Commencement *Open*

[succurro]

Bare feet slid across the hard packed dirt, kicking up a plume of dust. Strawberry blond hair shone in the late afternoon sun, flowing behind the boy as he skimmed across the earth. He grinned, enjoying the rush as he came barreling down the hill towards town. This was always his favorite part of traveling; the wind in his hair, the dust at his back, and some good rolls to surf.

Arlen began to slowly increase the friction as he neared the bottom of the rise, slowing himself gradually. The last thing he needed was to come flying into Leau City and slam into somebody. Not exactly the first impression he wanted to make. That would definitely make his search for answers more difficult.

He was only a few feet from the main thoroughfare when he started walking, his own personal friction returned to normal. It was getting much easier, and almost infinitely faster to shift his field. He'd been practicing as he wandered, mainly because it gave him something to do with himself to stave off the boredom. Long lengths of time spent by yourself are not conducive to excitement.

Therefore it was with great glee that he gazed upon this new city. Leau was easily the largest he had recently visited, though that didn't count for very much. His memory, such as it is, didn't stretch back very far. Not that he could trust, at any rate. Too many holes, too many paths. There had to be one truth out there somewhere. He needed to find it. But the more he searched, and the more he came up empty handed, the less he wanted to know. Maybe it was better if he just forged on ahead, and left the past as it was. An interesting mystery, and nothing more.

His slim shoulders shrugged as he made his way into the city proper. For now, at least, his quest for answers gave him purpose. It would do, he supposed, until something more interesting came along.

Who knew, maybe this would be the stop that dropped some answers into his lap. At the very least, maybe he could get some food into his empty stomach. That would be best of all.

Arlen gazed around, noting the dour expressions that pervaded the populace around him. 'Not a very happy place,' he thought to himself.

He was so intent on these thoughts, that he wasn't paying much attention to his surroundings as he walked.

[Thufir]

Arrakis shouldn't have been so close to Royalce, Leau city was really pushing it.
The guild of scoundrels were constantly on the lookout for him, and with their headquarters being practically around the corner - albeit inside a giant waterfall - Tung was really playing with feathers. And if you play with feathers, your going to get your arse tickled.

However, perhaps it was a good thing. I mean, any scoundrels who were on the lookout for him, wouldn't expect him to be so close to home. And this city wasn't exactly a den of eniquity as far as crime and debauchery went, so they generally had little interest in this place.
Regardless of the implications due to the man being here, Tung was quite happy just to blend in with the crowd, and not hide in the shadows all of the time.

As of now he was making his way to a coffee shop, or perhaps that bakery which sold those wierd pastries - Nah, he wasn't in the mood for pastries.
The coffee shop was a safer bet, as really he just wanted a place to sit down and watch the world go b- Argh
Arrakis walked head first into someone coming the opposite way - a proper collision on his end, as he was walking intently and not really paying attention.
"Watch where your going!" Spat the man, pointing a finger of accussal.
"What are you, a bloody tourist? You could of knocked me over, you fool!"

Not the best way to start the day really.
However, at least he wasn't a guild-member. They were bad news altogether.

[succurro]

Arlen landed on his butt in a cloud of dust, stunned. Someone was angry, and yelling, and he was suddenly sitting. Anger wasn't good. It raised your blood pressure to totally uncool levels. People needed to stay more mellow.

He looked up at the man, smiling benignly. "Apologies sent your way, friend. I wasn't paying attention. Totally taken in by the scenery. How about I buy you a cuppa, to make up for it? If, of course, you can show me where to find some half decent coffee."

Hopping to his feet, he dusted himself off, still smiling. Perhaps this would work out in his favor. A cup of coffee, a little human interaction, and perhaps a little breakfast. All of it sounded awesome, and it had landed almost literally in his lap.

How totally karmic.

[Thufir]

Erm...Er....
Arrakis was taken aback. He generally expected a reaction of apology, fear or hostility, however, the reaction he recieved was simply bewildering.
This stranger had completely defused him with a combination of apologies, followed by a friendly gesture. "Erm, err....A cuppa? Thats, umm.." Tung stumbled for his words and found his mouth turning ironically dry. "Er, a cuppa sounds great..yeah...er...And a coffee shop, yeah...umm, there'll be one round here somewhere."

Anyone who knew Arrakis Tung, and who was witnessing this at this very minute - and there was no one really to speak of - would know just how astonishing this was.
A man whom resorted to murder as an icebreaker, nevermind a party trick, was stood in the middle of the street, having been completely difused of anger, and was now awkwardly enchanted by the generosity of some random pleb who was new to the city.

Normally the man would have simply shot Arlen.

"Of course, er..this way." Tung directed, clumsily and awkwardly leading the stranger down the street, on the lookout for a teahouse or coffee shop.
"So..your new to this place are you?" Spoke Arrakis, making uncomfortable small talk.

[succurro]

Arlen nodded. "Yeah, I just coasted in this morning. I've been roaming for a while, gone through all the grub in my pack. I haven't had a good meal in a while. Cheese and bread only fill you up so much, you know."

He followed after Arrakis, trusting him to lead the way. Arlen tended to live holistically, relying on the motions of fate to guide him. Presented with opportunity to let someone guide him, he always jumped at the chance. It wasn't that he was a sheep, easily led. Or that he was naive. It just always seemed that somebody else knew where he needed to go. It was just a matter of finding the right somebody.

Unshod feet tread silently on the ground as he wended his way through the crowd. "The name's Arlen, by the way. It's totally cool to run into somebody that's not all clammed up like most folks nowadays. It's like there's something in the air, y'know, that makes people all uptight. Always running here and there, never allowing themselves to just coast. It's no way to live."

Having no real memories of his own, Arlen found it hard to develop ties to anything. He felt best when he was in motion, thinking on his feet. Standing still just left one to ponder and reflect, two things he was no good at. Answers would come, or they wouldn't, on their own. All it would take was being in the right place at the right time.

"So," he said, smiling brightly at Arrakis, "what's your name, man? You don't much seem like you're a native either. Too colorful, not nearly gray enough. Not like all these birds, anyhow. Or were you one that decided to flow the coop?"

[Thufir]

Arrakis grimaced uncomfortably, without looking back to acknowledge his unwanted companion.
While this was certainly awkward, and he was at a loss of how to react, Tung still upheld his own morals.
He was prepared to show this fellow where to get a decent meal, and perhaps a hot beverage - but despite this, as far as Arrakis was concerned, he had just bumped into him, and he was not about to give him his name. He would sooner murder him, if he could do it without attracting attention.
"How nice to meet you Arlen." Tung replied with an uncomfortable raise of the eyebrow.

Down the street now, they were coming closer to a Cafe. It was a quaint old thing, with plain wooden chairs and unpainted banisters. No real decoration apart from a few plants and flowers by the doorway. Outside a few people smoked and a waiter could be seen placing a bottle of wine on a couples table.
..Who drank wine at this time of day?..

Arrakis finally turned to his follower with a disdained expression. "Well.." He began, about to make his great reply... "Names are for friends...and therefore I don't need one" There. He said it. He didn't have to give away his name to some stranger and possibly bring attention to the fact that he was residing here in Royalce.
"And no, I am not from this area. I am simply here by circumstance."
Tung turned once more and led them both to the Cafe. A waiter greeted them in his scruffy suit - nice for the area. "A table for two?" The man asked with a smile.
"A table for two would be perfectly adaquet." Nodded Arrakis, bemusingly.

My god. The day was certainly of to a brilliant start. He was stuck with a complete stranger, and had no social skills to use in order to get the bloke to bugger off.
Still...In a sense it was nice to have company.
Arrakis blinked slightly, rubbing his eye, as he came back into reality.
"Would you like to take a seat, gentlemen? And what would you like to drink?"

At this prod by the Waiter, Tung gestured for Arlen to take a seat - pointing to a table just out of the sun, next to the window of the Cafe. "Please. After you."