| You're Always Welcome in the Usual Restaurant | ||
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| Summary: Rave goes out on her own again. Of course she goes to the Usual Restaurant   |
Gonfei raises an eyebrow at the overly cautious approach to the bar, watching her walk the entire way. As Raven arrives, Gonfei speaks up. "Evening, Miss. Something wrong?" Rave blinks as she's spoken to, and blushes just a little out of embarrassment. "Oh, hi, um, no?" she stammers slightly. "It's just... my first time out by myself in quite some time and... wait..." she looks at Gonfei. "I know you, I think." Gonfei blinks, surprised by her claim to know him. "You do?" he says as he raises an eyebrow and looks more closely at her. After a few seconds a spark of recognition reaches his face. "Ah! Miss Raven! I didn't recognize you with black hair! Feeling better now, I presume?" Rave nods a little. "Getting there. Still getting my bearings. Plus I'm kind of nervous because last time I" the I being in air quotes, " was here, I kind of shot at my sort of brother in law and set a table on fire. But it wasn't actually me. He paid for the damages, I believe, or else I would." Gonfei nods solemnly. "Ah, yes, the whole posession thing. I've actually heard more about it than you might think. You sister, for one, has been worried sick, and still hasn't mentally recovered, I don't think." He straightens himself up somewhat, though keeps his hands at the edge of the bar top. "Well then, allow me to properly introduce myself, then. Gonfei Thri, your bartender for the evening." Rave smiles a little. "Raven von Tilsen. The real one. Promise. And Ari always takes things hard. She's an empath who apparently sucks in negativity more than anything else." Gonfei narrows one eye and raises the other. "An empath? I'll keep that in mind around her, then, and do my best to stay positive. But what can I do for you this evening?" Rave thinks a moment, then takes out her PDA, reading something for a brief moment. "Okay, it's bacon cheeseburger day." She puts her PDA away. "I'm on a strict nutritional program for a while." Gonfei looks surprised for a moment, then laughs. "I've never heard of a strict nutritional program that included bacon cheeseburgers. How do you want it, then?" Rave chuckles. "Well I need to eat more, so stuff like that is fine. And medium well with sauteed onions, lettuce, mayo and ketchup, please." she smiles, starting to let her guard down more Gonfei jots down the order and offers her a smile back. "All right, and what would you like to drink with that?" Rave says, "Just some ice water would be lovely." She stretches out a bit, no longer concerned anyone is going to arrest or kill her." Gonfei nods and says, "Coming up as soon as she's ready," before he heads off to pass on the burger order. Soon he's back with a glass of ice water, however. "Honestly, I expected after you were better that your sister would be a lot better off... but honestly, she seems more depressed than ever." Rave nods a little. "Yeah, I know. I think she's terrified she'll say or do something to set everything off again." she takes a sip of the water. "She's been through a lot in her life. We both have. Gonfei sighs and shakes his head. "I really have a hard time imagining just what it's like to have gone through your lives." He then laughs slightly. "It makes my life seem downright mundane in comparison!" Rave chuckles. "Yet in Seattle? Our lives are completely normal. You know, in a way, I think she misses it." she wrinkles her nose a bit. "It's all she knew for 18 years." Gonfei points a finger at Rave. "Except you still had some element of some dark deity instilled within you. I've never seen anything like that on my world." He pauses, though, before saying, "Dragons, Phoenixes, changelings, sure, but no actual deities." Rave hehs a little. "Yeah, that was even a rarity for my world too, honestly. I didn't even know about it until I was older. My mom never did tell me all the backstory though." She munches on an ice cube thoughtfully. "At least it's over now." Gonfei frowns. "Well, that's a shame that you don't know how it happened... It'd be an interesting story, I'm sure. We know the middle and the end of the story, but not the beginning." He glances over towards the kitchen at the sound of a bell, and heads off to soon return with the burger. "Enjoy!" Rave smiles a little. "Thanks. I'm sure it would be interesting, but I'm glad I won't open that can of worms again." she picks up the burger and takes a bite, chewing slowly. Gonfei taps his chin. "Well... we don't know how the posession happened, though, that's the problem with not knowing how it began. Well... I'm thinking Skeeve might have been able to tell something about it, though, when he did... whatever it was he did." Rave chuckles. "I don't know what he did. Well, the specifics. All I know is that my mother found out that there were bigger fish in the sea." Gonfei chuckles and nods. "There's always something worse than you think. I thought I was invincible when I was young. Then I saw my first dragon. Scared me crapless. But the might of our entire village took it down, and we thought we were the greatest ever... until Carthage came. And then Rome came and overpowered them, eventually." He shrugs. "And later I thought we had the best technology around, and then I actually got abducted by aliens. And then I came here. So yeah. It never ends." Rave blinks. "Rome overpowered Carthage? You're an older one, then. And yet you choose to bartend. I can respect that." she smiles. "Everyone's got a story, though, that's for sure." Gonfei tilts his head. "Well, I guess my reputation doesn't proceed me." He then shrugs. "Yeah, I'm older than I look. I go through phases, I'm sure eventually I'll step back to military or bounty hunting again." Rave grins at that. "Bounty hunting is always fun. I did that for a little while. I think right now though I'm just going to build and create. Too many endings and such lately." Gonfei smiles back. "I've had my time with it. I've had my time with bartending before, too. And yes, I can understand your desire to build. I've never really gotten into the whole... creative side of things, though. Did some time building for Rome, but I wasn't the one in charge. So do you know what you're going to build and create?" Rave chuckles. "What don't I want to make? Space ships, weapons, vehicles, furniture, you name it Gonfei whistles slightly. "Well, sure, I mean, you gotta start small, right?" Rave grins. "What do you mean small? It's only me! Well, and sometimes a dragon or two." Gonfei says, "Oh, sure, well, let's add some tiny dragons into the mix as well? Or, at least, I'm assuming we're talking about Nova and her mate?" Rave nods. "That's them! Quark is the other one's name. Looks kind of like Nova, but green. They're pretty good as long as they don't try to eat the supply metal." Gonfei nods, a slightly pensive look on his face. "Yeah... as nice as Nova is... I'm still a bit weirded out by the whole... eating electronics thing. Dragons don't do that in my world." Rave laughs a little this time. "They both do. Their favorite snacks are communicators from that show um.. Star Search? No.. Star Trail?" Gonfei nods. "Trek. Yes, we actually had a bunch in the back the first time she showed up here... Oh, and you should thank Nova, by the way. It was her idea to get your kids to call for an ambulance about your lack of eating. It was... preferred to Ari's idea, if you ask me, even if my opinion... upset her." Rave sighs. "Yeah, my eldest son fireman carried me out to meet it, much to my dismay. I wasn't okay. Dare I ask what Ari wanted to do? Gonfei sighs and shakes his head. "She wanted to break into a hospital and steal the equipment to do it herself. Maybe if she were cool and collected, it could have been okay, but... she was too emotional. I was afraid she was going to kill you by doing in improperly." Rave nods a little. "That sounds about right. And she has done something similar before if it make you feel better. I used to not trust hospitals, but that was back in Seattle. Hell, the hospital I was just in? That's where I had my twins." Gonfei says, "Oh, that's right... your kids were natives to here, weren't they? From that Jack Karrde guy? Met him a couple of times." Rave kind of freezes slightly, then nods. "The twins were, yeah. My youngest was born in France. And Jack was my husband. But that was a lifetime ago." Gonfei notices the reaction and frowns. "Sorry, I probably shouldn't have brought it up. So it sounds like your kids are doing pretty well, though?" Rave nods. "Don't worry about it. It really doesn't even hurt anymore." she shrugs. "But yeah, the kids are doing great. I couldn't have asked for a better bunch." she smiles with a hint of pride. Gonfei smiles a bit sadly. "Yeah... Actually I wasn't really sure if Nova even needed to call... She got the notification that you were in the hospital faster than I would've thought possible, unless they used some crazy... this place magic or tech to get you there." Rave smirks. "I honestly don't know. I was kind of out of it. Gonfei nods with a light laugh. "Well, the right calls were definitely made, regardless of who made them, and we're all glad to see you back up and around again!" Rave grins, sighing rather contentedly. "It's good to be back. Now I just have to figure out the rest of my life, you know?" Gonfei nods a bit sagely. "That... is something I cannot help you figure out. You're gonna have to find that one out on your own, Miss Raven." Rave wrinkles her nose a bit. "Drop the Miss part, please. Makes me feel older than I actually am. And I wasn't asking for help, it was just a comment." she chuckles. Gonfei nods. "Well, at least I'm not calling you ma'am." He shrugs. "I guess it's part of my nature when I'm bar tending to offer help for what people are talking about. It... kinda got me in trouble with your sister, but we've made up." Rave smirks. "Probably not your fault, I wouldn't even worry about it." Gonfei shrugs. "Well, I still say I was right. Aaaaaand so did she, yesterday, now that I think about it. She's like that a lot, eh?" Rave shrugs a little. "She has her moments. This too shall pass, you know?" Gonfei nods. "Everyone goes through phases. I know that more than anybody." Rave laughs. "Well, yeah, being an old timer." she winks teasingly. Gonfei mock winces. "Oh, sure, throw my age back into my face. Oooh, I think my knee is acting up again!" Rave grins. "Need a cane? I could make one for you." she giggles. Gonfei shakes his head. "Oh, no, I'll be fine!" he says as a small tendril of his vest flits down his arm into his left hand, where it expands and forms into a cane. "I've got the simple things covered." Rave nods. "Good good, and if it makes you feel better, you don't look a day over three hundred." she says, again teasingly. Gonfei laughs back again. "Oh, three hundred? You flatterer you!" Rave covers her mouth as she laughs some more. "Hey, I'm good at the flattery!" Gonfei puts an elbow down on the bar to lean in slightly closer to Raven as the cane is re-absorbed into his vest. "Well, let me tell you, you can go a very long way through life when you're talented with that particular skill." Rave smirks. "Well it's nice to know I still have it, at least. Now I just need to re-learn how to flirt and I'll be set!" Gonfei nods in agreement. "Being stuck in your own head that long, I imagine a lot of your skills are pretty rusty by now?" Rave smiles. "A few, but most are doing alright, I think." Gonfei raises an eyebrow. "Well then, the only way you can really make sure it's all up to snuff is to test it out in practice, right?" Rave chuckles. "This is true." She takes another sip of water. "It's finding the opportunity to that's gonna drive me crazy." Gonfei says, "Well, if that's what you want, you just gotta keep your eye out and take chances that it doesn't work, right?" Rave nods a bit. "Yeah but.. I'm over thirty with four kids. Only one of which is close to not being a kid. I think I'm pretty out of luck in that department." Gonfei shrugs. "Like I said, you've gotta try. Sure, some guys are going to be turned off by that. But you gotta trust that out there are some that aren't going to. Maybe there's that guy out there raising a daughter on his own that wouldn't mind adding to his own family. You won't know until you try." Rave sighs. "I don't know. I think I was out of the game too long. I wouldn't know an interested guy if he walked up and told me." Gonfei says, "Well, like I said. You have to try it out. I'm guessing your first attempts when you were a teenager didn't go so well, either. You had to learn, you might just have to learn it all again." Rave blushes at that. "The one attempt I had was when I was 19... was a dimension jumping guy that I ended up marrying and having three children with here." she frowns. "So.. I actually have no experience. At all. I didn't date as a teenager. At all." Gonfei frowns at that. "Well then... I guess then now's your learning curve. Look, you're probably gonna have some bad starts here and there. Don't worry, it happens to everyone. Even with my vast amount of experience, I still think I'm pretty god-awful sometimes." Rave shrugs a little. "But at least you have experience. I'm probably just bad anyway." Gonfei taps Rave's forehead. "No, you just need to learn." Rave looks cross-eyed at his finger as she's tapped. "Uh-huh. Thing is, at my age, nobody's willing to teach. I mean, though, is it a bad thing if I do just end up alone? And don't tell my step-daughter I said that. She's all about dragging me everywhere to meet someone." Gonfei says, "I'm afraid I'm not aware of any teachers in the art of flirting and wooing." He raises an eyebrow at the mention of her step daughter. "That's... Violet Hurris, right?" He shakes his head. "No, Karrde here, wasn't it?" Rave nods. "That's her. She's determined to get me a boyfriend I think." Gonfei frowns and thinks slightly. "Yeah, well... Some people can be a bit obsessed with that kind of thing." He chuckles lowly. "I've never seen someone so miserable at a wedding before. But honestly? No. It's not that bad a thing. I mean, sure, having someone is a good thing, but not having them isn't intrinsically bad. I've gone centuries 'alone' before. I think I turned out right. Really, I've not had a girlfriend since the last time I was here, and that's... nearly a century, I think, for me?" Rave nods a little. "Well, I am not going to live to be a single century, much less have centuries alone. I have like, maybe forty years, max." she sighs. "I've already had ten years alone as it is. Maybe it is too long." Gonfei sighs and nods. "Sorry, I lose perspective sometimes. But my point was... If it isn't actually important to you? Don't worry about it." Rave frowns. "Maybe it is? I don't know. Either way I need to get used to being alone in my head first." Gonfei scrunches his mouth to the side somewhat. "Yeah, that probably sounds like a good idea, actually. You need to be used to yourself before you try to get someone else used to you." Rave nods. "Exactly. Maybe in time, I don't know. My kids do deserve a father figure, though." Gonfei nods. "Every kid deserves a father figure and a mother figure. Even if it's not... direct. Sometimes an uncle can fill the slot, sometimes a neighbor, sometimes a family friend." Rave nods slightly. "I thought maybe their father's alternate version... long story... might have wanted the uncle role, but that's not going to happen." she sighs. Gonfei winces slightly. "Alternates... messy business, that. I've seen someone really screw up their own life and that of others by pretending to be an alternate of herself. Honestly, I... can't blame the guy. The kids probably see him as their father, but to him... they're just someone else's kids, aren't they?" Rave shakes her head. "The kids knew it wasn't him when they first saw him, and he said he felt a little connection to them. ut he's talking about bolting anyway." she shrugs. "I'm over it. Gonfei nods in return to Raven. "Good that you're over it. If his universe didn't... have you, which is how I understand it, then this situation is probably freaking him out. He... probably wouldn't have been stable for long anyway. I mean, I nearly flipped when I found out I had a daughter I didn't know about for thirteen years. I imagine if it was also with a woman I never met, I'm not sure how I'd react." Rave nods. "Fair." she sighs. "It's just never easy, is it?" Gonfei says, "If life is easy, expect something to go wrong." Rave chuckles softly at that. "Most of my life has gone wrong. Those kids are the only things gone right. Gonfei nods with a smile. "You get some lucky breaks, here and there, sure." Rave hehs, sighing a little. "I could use a few more. I mean, I do get lonely, I'm not going to lie." Gonfei says, "While I know what you actually mean... Don't forget you still have a lot of family around here to keep you company. I'm sure they won't mind you relying on them a bit." Rave nods. "I have, and they don't mind at all. I'm not lonely in the family and friends respect." Rave adds "I'm pretty happy there, in fact." Gonfei smiles a bit sadly. "Hold onto them. Never let them go. I have... no idea what my daughters are up to, and while usually I just trust that they know what they're doing, wherever they are, sometimes I have trouble sleeping at night worrying over them." Rave smiles a little. "That's the curse of every parent. Marque, my oldest, was taken from me when he was born. I didn't see him for the first few years of his life. I worried about him every day." Gonfei can't help but snicker. "And I had the opposite problem with Rayne. Sorry, sorry, I know it's serious, I just found the difference mildly amusing. I can't imagine having a child missing from me when they're... well, a child. Mine are long since grown, of course." Rave nods. "Marque'll be eighteen soon. The twins turned twelve yesterday, and my youngest is ten and a half. They're great, and remarkably understanding." Gonfei nods. "Especially when they're standing by you this much after... well, you weren't able to actually be there for them until now. You're right. They have gone right." Rave grins. "I was lucid for a bunch of it, mainly because.." she taps the side of her head. "wanted nothing to do with raising kids. So I got to do that part, at least for a while. Good to know I'm rocking the single mom thing." Gonfei says, "Ahaaaa. I'm willing to bet your kids could tell when you were driving and when she was." Rave smiles. "Probably. They're.. they're something else." she chuckles. "Wise beyond their years and all that." Gonfei chuckles. "Better than years beyond their wisdom." Rave grins. "Good point! Kind of scary when they make more sense than you do you know, every day." Gonfei snickers and nods. "Yeah, I've been there with Julia." He holds up a finger as someone down the bar flags him over. Rave munches on her food happily as he gets back to work. Gonfei returns after a long, drawn out process for mixing a drink for some other patrons, a fresh glass of ice water in hand for Raven. "But if you ask me, you're doing just fine on your recovery." Rave takes the water and smiles. "Thanks. It... it took a lot of mental prep to leave the house, honestly." Gonfei frowns slightly at that, but the frown doesn't last long. "And as you can see, you've not had any trouble, instead you've found a friendly face to talk to. Think you can make your way out again tomorrow?" Rave smiles a little. "I might if I had a place to go." Gonfei makes a broad motion with his arm. "Well sometimes it's best if you just go out and explore, you know? Go out into the city, see what's out there! Maybe head out to the mountains, the beach, one of the parks. Who needs a place when you can just... go." Rave hehs, nibbling her lip a little. "Well, it's not that easy. I think I need to stick with familiar places before I get... adventurous. Gonfei frowns at that, but then shrugs the frown away. "Well then, I suppose I'll see you again, in that case?" Rave nods. "Probably. The kids have been shooing me out a lot." Gonfei says, "Well then, until you're ready to explore, you're always welcome in the Usual Restaurant!" Rave smiles. "One of my favorite places to be." | |
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