Felinis: For the record this is really how I think when it comes to buying shit. Even when I'm not paying.
It wasn't on purpose that she ended up at Brave Vesperia that day. Okay, that was a lie. She'd been walking past the recently purchased old stone building for weeks now debating whether or not she should knock on the door. Each time she mustered the courage to cross the busy road she found her knees would buckle and lose balance in her heels. Each day she would get a little closer to almost taking that first step. It wasn't that hard of a task. All she needed to do was walk up and ask for a job. Simple. Stupidly simple.
So, why was it so damn hard! It's not as if she hadn't done this before. No. She'd done this a multitude of times. She sighed. And then she sighed again. She muttered bitterly under her breath about her stupidity and began pacing in circles. Then she began to debate with herself whether this was actually worth all the trouble. Probably...not. Yeah. A small guild like this wasn't worth the stress. He wasn't worth the stress. But, she needed a job and at this point there weren't many options. Especially at what happened at the last guild. Ughhhhh.
She looked up from her feet and found herself at that door. And because she lacked that little voice that told her "for the love of Goddess please do not do this again" or "this never ends well and if you just got a normal job or did literally anything else things would not end in disaster" she opened the unlocked door.
The bell on the top of the door let out a soft ring. She fiddled with the bracelet on her left wrist wondering if there was still time to run away. Readying herself to turn on her heels she was foiled by the loud sound of footsteps.
Fuck.
"Hold on a minute. I'll be right there." A young man in his early teens ran out from the back of a narrow hallway that likely lead to the living quarters and meeting area. The guild lobby was both very colorful and very sparse. A few wooden chairs sat near the large window overlooking the street and an old oak counter was bolted into the boards near the back. The walls were painted very sporadically with arrays of colors covering what was once white wash. A single landscape of what she believed to be the tree of Halure framed one the walls. There really wasn't much. Still, it was nice and homey in a way. He rushed up to her and held out a gloved hand. "Sorry about that. Everyone's out on jobs right now." She shook the hand a little timidly. "I'm Karol Capel the guild leader. How can I help you miss...?"
"Felinis Feloney."
The boy's face went with a look of 'ah' and he looked closer at her. "Oh, I remember you! You were the girl managing books and stuff when I was in the Black Lotus." Boy, was that a long time ago. She'd been kicked out from there years ago (Admittedly, about a few months after Karol). Maybe she could run back there if she needed to. Then she thought about what happened between her and the guild boss. She shivered inwardly. Yeah, no. Unless that man was dead she was never going back. "How's it been? Black Lotus has been doing pretty well these days."
Terrible. "Fine. Everything's been fine."
"Well, that's good." A pause. "What brings you to Brave Vesperia? "
She swallowed. "Uh, well- you see. I kind of lost my job and I was wondering if you guys were recruiting."
Felinis joined Brave Vesperia for the same reason she had joined other guilds. Unfortunately, that reason was shameful and stupid. Sure this time it was more grounded and sensible but…. no. So she sighed and went on with cleaning up the guild hall. Felinis wasn't a fighter. In fact, over all the years she'd lived in Dahngrest Felinis had not once stepped outside the barrier. It made things hard when it came to guild life because the most she could do were city based jobs and guildhall maintenance. Jobs like that weren't usually well paying or in demand. So she was grateful that Brave Vesperia allowed her the luxury of doing odd jobs and handling everything in the front. She swept up the remaining dust on the floor and heard that familiar chime of the door. She looked up to one of the faces she'd grown used to seeing over the past month. "You know; you really should use the back door like everyone else."
"No thanks. Not my style." The dark haired man who stood at the entrance smirked. She could almost feel herself melting. This was why she was here. Felinis was a bit of hopeless romantic. And by that she meant she fell for guys at the drop of the hat. Yuri was no exception. He was perfect! So perfect. Dear god, just let her kiss his snarky lips. "Judy back yet?"
And once more reality sets in. "Oh, yeah. Judith got back a few minutes ago. I think she's upstairs."
He nodded and walked toward the back. "Cool. Any jobs for fighting big monsters come in?"
"Not since yesterday."
"Too bad." And then he was gone and Felinis was left to once more stare out the window and clean. This was pretty much how every conversation went these days. The first week had been a little different. But, now Felinis felt like she was mostly part of the scenery. She understood why. She was a stranger. Yes, the guild was friendly towards her now that they'd gotten used to her, but she still felt like an intruder. An intruder who was admittedly sort of stalking Yuri. The light pouring in from the late afternoon noon sun was nice and Felinis thought that perhaps she should put up a nice plant in the window to help make the place even nicer. She opened one of her many budget books and looked over how much adding a plant would impact the bills. Plants after all, needed space, water and soil. While it probably wouldn't hurt the water bill she still checked. Felinis was a bit of perfectionist when it came to finances. She started muttering over numbers and pondering over different plants to consider. Not one with flowers. They'd likely clash with the walls and give clients the wrong impression if they were too vibrant. Hmm, perhaps a large fern.
"Hey Fel?" Yeah. A fern would be good. Or maybe an herb so they could use it for cooking too. No, too fragrant. Fragrances distract clients. "Fel?" So a fern was probably best. "Fel!" But, what kind? "Hey Fel!"
She jumped as someone touched her shoulder. Eek. And sudden relief. It was just Karol.
"Finally! I've been trying to get your attention for forever. Close up the front and come eat. Yuri made pork cutlets." Pork cutlets. Those were expensive. Food was not cheap since the loss of blastia and meat was one of the costlier items. She'd have to account that in the weekly budget. Sigh.
While the front of Brave Vesperia headquarters was extremely professional looking past the office door where only the most important meetings were held everything became more than just a little casual. The space was filled with walls with maps that apparently the young boss had made during the guild's travels. Some shelves were lined with odd nick-knacks from clients. Some trophies from particularly thrilling fights with monsters. The room that greeted you after entering the hall was a mix between a kitchen and a living room. A large faded orange ugly couch was curled up against one wall along with a coffee table that had seen better days. Towards the center an extending table big enough to sit possibly ten people when brought to its full length sat with a variety of mixed chairs. The kitchen was further toward the back with a log fire stove and brick oven. The counter made of dark stained hardwood extended in a gentle curve toward the table, but left enough space for a few stools to fit in. Next to the pantry door the back door stood as the entrance the guild was supposed to take to get to the living quarters.
The door was an old split door that lead to a decently sized backyard. The backyard itself doubled as a training ground for Yuri and Judith. Upstairs was where all the bedrooms (and one bathroom) were. Karol' s being the largest because he was the boss. Yuri's was the smallest and shared with by a person that Felinis had yet to meet named Raven. Felinis shared a room with Judith or Judy as Yuri called her. There was one extra room that was kept as a spare for guests, but whenever Brave Vesperia got more members they'd need to change that. This wasn't the largest guild headquarters she'd seen, but it certainly was one of the coziest. The whole guild sat around the table as Yuri passed out plates to everyone. She took a seat next to Judith and mentally tried to work out how much dinner was going to cost tonight.
"How much did you pay for the pork?" This was sadly almost a standard question for her to ask. Felinis was constantly convinced that this guild was out to drive her mad with impulse spending. Who just buys a pound of miso and rice?
"Relax Fel. It was only twenty-seven gald." She started writing the math out in her mashed potatoes and practical cried. She'd have to pass on that fern. Not if she wanted to be able to pay for an icebox at some point. That was a luxury that would save on food costs so much. She continued to eat all while debating on how much wanting a fern outweighed wanting other luxuries that month. Maybe her mom was right. She was way too high strung on these things. Everyone was talking and laughing with each other. It was so pleasant just to listen. Especially with Yuri.
God, his voice was sexy. It was a lovely blend of soft and melodious while still being deep and strong. It was like some kind of dark chocolate and coffee flavored parfait with extra whipped cream. Or something. It was just-just- yes. All the yes.
By the time Felinis snapped from her daze she realized the table was empty. Everyone was either going out for the evening or to bed. She washed her plate thoroughly and headed to her room. She needed to sleep. Lots of sleep.
Judith was in there laying on her bed seemingly in thought. "Good to see you finally made it up."
"Yeah. I guess I got caught up in my own thoughts again." Felinis laughed as she changed into her nightgown.
Judith looked at her with that grin that Felinis wasn't sure on whether it was playful or menacing. "What were you thinking about?"
How she'd like to rub butter all over Yuri's gorgeous abs and eat him out while he screamed her name under the soft lighting of the dawning sun on an apple orchard in Hypionia. "Finances. I was thinking about finances."
Judith raised a brow. "Oh?"
Fuck. She had to follow up on this! "I was thinking about how a fern would be nice in the front."
"A fern?" She's not buying it! Double fuck.
"Yes! Ferns! I was thinking about the financial implications of ferns!" Not how Yuri's hair looks like soft silky streams. "I mean ferns can be expensive and the care could impact the water bill." Yes, beautiful black streams of silk. God, she needed therapy. "So many types of ferns to consider!" Or Yuri. "Depending on the type it can have different psychological impacts on our customers' minds and what not. There's a lot to consider." So much therapy. "So much! Maybe too much. Maybe skip ferns all together and get fichus instead! Everyone has ferns these day!" She really hoped Judith had stopped caring by this point.
Judith looked away probably rolling her eyes. "You overcomplicate things." She stretched. "Just do what you want." No she was not. After the last time she'd follow her impulses Felinis had learned that was beyond a terrible idea. There was a reason that in the event they ever met again they had promised each other to run in opposite directions. Felinis didn't even walk on the side of town he frequented. No. It was better she just bode her time.
Besides, knowing her luck Yuri already had a girlfriend.
