When the Tough Gets Going... ((ArmandxRaisa))

[Raisa]

"You worthless whore! You'll never amount to anything on your own! You're disgusting! You know that?!"

"...Y-yes..."

"Don't talk to me! Did I say you could talk, you slut!?" Raisa softly shook his head, his bruised body lay shivering on the ground. "You're lucky you have me here! You'd be nowhere without me here," the large man hissed before giving the small boy one more smack. Raisa's head flew backwards, banging against the wall with a hard 'bang'.

Raisa sat up in bed, covered in sweat. He slowly raised his hand to lightly touch the back of his head, reassuring that that injury wasn't really there anymore. His breaths were quick and shallow as his hand moved from the back of his head to face. He softly ran a hand over his face, checking for any other past pains.

He couldn't take this! Tabor was in the past! He had to get over this! That horrid man wasn't going to hurt him anymore- he couldn't!

Raisa cried- he always did after those dreams... those memories. He tried to stay quiet, Asir was probably sleeping now, too, and the walls weren't all that thick.

When Raisa had arrived on Jeskara, he'd been scared to death. He'd heard so many unpleasant stories and he despised the place. But when Terul and Asir had seen him, poor without his parents' influence; bruised; and alone, they took him in. The old couple's youngest child had just recently found his mate and moved away, and stated that the house was lonely and the cafe was short on employees. They took him in and fixed him up, taking care of him in exchange for him working at the cafe they owned which was located first floor of their two-story house. He wasn't afraid of Jeskara anymore.

When the little Zercan's tears had dried up, he stiffly climbed out of bed, careful of his round stomach. He may hate the father, but he cared deeply for the life within him. He quickly showered and dressed before going downstairs to find both Terul and Asir working at the semi-full cafe. He waved to his new "parents" then waddled over and took a seat at the cash register, his designated job, and practically the only thing they would allow him to do in his fourth month of pregnancy.

[Armand]

Dark blue robes billowed with the breeze as the wind passed by the man walking down the street of Jokadi, making heads turn and blatantly stare at the man in utter amazement and awe. Ebony locks swayed to the rhythm of the man’s footstep as he approached his intended destination. By his side, his ever present, loyal and faithful companion languidly trotted beside him. Black, silky-looking fur gleaming in the artificial light provided by the street’s lamps.

Armand had just arrived on Jeskara a few hours ago, leaving his ship at the care of his servant. He was here for business as usual, though he might stay a bit longer this time around since he does have a home here. And besides, the infinite night sky of Jeskara has a much larger appeal to him than Parinenai’s ever changing days. He much rather like the thought of being surrounded by the darkness, the stars and the moon 24/7.

The wizard continued to walk, his lips quirking. The only sign that could be seen as his acknowledgement at the blatant stares he was receiving from the crowd of Jokadi. Of course, who could blame them? It’s not like it’s everyday you see a wizard from Parinenai walk down at one of the streets of Jeskara. It was known to almost everyone that wizards especially from Parinenai, never sets foot outside of their home much less their planet. And the fact that he a wizard, clearly seen by his outfit that he’s wearing, is non-chalantly strolling along Jokadi for that matter was beyond baffling. But then again, he wasn’t exactly like any of those wizards. He was one of the very few wizards that were brave and powerful enough to set foot on Jeskara.

Chuckling softly underneath his breath, he reached out his hand and scratched the place behind his companion’s ear, amused as he heard the low rumbling purr from the creature. He smiled as he finally reached his destination: a quaint, little café. His meeting place for his dear old vampire friend. He hasn’t been really inside of it, so maybe he would be able to try something new today.

He opened the door, letting his friend in first before following the graceful cat in. He looked around the place, seeing it’s semi-fullness before making a bee-line to the seat near a corner, where it’s conveniently placed at the back easily seeing all the people in the café and the view of the outside streets.

[Raisa]

Raisa took a customers money, giving the man his change back before closing the till. "Thank you. Come back soon, okay?" The man smiled and nodded, waving as he walked away. Raisa sighed softly and placed a hand on his bulging stomach and smiled softly.

After a few moments, the soft 'ting' of a bell notified everyone present that someone had just entered the small cafe. Raisa glanced up and blinked. A large, black feline followed by a tall man dressed in intracate robes. "No way... A ... a wizard?... on Jeskara?" the boy whispered to himself.

"What was that, sweetheart?" Raisa looked up and saw Terul looking at him questioningly, a tray of food in hand. Raisa looked sheepishly.

"Nothing, Pappy, just mumbling to myself again." Terul smiled, kissing Raisa on the forehead before going around the counter to serve the food. The kitchen was through an open doorway behind the counter, so the servers were constantly moving back and forth around Raisa.

An Incubus that worked at the cafe, Wenyi, came up on the Zercan's other side and leaned against the counter. Wenyi had always been nice to Raisa, almost like a brother. "How ya holdin' up?" Raisa shrugged.

"Okay, I guess." Wenyi smiled at the boy's answer before scanning the room. After a moment, the Incubus let out a low whistle. "...What?"

Wenyi chuckled. "You see that guy over there? The Wizard lookin' guy?"

"...Yes, what about him?" Wenyi winked.

"I wouldn't mind going home to that every night." Raisa blushed and pushed the man lightly.

"Don't you have a job to do?" Wenyi laughed and walked away, heading towards the dark-haired man.

"Hey there, Cutie, can I get you something?" he asked, pulling a tablet of paper from his pocket and a pen from behind his ear.

[Armand]

Long slender hands moved to get his cards beneath his robes, where it was hidden inside a secret pocket. Shuffling the cards expertly within his hands, Armand started amusing himself by looking into his cards because 100 percent sure that his friend would arrive at a later time. The vampire did have some huge problems when it comes to punctuality. A smile flitted over his lips at the remembrance of his friend before returning back to his usual passiveness.

"Hey there, Cutie, can I get you something?"

Deep, pool of amethyst looked up and he raised an eyebrow as he saw an incubus standing in front of him and holding a pad. “Would you mind terribly if you could just recommend me your best cuisine? It’s my first time here in this restaurant, so I’m not that well acquainted with your menu.” He just hoped that the food here was really good, since he could be quite picky at times.

[Raisa]

Wenyi grinned and nodded, jotting something down before flitting off into the kitchen.

Raisa sighed and started chewing on his fingernails. He knew it was a bad habit... but it was just that: a habit. Even though he was kept fairly busy working, he couldn't seem to keep his eyes off of the wizard with the panther. He doubted the cat was a Zercan, or else he would have changed back or tried to comunicate in some way. He'd been watching them long enough to know that the panther had just sat there doing... panther-esque things.

"Hey there, Rai-Rai!" Raisa turned and looked and Wenyi, who was giving him a sweet look. Raisa rolled his eyes.

"What do you want now?" he asked softly. Wenyi only acted like that when he wanted something. Raisa had quickly found that out. The incubus nervously bit his lip and smiled shyly.

"Weeelll... I kinda didn't eat before... And I'm reeeaaalll hungry," he whined. Raisa rolled his eyes again and sighed.

"Fine. What tables do you have?" Wenyi squealed happily and hugged the little Zercan.

"You're my most favorite-est Zercan ever! Just table eleven, the sexy wizard guy," he stated before slipping out the front door. Raisa laughed silently. It figures. I bet he just saw me staring and wants me to talk to him. He pulled his hair out of the pig-tails he'd had it in then pulled it back into a bun so that his long hair was away from his face. He slipped off the stool, grabbing Asir as the man walked by him, and asked his adopted mother to take over the cash register for him.

Raisa nervously approached the table and softly cleared his throat so the man would look up at him. "Eh... Hi. Uhm... Wenyi just left to get something to eat, so he asked me to take over for him. My... My name's Raisa, so if you need anything, just ask me, okay?" he mumbled quietly. He smiled nervously, he wasn't used to talking to people he wasn't used to. He lightly pat the large, black cat on the head before walking away.

[Armand]

Plum colored eyes narrowed in intrigue and contemplation as Armand watched the young Zercan walked away from him. He looked down at his companion to see the same look on the leopard’s eyes. “A tortured soul, isn’t he?” The black cat looked up at him and tilted his head as if confirming his thoughts. “Poor child…” The leopard growled lowly and nuzzled on his leg and he complied by scratching the big cat’s ear.

He then turned back to look at his tarots and flipped one card over. His eye’s widened slightly before narrowing in confusion. The Magician card stared back at its owner and Armand frowned at this. He flipped another card and the Wheel of Fortune showed its face. The wizard’s frown deepened before flipping another card on the table. He blinked, and blinked again, before chuckling softly and focusing his gaze on the Zercan that had just approached his table earlier. “Well Arc…” The black leopard perked up from his position on the ground at hearing his master say his name. “…it looks like my meeting with that beautiful Zercan has a lot more into it than meets the eye.”

The cat tilted his head, as if inquiring for his master’s elaboration on what he was trying to say. “I think in some point in time, he’ll be a permanent fixture in our lives.” Armand smiled when the Zercan looked up and saw him staring at him. Cute…, the wizard thought as the small Zercan blushed and ducked his head. “Yes…” He murmured to himself. “A permanent fixture indeed.” He chuckled and held up the last card that he had flipped earlier. The card seemed to glow and Armand smirked at it before the glowing deemed and vanished. It would have seem that the wizard was the only one who had seen the strange sight of a glowing card, since the other patrons of the café just continued with their business even though they were all glancing at him from time to time.

Armand sighed and lowered the card slightly so he could see the little Zercan near the register. “Raisa…” He said the name softly, before smirking to himself. And as he placed the card within his hand on the table, the image of two people intertwined with one another could be seen, and the words “The Lovers” was labeled to it just below.

“This should prove interesting.”

[Raisa]

Raisa sighed softly as he entered the kitchen. He rubbed furiously on his burning cheeks. He jumped slightly when someone placed a hand on his back. He turned to see Asir looking curiously at him. "What's up, Sweetie? Are you feeling alright, Darling?" The Jshiko placed a palm on the Zercan's forehead. Raisa laughed nervously.

"N-no! I'm alright, Nanna. I just... It's just... Did you see that man out there? The one with the cat? Where do you think he got that cat? It looks like a Zercan... But I can tell it isn't. Where would someone get a cat like that?" he rambled. Asir blinked at him.

"Are you sure you're alright? You don't make any sense," the older man said. Raisa blinked and nodded before turning away. He carefully scooped up a tray of drinks and carried it back out to the a table. It wasn't his table, he was just trying to get away from Asir. The old Jshiko was always so worried about his health, was always making sure he and the baby were alright.

Raisa carefully carried the tray with two hands towards the table the drinks needed to be at. "Here are your drinks, sirs," he mumbled quietly, gently setting the drinks down on the table before scurrying away. He nervously glanced over at the Wizard across the room and blushed again, smiling secretly.

"You're disgusting. You're lucky you have me 'cause no one else would even want a vile thing like you! No one'll ever want you! You're lucky I can even stand to look at you, you whore! No one'll ever want to look at you, you're disgusting!"

Raisa whimpered and lowered his eyes, his bangs hiding the tears in his eyes as he scurried back into the kitchen.