(GS3) Field: Destroyed Shopping District

[Cipher Izanagi]

Seifer watched the scene unfold scratching the back of his neck uncomfortably. Did he just end up coming here as a third wheel on accident? Though when Haruka left he watched quietly tilting his head. What was going on anymore? What did he miss in that year time span? Looking back at Hana he chewed on his lip for a moment glancing half way down and going into his own thoughts. 'So much changed over the past year. Everyone that was my friend before is still my friend and yet... Just, everything feels off. ...Or is it just me... Maybe it's me? ...Yeah it's gotta be me. I was weird before now, and I guess that hasn't changed much. ...But maybe it has? Ugh...' he mentally argued with himself for a moment before shutting his eyes and let out a soft sigh. 'It doesn't matter what I want. What I feel. Just what everyone around me wants.' he finished his mental battle with one line that settled how he felt. He didn't matter. Not in the slightest. It was everyone around him, his friends, that mattered. Compared to everyone else, he felt like his suffering had been insignificant. To that end he resolved himself to living like he wasn't worth much in the long run, though he wouldn't really say that out loud to anyone.

[Hope]

As Harooka walked out Isabella put her head down on the table, her arms crossed.

"I' tired, whew!" She shut her eyes for a moment. Would she be able to go home tonight and face Mi-hime? To sleep in the same room as her like she always has? Circumstances have become pretty weird. She decided that it was best if she simply relaxed herself and spaced out for a bit.

[Cipher Izanagi]

At the end of his mental struggle Seifer sighed outwardly running a hand through his hair before standing up and pushing the chair in. Walking to Hana's side for a moment he placed a hand on her shoulder to let her know mostly that he was heading out but he wasn't going to go without saying something. "I'm going to go walk around for a bit before going home. If you need me, you've got my number so you know how to reach me. Take care Hana." he spoke softly before walking out of the coffee shop with his hands in his pockets. Quietly humming to himself, he made his way along the alleyways and such, coming to a peculiar dark alleyway. Feeling adventurous, he went down it coming to what looked like a dead end. Was it really a dead end? Knocking lightly at the far end of the alleyway he shrugged, before turning around and walking away to go explore other places.

Haruka AF+2
Hana AF+3
Rosalia AF+3
Shiki AF+1

[Jello]

Work, work, work. Haruka spent his entire evening after school serving coffees and sweets and biscuits. His uncle was right. Women do like a man in uniform, er, a suit in this case. He was given generous tips from a lot of the customers around the shop, but majorly the girls, who all happen to be wearing Hoshiko uniforms. Weird, did they not recognize them?

Oh right. Haruka was in lower level classes because his intelligence level is actually pretty low and so he doesn't get classed up with the general student body. He tends to find himself in the near "special" classes for making only small mistakes, but those small mistakes are just barely big enough to make blemishes across his grade book.

Ughhhh. I swear I'm not that dumb.

The evening came too quick, Haruka's shift was continuing for roughly three more hours, so til close. First day of work and he's already working a full shift... what was his uncle thinking? Hours passed rapidly as Haruka clicked on his MP3 Player, mixing brews and making coffee in the back. He tended the coffee bar mostly, making different brews and cream mixes for whoever the paying customer coming up was.

[Hope]

While trying to get the club in order within her head, Isabella had to also come up with a few new lyrics, or at least a song concept. Due to her last album's success, the demand for another is increasing by the moment and it was best to answer the fans before they tired out, with another qualitg album of course. She fixed her hat and dusted off her school uniform as she walked to the register of the coffee shop. She ordered her usual frappe.

It was weird that she recognized the person who making the coffee, tilting her head to get a better view.

Is that?...

Indeed it was. She pretended to not notice and went ahead and sat alone at her corner table, waiting for the order to finish up. "Right... Song lyrics..." she took out her notepad and quietly began to write.

[OverDrive]

Tsubasa and Noel continued their way towards her hotel, but Tsubasa still felt bad for the young girl, she seemed really upset and still showing some signs of tears even though he gave her a tissue. As they continue walking he passes by a coffee shop, and recalls how often he would visit these in New York.

Turning around he addresses the young girl, "Listen, how about I buy you a drink or some coffee..." he said.

"You need a solid beverage to make you feel better after what you went through." he said, as he opened the door and entered the shop.

Upon entry the two take a seat near the counter and Tsubasa notices something familiar about a person working there. "Hold on...Haruka?" he thought, as he got up from his chair and went to say hi. "It's good to see you again man." he said.

[Jello]

Haruka is unable to make coffee very well right now because he saw Hana when she made an order and he knows that she'll either have his head for not being at the gym earlier, or she'll be really sulky and not respond to him whatsoever... But Haruka's guilty conscience was already kicking in. He made sure to make her coffee perfectly, the way he had prepared the one other time. It was awhile ago, one of the times he stayed at the manor right after the clan sealing. She said it wasn't bad... But he had to do better.

And so he did. The perfect frappe. He carefully set it on the tray, ready to serve. Normally he'd call people over when their order is finished, but he wanted to talk to her privately this time...

He nearly flipped the whole tray and frappe when Tsubasa spoke up to him though. Good thing Haruka was completely out of arm's reach for the tray or the coffee, so it was no big deal. Just a scare.

"Eheh... Tsubasa and uh.. Seifer's sister, right? Good to see you guys... phew.. Scared me man." Haruka smiled and nodded.

"If you give me just a moment, I'll have somebody take your order. I have to, uh, be somewhere." Hastily picking up the tray, adding a little cupcake with it, he carried it over to Hana with her frappe and stood at the edge of her table in the corner, bowing with the tray in his left hand palm.

"Your order, Miss?" Haruka grinned, head bowed. It was kind of funny, he felt like one of the servants preparing something for the Princess.

[Cece Lockhart]

Noel followed Tsubasa into the coffee shop for a small pit stop before going back to her hotel which shouldn't be more than a few blocks down the shopping district. Noel looks like a mess. Clothes dirty from being on the dirt back in the forest unconscious and with an almost empty deck box tightly wrapped on her arms, hugging it almost. Losing her deck was very devastating for her since it was the first thing that gave her an identity and with it gone, she felt like a nobody again. Nothing to help her be identified once again.

Noel and Tsubasa both sat down at a table for two near the window of the coffee shop. One of the waiters there called her by "Seifer's sister" but all Noel did to confirm it was give him a little nod as she kept looking gloomy. Her face looked virtually lifeless and lost. The fact of not knowing how long she has been out was killing her. Hours? Days? There was nothing to really confirm it except her lost deck.

"I guess... I'll have a mint hot chocolate..." Noel said quietly, slowly she is beginning to come back to reality and actual be a little more sociable. "I bet school started already and judging by the time, the school day probably ended..." Noel sighed and some color started returning back to her face, she was beginning to calm down and accept what has happened more and more. "I'm also gonna need a new deck, I still want it to be Royal Paladin though."

[Hope]

Walking across thin ice, passion burning through it alone..
It melts with my heart and now..
I'm falling...-

Isabella continued to write, wondering exactly where the lyrics came from. She had no general idea what the beat would be. Rather, it was more like some sort of makeshit poetry writing for the sake of letting her feelings loose. Since becoming an idol, she's gotten into the habit of just writing poetry, then whatever was good made it into a song. Aurora's Flower was a narrative that she thought up and wrote which was then turned into a song. She rested her head on her right hand, her elbow acting as support by resting on the table. She was spinning her pen on her left hand, making it move fluidly between her fingers.

When she looked up, Haruka was there. The first thing she could do was just let out a slight laugh, covering her mouth with a the hand which held her pen. "You're really letting butler-san leave his mark on yoy." Isabella reached for her frappe and a cupcake which she didn't order. "Something extra...? This frappe looks well made, lot like something from someone who's been working all day... No, its just cause we're good friends of course." She repeated this in her head, thinking over it. Taking a sip of her frappe, it certainly felt like something special, a taste of heaven. She couldn't seem to shake the idea of why he was doing all this for her off her mind.

"Whoau, thanks for the "hook up" as they say... Or at least Drake did um..." she smiled at him, "Perfect like Butler-san."

[Jello]

Haruka smiled back, pulling the tray up to his waist and fixing his tie. He had trouble with it all day, considering his uniform didn't actually require one so he always just went with the dress shirt and jacket, never the tie. Ties were something Haruka was particularly fond of, just got tired of wearing after a decent period of time.

"That good? Yes!!" Haruka threw up a fist in rejoice. He was pleased with himself and Hana's reaction to the coffee. That's great... But what was that about hooking up? He didn't mishear her, right? He misheard her probably, something about a hook up, as in the free cupcake. Probably. He took a quick glance around to make sure his boss wasn't watching. Talking to the customers for too long got him in a lot of trouble apparently, he learned the hard way earlier with a rolling pin to the back of the head.

Haruka crouched down to eye-level with Hana. He found it just easier to talk to her that way. But the second he got a clear look into her eyes, without the hat blocking the way, his heart pounded for a few moments. Definitely not the reaction he expected. After that awkward encounter at Shop Handsome, he swore he'd be done with this...-

This isn't the same feeling. Not exactly. Haruka was consciously thinking as he looked at her, not just blanking out at her body or something. There was definitely a different... atmosphere this time around. He gulped, sort of chewing his lip. A slight blush rose to his face. He couldn't maintain eye contact any longer or he might just lose it, so he turned his head shakily. Just so Hana was out of eyesight.

"S-S-So, is e-everything to your liking, Miss?"

[OverDrive]

Tsubasa retrieved the orders from the cashier and returned to the table, he wanted to certify that this girl is really Seifer's sister, he has never seen her before not even living with her brother. But before he could do that he notices Hana's presence inside the shop so he gives her a wave as he continues heading back to his table.

"..Here you go Noel." he said, handing her, the drink.

"..Are you actually Seifer's sister?" he asked. "How come I have not seen you before now? i'm a friend of Seifer."

[Hope]

She wasn't really sure what she was seeing, she was just drinking her coffee when Harooka tried to get a better a look at her eyes. With a brief moment of eye contact, she felt something pushing her back-...forward? Either way it was a strange force that was pulling on her to go do something subconciously. His face was turning red like ketchup on an egg and she made her want to move towards him even more.

Ketchups compliment eggs...

She shook her head and adjusted her hat. "Y-Yeah.. It's good." Looking back at him, while moving her hat around, she noticed his suit. The contrast with his hair looked nice and - no. Stop. There.

"Do you guys treat all customers like this? Gr8 R8 M8 8/8. Tell your Uncle this is great haha." she laughed.

[Cece Lockhart]

Noel gets her hot chocolate from Tsubasa. She puts the deck box on the table and grabs the cup with both hands and blows out the steam a little since the hot chocolate looks like it was just made. "Thanks for getting me this. You honestly didn't have to, and I mean that." Noel takes a sip and the warmth of the drink seemed to have revived her more and relaxed her. Now with her mind at ease and calm, she begins to answer Tsubasa's question.

"Yes, I actually am. Well, I'm his half-sister. We just share the same mom." She said, "As for the reason you haven't seen me, let's just say my family isn't as united as how a family should be. I think I should leave it at that. Saying more... it could cause a lot of trouble between Seifer and I. I would like to go to a cardstore after going back to my hotel so I can replace what I lost if that's ok. You don't have to come along, directing me would be good enough. I'm sure you have other things to do right now."

[Jello]

G U L P.

Haruka was nearly swallowing a rock at this point. She was moving closer... closer...

Oh god. Please. Stop. Hana. S t o p!!!

Haruka broke a sweat just from being so close to her. Then again looking at her eyes made him notice how well her complexion was working for her; she even made the school uniform look amazing on her-

Okay Haruka. We need to talk.

Haruka just breathed out a sigh, and laughed a bit at her comment. His uncle actually did not make him treat customers this way. Normally a small smile and a bow was good enough but he had to go the extra mile for his frien-

For Hana. Because Haruka was really hesitant calling Hana that right now. A friend. There were complicated emotions between the two right now and he definitely wasn't able to make a lot of sense of it. But right now felt okay. Some sort of weight was on his shoulders, but was slowly lifting. Responding to her inquiry however...

"No, uh, only you." Haruka didn't mean it that way exactly. He implied people like her. Yukino would get similar, if not better treatment... But she wasn't here right now.

That's right. Yukino wasn't here anymore... Who was here with Haruka after everything? Hana. Who had helped him through this past year's grief with only a couple minute song? Hana. Who was the one staring at him right now with eyes that seemed to light up when they saw him? Hana. Everything was connecting but all in the wrong way because Haruka still felt attachment to Yukino. She obviously didn't die off of the face of the Earth. She was somewhere but-

Instinctively, Haruka did what he didn't imagine he'd do. He reached out for Hana's face, mimicking what he had once done with Yukino, caressing her face. His eyes delicately tracing over every detail of Hana. It was weird... he used to treat her like a little sister himself, despite them actually being closer in age than him and Yukino. This was a different feeling. He even moved a little closer.

G U L P: Part II.



Why wasn't his boss saying anything? There can be no way he hasn't noticed this by now. Idiot manager.

[OverDrive]

Noel explained to Tsubasa about what her situation was regarding Seifer, to which Tsubasa did not try to interfere too much with since he just met her, his duty right now is to help her reach her destination.

"I did it because I wanted not because I had to, I understand what it's like to feel lost or confused, not many things can help in such situations though I will say I am intrigued by how you ended up there in the first place." he said, not specifying a question but rather implying one. "I will help you get where you want so no worries, but if you feel like you owe me something then cardfight me when you get your cards back."

Before she can respond Tsubasa turned around slightly and suddenly stared in disbelief, he saw Haruka getting closer and closer to Hana..."...What is he doing..?" he thought.