young_oldman | IC Inbox: Empatheias

I didn't see any sign there saying that two people going as friends were not allowed inside the restaurant. If you're concerned, we can speak with the manager and clarify that we are there to sample their food for a couple.

[ He. May legitimately think Sanae's talking about an actual "COUPLES ONLY" notice posted somewhere in the restaurant.

Aka he has not a romantic bone in his body and fails to see why she's making a fuss. They aren't going on a date, they're not even going on a not-date and thinking about a date. This is just a reconnaissance mission to determine if the food and setting of the venue is a good fit for Elios' s and Peromei's not-date. ]

[ But...! But! This is exactly how a not-date begins...! She's clearly flustered, glancing to the side as she sorts out her feelings and embarrassment. Going to a nice-ish restaurant that's popular for couples is...!

Is!

Someone might misread the situation! She can't have that happen...!

(She's having a little mini-freakout over here. Just watch how those mistletoe decide it would be great to begin flapping in mid air. ]

[ Okay, calm down, Sanae. Take a deep breath. It's not a date at all. And clearly Lu Meng isn't fussing over it. Besides, he's right. They can clarify that it's not a date that they're going on.

Besides, it's not really a date if neither of them have romantic feelings for the other! ]

[ ....And not to mention, even if she were to go on a date/not-date with him. It would not be a date at all. Just from this conversation alone, she can determine that he is that un-romantic.

Sanae sighs to herself. The mistletoe settle back down. ] A-...all right.

[ And brushing her hair over her shoulder. ] We should try this place out-- do you know if it's fancy at all? Will we have to change?

[ He glances over quizically at the fluttering mistletoe, and then the flustered girl.]

Is there something wrong with this restaurant? [ Y E A P. Still not seeing it. ] We don't have to go with this one if you know of someplace better.

No...! [ Oops that's a bit loud.

Sanae clears her throat. ] No, ...nothing is wrong at all. [ Onky Sanae is the one who is over thinking things. Which she tends to do. ] Where's this restaurant? We can talk about what the two Arehtei may do on the rest of their date there.

[He's not too convinced...but fine, if she insists. He'll just have to keep an eye on her.]

...alright. If you say so. The restaurant is [insert address here]. We could go by the theatre as well and check if they'll allow us to book one of those special private booths for Elios and Peromei.

The play they'll be performing is The Ash Maiden. Have you heard of it?

[If she hasn't, he'll proceed to give her a little plot summary, which remarkably resembles the plot of Cinderella, albeit with a few other human characters, no talking mice or pumpkins or fairy godmothers. Still, The Ash Maiden is the latest of Verens' plays; if it took the form of a movie in Sanae's world, it would be classified as a rom-com.]

Edited 2015-12-30 15:15 (UTC)

Ooh, I've heard of it, yes! There's a similar story of that in my own world. [ She explains. Yes, good, a distraction from the fact they'll be going to a ~couple's~ restaurant. ] Have you seen it at all?

[ And when they stand up, she'll begin following him towards the restaurant. ]

No, but I chanced upon a commentary in the newspaper. The premise seemed appealed to me, so I asked around the theatre for the full plot. I thought the story was very inspiring. The Ash Maiden lived a very hard life but never complained. Even when the tables were turned she forgave her parents; truly a model of filial piety. I only hope that her parents learned their lesson.

What of the story in your world? Did it have as happy an ending as the Ash Maiden?

[Walking towards the theatre now! And because it's cold, it's likely they'll be wearing scarves, right? It only occurs to him as they past a display showcasing winter fashion to check if she's wearing the one he bought her for her birthday.]

She gets married to the prince at the end!

[ She smiles brightly. Can he tell that she likes happy endings. ] And lives happily ever after! Peromei would love a story like that!

[Who doesn't like happy endings. Isn't that what everyone is fighting for?]

Elios too. A story where love triumphs over hardship and social standing, allowing a downtrodden maiden to wed the handsome prince of the land and secure her happiness.

[He nods, satisfied.

And it turns out the theatre isn't too far off from them. A few quick checks, a talk with the manager, and a hefty fee (Lu Meng was appalled at the price, do people actually waste that much money on entertainment!!???) later, and they've secured the booth for Elios and Peromei.]

I can't believe it is that expensive to watch a play! [She can bet he'll continue to grumble about this all the way to the restaurant, but he had the decency and sense to wait until they were outside the theatre to do so.]

[ Oh and for the record she is wearing the scarf he got her. She always wears the scarf a person bought for her when she's going to meet that particular person. Her choices become difficult when she's going to meet a group of people, though. ]

Let me pay for Peromei's ticket, Lu Meng. I'm the one that's aligned to her. [ She offers as they walk.

She'd rather pay for the tickets herself than him not grumble about it... An unhappy Lu Meng is not a fun Lu Meng. ]

[...hopefully she won't notice the little snow flowers that are springing up behind them as they walk on.]

No, it's fine. I can't let you pay for either of their tickets; that wouldn't be right. [It's not the gentlemanly thing to do. And besides, he will grumble anyway even if she pays for Peromei's ticket. It's not the cost to him that irritates him, but rather the fact that the ticket could be priced so high.]

150 syvls a ticket! Why are people willing to pay so much just to see those actors? [...keeping in mind that in his time, actors were one of the lowly paid in society.]

[ She doesn't.

But she would wonder exactly what emotion they're representing that he's creating. ] it's not just them the ticket goes towards-- it goes to the theater, the crew, the costume designers, the make up artists, the musicians!

Good talent should be rewarded!

[Thankfully she doesn't. And he doesn't either, otherwise he'll be taking a flight to Egypt to take a dive into The Nile.]

But acting contributes nothing to society! What about the hardworking farmers who toil in their fields every day? Food is a necessity for life, but entertainment is not.

[Oh whoops, it's return of Mr Stale Cracker.]

Er--, well, I see your point, but the actors and everyone involved in production have to live too. And it's not as if they don't pay the farmers for their food.

[ Isn't that how it works?? ]

[He sighs.] You have a point too. But farmers are the backbone of society, and yet too often most of them live in poverty and hardship.

Then... maybe the farmers should charge extra for their goods?

That would require everyone to pay more for their basic food.

[He runs his hand through his hair, a little frustrated.] I suppose...this is the farmer's boy in me. I was very poor when I was younger. One of the only entertainment I had was the village plays, and the actors were all equally as shabbily dressed as I was back then. They weren't paid for their shows either. You could give them money if you were impressed, but otherwise you could just sit down and watch them for free.

It seemed fair to me back then, that actors had it harder than farmers. But here it seems to be the other way around.

[ What she takes from this:

Never, ever take Lu Meng to a play here, ever. It will make him grumble about the prices as well as make him feel as if it's unfair. ] Lu Meng, I'm a shrine maiden. [ A particularly wealthy one, at least in comparison to Reimu. Lady Kanako has multiple projects going on at once and multiple branch shrines. ] I don't understand how economics really works.

[ See see, she's become a bit more straightforward since her return from home. ]

[ She sighs. ] But I do know that it can be a fun thing to see for some, and a good enough thing that they'd pay more to see it.

Let's just hope that Peromei and Elios enjoy it, okay? You don't have to see it with them. But if it really bothers you, let's return the tickets and buy tickets for them to go on an, um, [ What's a thing that farmers can do. ] hay ride through the countryside somewhere, to support the local farmers. It'd probably still be a nice trip for those little two Arehtei.

No, no. [He waves his hand irritably.] They'll enjoy this more, with its message of love and hope. I suppose if it's for a special night, there's nothing wrong with indulging every once in a while.

[But yes. Never take Lu Meng to a play, ever.

And here they are at the restaurant! The Elios seems to be a nice enough restaurant, if a bit on the fancy side!

...or it used to be. When Sanae and Lu Meng arrive, they'll find the owners sadly trying to scrub off a couple of Anti-Arehtei messages from the windows. Very crude and rude stuff, lambasting the Arehtei and accusing the owners of being traitors to Empatheias.

Lu Meng glances over to Sanae immediately.] We should help them.

[ She'll be regretting giving him a romance novel. Just don't do fun things with Lu Meng, should be her rule of thumb tbh. ] ....How terrible.

[ And she will approach the owners with an offering to help. They'll gratefully oblige, allowing the two to take a few rags and crude soap to begin to scrub off the paint.]

[Hey he can do fun things! Studying is fun! Nerding out about science is fun!

But what is not fun is having to clean up the mess. Lu Meng scowls at some of the messages and scrubs at them hard. If only he could scrub those damn protesters' mouths with soap instead.]

Scoundrels and ruffians.

[ She's doing her fair share of cleaning on the opposite side of the door. ] We should keep a close eye out for anyone trying to sabotage their time together.

Peromei just woke up from her sleep, she shouldn't have to see this...

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