Three On A Match
⁂ Third on a match. Meaning: bad luck.


Current Update » July Update
Hotspot » McCoy Orchards
Previous Update » June Update

Autumn

Enjoy the turning leaves and the crisp weather before it gets too cold.


Mysticism and exaggeration go together
Braxton Street 


Spiritum
#1
Max Kuryakin Offline
Wolf Shifter
Mundian
Outfit

Max wasn't so sure why he'd gone to Braxton Street. The high-end boutiques and displays of the latest fashion weren't his thing, but a throwaway comment from Ash had him curious enough to risk it. He'd quickly learnt his lesson about following anything Ash said, as the price tags had chased him off nearly enough immediately. It didn't matter how well the shirts sat on their display mannequins or how soft the material was to the touch, cool in summer and warm in winter, it was just too fucking expensive. He could buy none of this, not with how he'd ripped up his one expensive suit because he'd been ambushed by some asshole darkness creature.

Still, he couldn't bring himself to just bail without getting something, his tail between his legs. Maybe he could pick up something for his ma, or Emily. So that brought him to now, wandering along the street, past shoppers who peered in the windows and ooh'ed over the luxury of it all, or those who could afford to shop here as a matter of course, and walked inside like it wasn't marking them as clear upper class. Max had left the ooh'ing behind but was still window shopping. He ignored the clothing stores, immediately knowing the prices would be too much for him to stomach, but the boutiques that sold smaller items–handmade leather goods, metalworks, art–were more in reach. A small thing for more than he might normally buy, but it wouldn't set him back hundreds of bucks.

His eyes settled on a shop that seemed to be an odd one out. The clean lines of the display shelves were populated by crystals, rocks, bottles, and rough, handmade soaps. Like a high-end Body Shop with a dash of new-age mysticism, just based on what he could see of the crystals. Handmade soaps weren't impressive gifts, but they were more hit than miss, so Max took the chance to have a closer look. Em liked smelling nice, and Max liked smelling her, so it was a win-win if he got her expensive soaps.

Pushing the door open, Max was immediately hit with a wall of cloying scents, heavy with a myriad of herbs and woody scents, thick enough to cut with a knife. It invaded his nose, blocking out anything other than the potpourri of the shop. He braced himself against it, stepping in further and letting the door swing shut behind him with a gentle ring of the bell above the door. He couldn't see anyone by the counter, but he heard the muffled movements of someone beyond it, in the back, maybe.

Alone for the moment, Max let his eyes scan the room- It was a clean space, bright and light despite the miasma of incense and scented soap. The shelves and displays were organised neatly, holding crystals, rocks, handmade soaps, incense sticks and bricks, even wax melts, and a whole wall of what he thought had to be dried herbs. It was stocked for the new age crowd, hippies with too much money.

He did a circuit of the room, turning his back on the counter to peer at a table of handmade soaps, spotting delicate handwriting describing the soaps, the price listed as an afterthought, after a whole paragraph of what was in it and what it did. Shit like 'ease the soul' and 'imbue serenity'. Max was looking at it in without really taking it in, breathing through the smell of the place and trying to get used to it.
Reply
#2
Serafina Duarte Offline
Arcanist Human
Conjurer
look

So much of the time when Serafina was tending shop, she was in the back storeroom with only an ear to the out front. It was why she enjoyed when Billy kept the front of house. She was then free to putter about and lose herself in the theorems of the universe. He was also well-versed and keen to chat, especially about magic. Time passed quickly when they both were engaged in a topic.

For the times Billy wasn’t there, luckily a bell filled in for him. It chimed whenever the front door opened or closed and as long as Serafina wasn’t too immersed in her studies, she could slip out without too much disruption to her work. If it was important and the bell hadn’t roused her, the customer would catch her with a questioning, hello? Maybe not the forefront of customer service, but it hadn’t let her down yet.

This time, she heard the bell. Serafina emerged through the beaded curtain that hung from the doorframe, one hand sweeping aside the cascade of noise as she came into the storefront. With a pleasant smile, she took a measured step forward. It was enough to place her at the counter, and she folded her hands on the cool glass top.

“Welcome to Spiritum. Please let me know if there is anything I can help you with.” She announced to the room, her accented English placed her from distant shores. With little motion to her, she listened for a sound to know where to face.
Reply
#3
Max Kuryakin Offline
Wolf Shifter
Mundian
Max picked up on the sound of movements in the back, the sounds of whatever things they'd been working on stopping and being replaced by the steady cadence of footsteps. He was leaning over a display of more soaps as he unconsciously tracked the approaching person, trying to puzzle out which scents were ones he'd caught Emily wearing before. He was about to give up on parsing the different scents from the tangled mess when the jarring jangle of beads rattling together announced the arrival of whoever had been moving around in the back of the shop.

Giving up for real, he straightened up and started turning as the salesperson spoke. The voice was vaguely familiar, but Max couldn't place it in the seconds between hearing it and seeing the speaker. Having met her on two memorable occasions, Max recognised her quickly and recalled in the next second she'd told him about her business. He hadn't realised it was in Newton–might've guessed it was in Balmoral instead–but the look of the place wasn't out of place down Braxton, even if it stood out.

“Serafina!” He greeted, pleasantly surprised. Smiling too, but even if it could be heard in his tone, she couldn't see it. He looked around the shop, remembering what she'd told him at the gala. She sold some magic too, but he hadn't felt any tickling at him. Maybe she kept it in the back, away from those who didn't have a clue. “It's Max, if you remember? I didn't realise this was your place when I walked in.”

As he spoke, Max stepped closer to the counter, glancing down at the display of crystals under the glass top, and wondering if these were magic, or just mundane crystals to catch the eye of browsers.
Reply
#4
Serafina Duarte Offline
Arcanist Human
Conjurer
Hearing her name with a tone of pleasant surprise in the man's voice illuminated her features. The slender curve to her lips, agreeable and fit for greeting a stranger, warmed. She recognized his voice and remembered the unfortunate situation at the bar and their dance. He’d been kind and reassuring then, and meeting the fellow practitioner again sparked nothing but joy.

“Yes. This is it!” She readily agreed. Serafina felt him approach the checkout area. A few of the crystals behind the glass fizzled with gentle power. They were nestled alongside split geodes, crystal wands, and other esoteric knickknacks. Either she had an otherworldly talent for dressing a window, or someone else had arranged the items within. She rested her hands on the counter, the metal frame creaking with her weight.

“Have you been well?” Serafina asked, astonished to place the gala where they last met eight months ago. How time flies.
Reply
#5
Max Kuryakin Offline
Wolf Shifter
Mundian
Aspect (Detect Magic)

As Max stepped up to the counter, he felt the magic when he got close enough to the display. It wasn't every single thing in the display, but enough that it felt like a fizzle up his spine, the whiff of what Max mentally thought of as some kind of ozone scent, but was probably just how his nose and brain interpreted vague magic that he either couldn't recognise or hadn't run into before. With the miasma of incense in the space it was approaching kind of unbearable. He'd be able to follow it anywhere, but he'd be fucked if he'd need to track down a single item in the middle of it all.

He cleared his throat, trying to dislodge the taste of it coating his tongue, but smiled through it. “Yeah, I've been good, busy. You know, saving cats from trees,” he said, going for humour so he sounded amused rather than choked out. Max leaned against the counter, ignoring the way the glass felt like it was shivering under his palm, making his body language relaxed, tipped towards Serafina. She might only be able to hear he was closer, now. “How about you? Shop doing well?”
Reply
#6
Serafina Duarte Offline
Arcanist Human
Conjurer
She knew little how he suffered in the heady haze of incense and under the glow of magic. Suffused into this lifestyle, she only knew the calming aroma clouding the small store. But there was little she could do about his discomfort, even if it became apparent. In his tone, as Max joked about saving cats from trees, she only registered the humor and chuckled at the stereotype. How many cats were really saved from trees, anyway?

As the conversation turned to Spiritum, the witch’s grin widened. “Yes, thank you.” She wouldn’t be drawn into specifics, but the books were no longer in the red. She had developed a following amongst those who bought such trinkets, and a more dedicated following amongst those who understood how to use them.

“And what brings you here today?” Serafina’s voice rose in question; he hadn’t come here to see her after all. “Looking for anything specific?”
Reply
#7
Max Kuryakin Offline
Wolf Shifter
Mundian
Her question had Max huffing out a little laugh, remembering why he was even wandering down Braxton. He lifted a hand to rub at his neck–away from the near vibrating glass and the magic–tilting his head as he considered the honestly failed attempt at shopping for some nice clothing because he was dumb enough to take advice from an immortal vampire. A little embarrassing, and now he was window shopping down fucking Braxton.

“I was just window shopping, thought maybe I could find something Em might like,” he said, dropping his hand and shrugging his shoulders. He angled a grin at Seras, even if she couldn't see it. “Got any tips?”
Reply
#8
Serafina Duarte Offline
Arcanist Human
Conjurer
Window shopping; Serafina made a small and appreciative sound as Max continued. While familiar with what it entailed, such a thing was beyond her. She grew thoughtful to imagine wandering past storefronts and browsing the displays for something that took her fancy. Usually, she shopped with a goal in mind and planned her visits accordingly. But maybe, one day, that would change beneath Jules’ tutelage.

“Well—” She began. Her time with Emily hadn’t focused much on interests and Serafina knew little of the detective beyond the immediate. The obvious thing that linked them together was magic. Without that common strand tying them together, Serafina thought it unlikely they would be friends. “—I am hard to buy for, but I always appreciate something heartfelt. Does Emily wear jewelry?”
Reply
#9
Max Kuryakin Offline
Wolf Shifter
Mundian
Max did have a good idea of what Em liked, but it was one of those "I'll know it when I see it" sort of things. Otherwise he wasn't all that good at knowing where to find things, unless he stuck to the places he knew she went to regularly. Serafina's point about heartfelt gifts counted for Em, too, he knew, but she'd appreciate the practical things as well as the pretty, he thought.

“Yeah, she does,” Max confirmed, but he knew that most of what she wore was also loaded up with magic. The rings and the pendant were of her own making, but fit the style she liked, far as he knew. She rarely went out without them these days. “Do you have some pieces you think she might like?”
Reply
#10
Serafina Duarte Offline
Arcanist Human
Conjurer
Truth was, Serafina knew little of Emily’s tastes. She’d let her examine a pendant once, but she’d been more enthralled with the enchantment than the feel of it in her hands. Even now, all she could remember was the exquisite spellwork. “Well…” She pondered, pursing her lips.

“I have mood rings?” She suggested experimentally and stooped to reach below into the open back of the display case. Nimble fingers ran across the various trinkets until she found a velvet lined ring stand. There were some twenty or so rings nestled in the fabric, each with a prominent and lustrous stone. They were $30 each. She drew out the stand and a smaller one beside it, the second only had a handful of rings. These were finished more elaborately and the settings were larger. The stones, however, were white as canvas. It could have been a pearl or agate. These were an order of magnitude more expensive, and with Max’s unique senses, he could likely tell why.

She placed both on the glass countertop, taking time to square them against the edge. “And I have mood rings.” Serafina said with a knowing grin.
Reply

Users browsing this thread: 1 Guest(s)