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Post by spain on Jan 22, 2011 17:49:26 GMT
Antonio sighed. After a nice, long rest in the afternoon, he'd finally cleaned up his bar from the night before and realized.... He only had three glasses left. Lazily taking inventory of his drinks, he made a note of how much more he needed to buy before rummaging around for some cash.
Last night, he had to forcibly eject a few drinkers who'd had plenty to drink. They stumbled off in the darkness, slurred shouts echoing around them. He would've made sure they got home okay, but he still had customers. That, and they'd broken half of his glasses in a lousy brawl. The rest were broken in the process of getting them out. Antonio had gotten a bit sliced up on his arms, but luckily it wasn't anything too bad, and he was able to close up that night.
Making himself a drink, Antonio took off toward the closest shops yawning. It'd been a while since he'd seen a new face, and he was beginning to get bored again.
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Post by liechtenstein on Mar 20, 2011 21:53:43 GMT
It was still a little damp from yesterday night's rain and Lilli walked the streets quickly, hoping the water would not soak through her shoes. She traveled quickly down the streets, passing shops one by one. Mother had broken one of their cups by accident, trying to get to a jam preserve on their top shelf. Papa was busy piecing a new suit together in their tailor shop and Lilli had volunteered to go buy a new one. It was a little cold and Lilli buried deeper into her coat not noticing the man in front of the china/glassware shop until she bumped into him.
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Post by spain on Mar 22, 2011 2:32:57 GMT
Shaken out of his reverie (he'd been wondering what to have for dinner, as the shop in front him was currently displaying new plates and his mind had an odd tendency to wander, especially when hungry), he stared down at the smaller girl. He reached out to steady her, smiling apologetically. "Sorry. Probably not the best idea to stand in the middle of the sidewalk, is it? Though, if I meet girls as cute as you when I do, I might have to start doing it more often."
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Post by liechtenstein on Mar 22, 2011 23:28:58 GMT
Lilli fought the heat rising to her cheeks but couldn't help but duck her head a bit sheepishly at the compliment. She wasn't used to them and smoothed down her dress nervously. She wasn't sure how to respond, so she pretended as if she hadn't heard it.
"Are you going into the shop?" Lilli inquired. "I can help pick something out if you're having trouble deciding. You've been ah, staring at the plates in the window display, right?"
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Post by spain on Mar 23, 2011 5:32:17 GMT
"So quick to help, what a good girl you are," Antonio laughed. "Didn't your parents teach you not to talk to strangers? But," he quickly amended, "I am going into the shop, and another eye will be useful." He offered Lilli his arm. "Are you also headed into the shop? If not, I am sorry to take up your time."
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Post by liechtenstein on Mar 23, 2011 22:13:10 GMT
Lilli took the stranger's arm hesitantly, then smiled.
"If we never greeted strangers, we'd never make friends," Lilli said brightly. "My name is Lilli. I'm looking for a few cups. We broke ours at home."
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Post by spain on Mar 23, 2011 22:48:11 GMT
"Isn't that the truth! I'm Antonio." He smiled before steering the younger girl into the shop before them. "I'm looking for glasses myself, such a coincidence! Although yours were probably not broken because of a bar brawl."
He looked down at the blonde, suddenly noticing how much younger she seemed. "In fact, you seem a bit young for drinks at all. How old are you, Lilli?"
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Post by liechtenstein on Mar 24, 2011 2:10:37 GMT
"I'm not old enough to drink alcohol," Lilli admitted truthfully. "I um, am going to turn seventeen soon though! I've already finished school."
Lilli hurriedly looked away and took a glance at the glass and chinaware in the shop. She knew she was young, and looked younger, but sometimes people would stop taking her seriously once they realized her age. She distracted herself by peering at the cups on a nearby shelf. There were all types, plain to ornate, monochrome to every shade of the rainbow. What would match?
"What is your bar like?" Lilli asked.
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Post by spain on Mar 24, 2011 16:21:11 GMT
Antonio plucked a plain glass off of the shelf, inspecting it and one of the more colorful glasses it was displayed next to. "My bar? She's beautiful. Worked hard and paid for her when I was around your age." He smiled to himself. That bar was his pride and joy, and he worked hard to keep it that way. "It can be a difficult age, seventeen." He picked up two cups, one with a simple design around the base and the other a heavy-looking glass. "Which do you think is better? I like the design but maybe a thick glass is harder to break? Elixir gets a lot of angry drunks."
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Post by liechtenstein on Mar 24, 2011 22:05:29 GMT
"Elixir," Lilli said, rolling the name off her tongue. "It's a good name. What made you decide to get a bar?"
Lilli leaned forward to peer at the cups. She liked the one with the simple design but was a practical girl and agreed about needing thicker glass. She tapped lightly on the thicker cup and wondered if Antonio could feel the resulting vibration.
"This one, but if we keep looking I'm sure we'll find one with a nicer design!" Lilli said, then furrowed her eyebrows in thought. "I'll probably need an un-easy to break one too."
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Post by spain on Mar 25, 2011 2:21:39 GMT
Antonio perked up, not really hearing past her comment about the name. "You like it? She's my pride and joy. I don't know what I would do without her. You should come by sometime. I'm not giving you any alcohol, of course," he winked at her, "But I can cook pretty well. I was thinking of opening her up as a little cafe or something. At least she wouldn't have her glasses broken nightly."
He looked down at the glasses he was holding. He had this dilemma every time he came to this store. It wasn't too far from Elixir, so he often bought new glasses from them. In return, he gave the owners discounts every time they stopped by, which had begun to grow when they realized. He shrugged. "We should keep looking, shouldn't we? What happened to your glasses that you're here to buy more?"
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Post by liechtenstein on Mar 25, 2011 23:15:48 GMT
Lilli brightened.
"I'd love to visit and taste some of your dishes too!" Lilly tapped her chin in thought. "Well...only in the day time of course. You'll have to hire more staff if you open a cafe. If you need any waiter or chef uniforms, I could tailor some for you."
Uniforms were usually made in the garment factories, since they were usually mass-produced and bought quickly. Lilli's father didn't bother to try to compete, but Lilli had sown a few out of practice and had a few good pieces that she had been thinking about just giving away.
"My mother broke some glasses by accident, but I think it's more important we find you some, since your customers will be waiting," Lilli said and gestured toward the other end of the shop. "How about over there?"
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Post by spain on Mar 26, 2011 23:37:29 GMT
"Ah~ A seamstress, are we?" He smiled vaguely to himself. The mental image was almost too irresistable; a legion of good-looking waiters and waitresses in cute outfits, catering to the needs of his customers... His bar set up in the corner by the kitchen... Tables full of happy customers eating food he made... "It would be nice... But I'd have to look into hiring people, and who could I trust to treat my dear Elixir the way she deserves?"
He sighed dismally before glancing at his watch. "I won't have customers for another... few hours, at least. So there's no need to worry yet."
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Post by liechtenstein on Mar 27, 2011 16:01:41 GMT
"My father's teaching me his trade, so I'm not a master yet," Lilli replied, downplaying her own skills. She'd been sowing with her father's and mother's guidance since she was old enough to handle needles without being clumsy. "And you could post a job notice in town if you do end up needing to hire anyone. In the Lowlands, there's always people looking for work."
Lilli looked around and spotted a few beautiful glasses on a high shelf. Their price tags weren't astronomically high either.
"Look Antonio. Those look perfect for your bar!" Lilli pointed up at the shelf as she was too short to reach it.
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Post by spain on Mar 27, 2011 18:27:52 GMT
"That's nonsense. I'm sure you're very good at it, Lili." Antonio frowned. "You'll never get better unless you learn to accept your strengths and weaknesses and work towards improving."
He reached up and pulled a couple of the glasses off the shelf, inspecting one and holding the other low enough for her to see. They were indeed beautiful glasses; it seemed thick enough to withstand a few beatings and were relatively cheap. "Ah~ These are nice! I think I might get some of these. How about you, Lili?"
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Post by liechtenstein on Mar 29, 2011 1:28:57 GMT
"Well, my father says I have been improving," Lilli agreed shyly. "But it must have been very hard to learn to run a bar too."
Lilli took the glass Antonio gave her to hold it up into the light. She squinted at it with one eye and turned it around and didn't see any bubbles. It's warm brown color turned gold as she shifted it. Her father had taught her to have an eye for detail. The glassmaker had done a good job.
Lilli nodded satisfied.
"I think this one's very good!" Lilli smiled. "Unless the shopkeeper will let us accidentally drop one to see how good it is against breaking, I think that's all we can do. My mother likes blue though, so I'll probably get these in that color."
She pointed back at the shelf, where two exact duplicates rested, colored robin egg blue.
"If you can, um, get that for me too," Lilli said hurriedly, a little embarrassed. She had been one of the shortest girls in her grade at graduation and had not shot up much since then.
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Post by spain on Mar 29, 2011 1:41:16 GMT
"It wasn't that hard, really..." Antonio's expression turned thoughtful. "I mean, all you do is mix drinks... People like to come, and I like to make drinks, so it all works out!"
He put the brown glasses down, reaching for a set of the blue ones. They were also very pretty, the glass smooth and thick. He turned them to catch the light a bit before handing them to Lilli. "Is there anything else you needed? Or are we all set to pay for them?"
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Post by liechtenstein on Mar 29, 2011 22:19:02 GMT
"Ah, there's nothing else really," Lilli said and began fumbling for her purse which looked more like a small knapsack. It was a beat-up old thing, with tears lovingly stitched over and worn patches reinforced with embroidery. She rummaged around for her wallet scattering a few baubles around.
"Ah, ha!" Lilli said under her breath as her hand enclosed around it. She brought it out.
"I'm ready to go."
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Post by spain on Mar 30, 2011 16:18:30 GMT
"Okay!" Antonio exclaimed before leading her to the counter. He waved down the shopkeeper, who grinned at Antonio. But when the shopkeeper realized the girl behind Antonio was with him, he smile turned bewildered.
"Who's this, Antonio?" he asked, smiling politely at her. He rung Antonio up. "Leading another poor, innocent thing along, are we?"
"Hey!" Antonio chuckled. "Is that really what you think of me? That's horrible!" He paid for his glasses, then gestured for Lilli to pay for hers. The shopkeeper winked at her.
"Don't fall for his tricks, yeah? He may be friendly," the shopkeeper patted Antonio's face endearingly, "But he's more like a wolf in sheep's clothing. A discount for the poor girl, having to put up with Antonio."
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Post by liechtenstein on Mar 30, 2011 23:05:35 GMT
"Thank you so much!" Lilli beamed, then squirmed a bit shyly. "But Antonio's very nice. I don't think he's a wolf at all!"
"Is that so?" the shopkeeper laughed.
"Why yes," Lilli laughed back. "It's not as if he's wearing any sheepskin to fool all of us, but I don't know if he does bring a lot of people here..."
They both turned to look at Antonio.
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