had the feeling that Reyes appreciated the gift as much as she had. He brought the chrysanthemums close to his face and took a deep whiff, savoring the fragrance in a way she couldn't. She probably would have sneezed for ten continuous seconds if she'd tried that.

They both took one last look at the flower stand, both unwilling to part ways. Reyes' presence took her mind off of far more unpleasant things; while he was around, she could more easily stave off the sensation of powerlessness that threatened to overwhelm her at this dead end. By his hesitation, he evidently saw her in the same light. They had a mutual understanding of sorts.

"Sonia, you want to get some lunch or something?" he queried, glancing at his watch.

"Yes," she said with more enthusiasm than was probably necessary. "I saw a few crêperies around." Yes, they would do the proper tourist thing and eat a couple of crêpes while they were in France.

They left the stand, walking to the edge of the marketplace, dodging tourists and locals and their pets alike. Sonia clutched the heather bouquet tightly to her chest, working to keep up with the taller man's strides. At least it wasn't easy to lose sight of him; she was not short herself, and he towered above the majority of the crowd.

The cafe they selected was fairly small and rather cozy, decorated with calming pastel hues. Only one other table besides theirs had any seated customers. Here, they had some privacy without utter solitude, the way Sonia preferred.

Gently setting her flowers and the bag containing the jar of honey on the table, she flipped through the menu. "Cider. Crêpes are supposed to be eaten with cider, I think."

Small talk. Anything to keep her focused on this temporary illusion of a normal day between two friends.

[DesperateDark]

"Yes! I saw a few crêperies around."

"Oh... Okay," Reyes nodded and walked out, expecting her to lead the way but somehow pulled ahead of her in a few steps. His stride was longer the most people's. His idea of a lunch was actually to head to the park so he could munch on some grass, but he guessed that Sonia wouldn't be too happy about that. Crêpes it was, then.

It was fairly easy for Reyes to pick his way through the crowd since he loomed above most of the people in the market--he could feel the sidelong glances people were giving him. He also took note that ever since he came to the market, he had been the only Asian he had seen.

Reyes didn't catch the name of the sign before they ducked behind it and chose a table to sit at. He liked the ambience the place provided, and the company. Good company was few and far between these days, and he took what he got graciously.

He placed the bundle of chrysanthemums on the table before picking up the menu. It was written in French, with English underneath for tourists. Though he wanted to brush up on his French, he was thankful for the English.

"Cider. Crêpes are supposed to be eaten with cider, I think."

"If you say so," he said lightly, a short, slightly forced chuckle under his breath. Most of the stuff was sweet, but he quickly searched for something with preferably leafy vegetables in it; his caribou was kicking him to eat something green. Reyes had bolted in such a hurry this morning that he didn't eat at all, only having a can of tea since yesterday.

Using his best, but still broken French, he ordered ciders and a vegetable crêpe for himself. But with that distraction now gone, he tried once again to make small talk with Sonia.

"So... You live around here?"

[Aras|Ofelia]

Perhaps it was the scent of the flowers and the recollection of the jar of honey she'd purchased this morning, but Sonia had a craving for something sweet. Fruit would do nicely. She was glad for the English on the menu; the moment she had entered the cafe, she'd realized just how ravenous she felt, and she would have been rather irate had she had to decipher French while her stomach protested. You haven't been eating right for the past few weeks, her talisman chided, not unkindly. It was true. She hadn't had the time, the energy, or the mood to do anything remotely enjoyable recently.

She was fairly certain she pronounced all the words more or less accurately when she ordered. At least, the waiter seemed to understand what she was saying--or maybe he was just the patient sort. Either way, he took their order with a slow, almost lazy nod (were Europeans always this relaxed?) and meandered off to the kitchen.

"So... You live around here?"

She snorted but instantly felt abashed. Reyes did not deserve her sarcasm. Despite his own difficulties, he was going out of his way to keep her company and therefore lift her spirits. The least she could do was respond with courtesy and honesty, even if she left her answers vague.

"No, my French isn't nearly good enough." And there was no way in hell she was going to live in a city called Arras. "My family has French roots somewhere along the line, but we live in the United States." Please don't ask my why I'm here, she pleaded silently but fervently. Please.

"What about you? I can only assume you're a foreigner too." She gave him a teasing smile. As if his obviously Asian heritage wasn't enough of a clue.

[DesperateDark]

Sonia scoffed at his question, and he raised an inquiring eyebrow at her over his glass of water. That wasn’t exactly the reaction he expected from her, to say the least. "No, my French isn't nearly good enough. "My family has French roots somewhere along the line, but we live in the United States." Her tone told him otherwise; she sounded a tad apologetic about her jeer earlier. Well, it was okay then.

“The States, huh?” another sip of water, enhance the illusion of calm and tranquility. “Truth be told, I’m one of the few people who’ve never been to the States before.” Reyes had heard it was a great place to live, though you had to pay a huge amount for education and healthcare. He was considering making the States his next home, but he was also taking Canada into thought. They had caribou up there, and his talisman liked that idea.

"What about you? I can only assume you're a foreigner too."

A chuckle; like it wasn’t obvious. He was Asian, after all, and those seemed to be rare in France. “Yeah. Going to Germany tomorrow, but I’ve been around Europe for a while now with… With…” Oh yeah, right, he wasn’t with anybody anymore. In his mind, he was forcing himself to think that he had never been with Caleb in the first place, to just erase that part. Easier said then done. “Eh, never mind, forget it.”

The cider came out first; two glasses of slightly cloudy, pale brown liquid placed in front of each person. Reyes took a small sip of it and tasted the alcohol, though it was tangy and sweet. It was the first time he had cider, and he couldn’t say he disliked the taste.

“This’s actually good,” he smiled at Sonia from across the table. “Today might be a good day after all, hm?”

[Aras|Ofelia]

Sonia was surprised to hear that he had never been to the States before. His English was practically flawless and only slightly accented; if he had not lived in the States, she would have thought that he'd at least studied there at some point in his life. Maybe he lived in England for a while--but he didn't speak like an Englishman. Or perhaps he simply had a natural penchant for languages.

"It's a great place to live." She had been born and raised in the States, and Sonia couldn't imagine living anywhere else. She supposed she had the ability to adapt to life in any other country, but she would forever consider the U.S. her home. "And to visit, I imagine. New York's a must-see, of course, but the national parks are gorgeous, if that's your thing. But I'm curious: where did you study your English, if not the States?"

Reyes began to tell her about someone with whom he'd been traveling in Europe, but he trailed off. A distant look came to his eye, and he brushed off his earlier words. Recalling his sharp response when she'd asked him if he was buying flowers for anyone, Sonia thought it best not to pry. Not only would it have been inconsiderate, but it would also have ruined the fragile, peaceful mood they had managed to achieve in each others' presence.

The cider was cool and sweet on her tongue, refreshing in the warm noontime air. The crêpes might be a while in coming, she thought idly. The people here rarely ever looked like they were in a rush, and it seemed as if they expected their customers to be as laid-back as they were. Today was the only day since she'd left home that she discovered she didn't mind.

“Today might be a good day after all, hm?”

A cautious smile. "It just might." It wasn't difficult to say that it had been one of the best days she'd had in a long while. She wasn't superstitious by any stretch, but the past hour or so had been so surreally pleasant that she did not want to say anything that could possibly jinx their time together. It felt like the world operated on irony these days.

[DesperateDark]

"And to visit, I imagine. New York's a must-see, of course, but the national parks are gorgeous, if that's your thing. But I'm curious: where did you study your English, if not the States?" Yes, he had heard New York was beautiful, especially at night. Los Angeles wasn't so bad either, and California and Florida was where all the sunshine was.

"My English comes from a private instructor and my parents beating the crap outta me whenever I mispronounced," Reyes chuckled, taking another sip of the cider. He remembered how much he hated taking English courses back in Japan when he was younger, but his parents made him anyways. He had thought that he would never need it, since he planned to live in Japan until his days ran out.

Of course, the gods decided to flip him the birdy and installed a talisman that hated him to be his guide, before sending the Yakuza after him and forcing him to run and abandon everything he had. Now he was thankful to his parents for forcing him to take English, because he sure as hell needed all he could get right now. "I'm from Japan, and everything you heard about strict Asian parents is probably true."

"It just might." Her careful smile was returned with a stiff, slightly forced one. His talisman was now telling him that he just had to ruin it, that he absolutely had to say that it was going to be a nice day.

And the gods, once again, decided to knock him upside the head with an Oxford. His cell phone's screen lit up it's usual purple-blue, and the name on the caller ID read 'Takki-chan'... Again. Reyes bit his lip, struggling once again to ignore it. He had given in yesterday night and actually listened to one of Caleb's messages. As a result, he nearly threw his phone out the window half way through it. Guilt was, without a doubt, a strong emotion to toy with.