Details for Origami and Creatures |
Summary: | A chance encounter between two very different people at the Leaky Cauldron leads to a wonderful conversation and various stories. |
Date: | October 7, 1938 |
Location: | Leaky Cauldron |
Related: | None |
Characters |
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Leaky Cauldron
This cramped, angular room is the taproom of the Leaky Cauldron. A long bar runs along one side of the room, plain wooden stools set out before it. Smoke from pipes and candles fills the air. The patrons of this curious little bar, many of them elderly, sit hunched over their mugs at the tables. Waitresses, sometimes coined "wenches", bustle back and forth bearing trays of food and mugs of ale. Many of the people seem strangely out of place, dressed in cloaks and floppy hats, as if they stumbled out of another century. Notably absent are any modern Muggle devices or electricity, the lighting all provided by lanterns and chandeliers.
It's just after dinner time at the Leaky Cauldron. As such, the crowds have thinned out a bit. While there's still a decent amount of people, it's not as busy as it was even a half hour ago. Near the fireplace sits a large man with a mustache. In front if him is a plate full of beans, broccoli, a baked potato, and roast beef.
"Mmm. Looks delicious." The man, Kaleb, says to the waitress who has just served it to him. "Thank you kindly, Miss. Quite prompt service, too. Says something about this establishment. Now, if I could get a pint of ale to wash this down with, the night would be perfect. Thank you, eh." He flashes her a wide smile. His accent, for those who can hear him talk, is most distinctly not from the British Isles. To place him, one might think America or Canada. Definitely from across the pond.
Takeshi enters the Leaky Cauldron, the flash of his bright yellow robes moves across the Inn, as he makes his way to the bar. He starts to place his order, but suddenly stops, his eyes moving across the empty bar stools in front of him. Slowly he starts to line them up, arranging them to be perfectly centered off the other. The person taking his order, doesn't seem to mind or care, obviously use to Takeshi by now.
Once he has finished he lets out a small sigh and finishes placing his order for Mushroom stew, rolls and a lemonade. His accent makes it clear, that English was not his first langauge, a odd mix of British with a heavy Japanese influence lingering in it. Closing his eyes for a second, he makes his way over to the table, taking a seat, only to get up not a second later, rearranging the chairs slowly, before sitting back down. He does this, four more times before being satisfied with the placement of the chairs. Taking a deep sigh, he reaches into his pocket removing a small piece of white paper and starting to fold it slowly.
Kaleb looks over to the young man sitting near to him. "I wish I had your attention to detail." He offers a small smile, sounding sincere. "My mind's usually so far off, somewhere else, that I don't even seem to notice things like that. Which I guess is part of the problem…" The last sentence sounding more like an afterthought than anything. "Hey, do I detect a bit of a Japanese accent in your voice, by chance?"
Clearing his throat, he chuckles. "How rude of me. You probably want to be left alone after a long day of work or some such. Pardon me." He chuckles at himself onces again and goes back to focusing on his food.
Takeshi looks over at Kaleb, taking his attention off the paper in his hand for a moment, his gaze moving between the chairs and the barstools for a moment, his cheeks turning slightly red. "Umm…You..Umm." he starts, before looking back down at the paper he is folding, "Umm…Sometimes things out of place, really bothers me is all." he says nervously, as he continues to fold the paper in his hand.
"Ah…" he starts before stopping again, "Umm…" he continues still seeming to struggle, "My parents are transplants from Japan." he says softly with a nod, as he finishes folding the paper, a perfect Origami Crane now in his hands. He places it softly, perfectly in the center of the table, though he has to fiddle with it to make sure it is right, "Umm…" he starts, before closing his eyes for a moment, "Are welcome to join me!" he says quickly in more of a exclamation then anything else.
"Ah, that explains it, then." Kaleb replies, nodding a little bit. "Spent some time in Japan myself. Studied some kappas there. Kinda frightening, them, in a way." He shakes his head. "Nearly got snagged a few times! Didn't get me, though!" He chuckles. "If you want to be alone, I wouldn't blame ya. And you were reading whatever was on that…that…crane?" He sounds unsure if that's what it actually is that the paper was turned into. "I don't want to be a bother, really."
Takeshi hands his head slightly, "I…" he starts, "I… I… wasn't reading. I use origami to calm down sometimes when I feel a bit overwhelmed." he says slowly with a small nod, his head still hanging low, Ordori Takeshi" he says softly, introducing himself out of no where, "You… You… You… are more then welcome to join me, it would be a pleasure." he says with a small nod, still looking down, looking very nervous overall.
"We all have our ways of calming ourselves." Kaleb nods, tilting his head slightly. As the offer to join the Takeshi in reaffirmed, he picks up his cutlery and his place and moves toward the other table. "I'm Kaleb Gamp. Pleasure to meet ya." He offers as he makes his way over. "Is there a good seat for me to take?" He asks kindly, checking to see where he should sit.
Takeshi looked between the three open chairs and is obviously considering the question, "The…The…The one across from me, preferably, though that would be rude for me to tell you were to sit." he says quickly, trying not to be rude, his head still hung a little bit, the waitress comes and delivers his food and drink, Takeshi is in here often enough, the waitress tries to put everything down just right and Takeshi notices, "Thank you…" he says softly, "You are always so nice…" he says, his cheeks going red before he starts to adjust the rolls and bread bowl and drink, along with his silverware. Taking his time, to make sure everything to be just right, the waitress just gives Takeshi a soft smile and a "You're welcome Takeshi." before heading back.
"The one across from you it is." Kaleb nods, placing down the items across from Takeshi, taking the seat, just as the waitress arrives with his own drink. "Thank you, Miss." He gives her another smile and then looks across to his new dinner companion. He glances from the young man toward where the waitress went off to. "Ah. I see." He chukles and shakes his head. "Nothing wrong with having things just right, is there? I went to school with this lass, great witch, who made sure her quills and paper were always just in the right place. Said her organizational skills were what allowed her to do so well on her exams."
Takeshi chuckles softly, at the story. A smile forming on his face, "I always did well on my exams, I think it helps me at St. Mungos also." he says, this time the nervousness not as present in his voice. "Though, I am a little obsessive about it, sometimes it really bothers me." he says slowly, before taking a bite of his soup, his eyes closing for a moment as he takes a deep breath, "Pardon me if this is rude…" he says softly, looking up at the man, "But your…your…your…accent isn't British. Were are you from?" he asks softly, sounding a bit nervous again.
"No wonder you do so well! Making sure everything's in it's place. You probably can put things in order in your mind when studying. No doubt it helps." Kaleb takes a sip of his drink. "Eh. We're all a bit obsessive about something. For me, it's creatures and beings and the like. And my tent." He pauses momentarily. "Mind you, I've got this particularly lively goose who likes to make fun of my careful note taking. He doesn't speak English of course. He more just…honks at me. Strange fellow, that goose." He chuckles. Shaking his head at the question, he replies, "I'm not British, you're quite right at that. I'm Canadian. Born and raised."
Takeshi chuckles softly as the story of the goose comes full fledged, "I have an owl." he says slowly with a small nod, "I didn't want one, but it was a gift, they make such a mess and I am always cleaning up after it." he says slowly, taking another bite of his food, "Ah Canada, I hear it is nice there, I have never been though." he says slowly with a small nod, picking up a roll and tearing a small piece off and taking a bite, "What kind of creatures do you study?" he asks softly.
"That's why I tend to let my goose roam around in nature. Makes less of a mess…since nature is such a mess anyway!" Kaleb chuckles. "Oh yeah, wonderful place, Canada. Full of trees, prairies, and…well, the absolute freezing north. Though, most of the country is freezing during the winter, to be fair." He grins. "Creatures? Oh, every kind. Name a creature, any creature, and I'll know about it. I help fix 'em up, too. While I'm more of a studier of them, I've found it helps to study them when you can also help heal them up." He offers a little shrug. "What's it that you get yourself up to? You mentioned a place called St. Mungo's?"
Takeshi tears off and eats a few more bites of the roll as he listens, his head up now as he looks at Kaleb, showing genuine interest in what he has to say, "Well nature is messy, but I do like Gardening." he says slowly with a nod, "I like to practice Herbology and Ikebana." he continues with a smile, "Creatures though… they are to messy for me." he says slowly with a small nod, "Oh… St. Mungo's?" he says softly, taking a sip of his lemonade, "I am a Junior Apprentice." he says with an affirmative nod.
"Gardening. I hear gardening can be fun." Kaleb nods. "I never quite had a mind for Herbology. Always admired those who did, though." He smiles. "Though I admit, though I spent time in Japan, I can't say I know what Ikebana is. Though I sure wouldn't mind finding out." He takes spears a piece of broccoli with his fork and eats it, chewing as he thinks. "A Junior Apprentice? What is St. Mungo's exactly? I'm afraid I'll have to plead ignorance here. I don't know many places in the UK as of yet."
Takeshi chuckles softly, "St. Mungo's is a hospital, so I am a healer in my first years of training." he says slowly with a small nod, "Ikebana is flower arrangements, I do it for the patients who are in bad shape." he says softly with a nod, before taking a sip of his lemonade, "So where else have you traveled." he inquires softly.
"Ah, a healer. Healers come in handy in my line of work." Kaleb says happily. "Flower arrangements, eh? You know who would absolutely love flower arrangements? Unicorn foals. Also usually the only unicorn a man can get near. Most adult unicorns prefer women. I've still yet to figure out why." He scratches the back of his neck, a look of confusion on his face as he talks about adult unicorns. "Anyway." Just as instantly a bright smile crosses his face. "I've travelled all over the place. All over the world. Mighty place, this world of ours. The creatures in it are something else, too. Ever seen a sphinx? Scary things, those!"
Takeshi listens, looking rather curiously, to the man tell his stories, normally he still isn't as much as ease with a new person as he is with Kaleb, however something about him, just makes Takeshi feel a little more clam then usual. "I didn't know that about unicorns." he says softly, rubbing his chin, "No I haven't ever seen a sphinx." he continues, his food forgotten about for now, "What else have you seen?" he looks at Kaleb, curiously.
"Unicorns are curious creatures. Very curious. And gold coloured at birth. Roughly until they're two. That's when they turn silver." Kaleb explains. "I've seen a manticore. Only once. In Greece. It was a rare enough sighting as is, but I got to watch it for a good few hours before it caught my scent and was chasing after me. Merlin's beard was I scared!" He lets out a laugh and shakes his head. "Can you imagine me running? I was running for my life for a good few moments before I remembered that I could apparate!" He chuckles again and takes a big gulp of his ale.
Takeshi listens his eyes focused on Kaleb, "Have you ever seen a Tengu?" he asks softly, tilting his head curiously to the right, "I don't know if they are real, but I always heard stories of them." he says slowly, before taking another bite of his soup, "I don't think I could be take brave. I think I would get all nervous and the manticore would have torn me to pieces." he says with a softly chuckle, smiling now at Kaleb.
"Tengu…tengu." Kaleb takes a deep breath in and lets it out slowly as he thinks. "Oh, the tengu." He shakes his head solemnly. "I almost got a chance to see that frightening sounding being. I had a lead on it. I met with a Japanese elder wizard in a village. Of course, I needed a translator. I'd heard he knew of where to find one. He would not give up such information. He thought it to be too dangerous for anyone to see." He sighs softly. "I wish I'd had a chance. Perhaps I will, someday." He smiles a little. "It's the curse of the magizoologist, as it were. Always having those elusive creatures that you spend your life trying to discover." He nods. "Though I have met merpeople!
Takeshi seems to be really enjoying the stories of Kaleb's adventures, he takes another bite of his soup before saying, "I wish I could be more adventurous." his tone is warm, and it holds sincerity in it. "I mean don't get me wrong, being a Healer is a very noble thing, but also I go to work in the same place everyday and though new and interesting things are learned, it can not compare with running from Manticores and meeting merepeople!" he says sounding rather excited, before taking another sip of his lemonade, "So tell me about the merepeople." he says softly with a chuckle.
"Don't get yourself down like that! I am certain that you'll get plenty of adventure as a healer! Just think of the people like me you'll have to deal with! The foolhardy people who go after manticores and tengus and sphinxes! Just imagine what grotesqueries we'll come back with after facing those guys!" He laughs and shakes his head. "Oh, your adventure is just beginning, just you wait and see!" He says with a wide grin on his face. "Merpeople. I spent a good amount of time with merpeople all over the place. Learnt there language, too. Kind of a harsh language when heard outside of the water. But it's rather quite eloquent heard under the water. I'm quite fond of the language, actually." He says in a thoughtful aftertone.
"They quite enjoy music, the merpeople. It's one of their favourite things. And the Greek Merpeople? Boy, they're the thing of legend, they are. They're the merpeople you hear of being exceedingly beautiful. I almost didn't want to stop spending time with them!" He takes a good sized chunk of the roast beef and chews on it for a while before swallowing. "Nothing like the merpeople you'd find, say, in the British Isles. They've got a different look to them around here. Don't get me wrong, they're still fine folk. Looks aren't all you have to go by. There's lots I could learn from the lot of them, really."
Takeshi nods slowly, "Well I am sure I will see lots of interesting and torn up adventures. I mean, that is what I am here for!" he says with a small chuckle, "But they get the story of how they got there, no one wants to hear the stories of how they got put back together. Well except other Healers." he says softly with a small chuckle, and a smile. He takes another bite of his soup, as he listens about the merepeople.
"I never realized that they look different, depending on the location." he says slowly, rubbing his chin in thought, "It is really amazing that you learned their language, I also never would have thought that speaking above or below water would have that effect on it, really fascinating." he says softly with a nod, "What is your favorite creature?" he asks curiously, "Is it the merepeople?" he tilts his head a bit to the right as he asks.
"Don't be so sure. Someday a person may come in after a particularly exciting encounter with a dragon. And then, when they're all healed up and back with their friends they'll say, 'That wasn't the best part! This amazing healer, by name of Takeshi, was there before I knew what had hit me! He healed me up so fast that the dragon had to look twice to make sure it'd hurt me in the first place!'" As Kaleb speaks, he keeps a completely serious look on his face, though he does give Takeshi a little wink and a quick flash of a grin when he finishes his little spiel.
"The merpeople are really fascinating that way. Mind you, trolls are somewhat similar. But only somewhat." He smiles. "My favourite creature? Boy, that's a tough one." He frowns a little in concentration as he thinks about it. "My favourite has got to be the phoenix. They are beautiful creatures. On top of that, the fact that they are reborn out of their own death. They burst into flames and then reappear out of the ashes as a little chick. It's an amazing thing. And, perhaps this is something you know as a healer, I couldn't say, but their tears..their tears are said to be able to cure any ailment or injury."
From afar, Sparky waves. "Heya, sorry I couldn't catch you yesterday. If you spot any of my alts on page poke me. This window is often the busiest but I do check them all."
Takeshi chuckles softly with a smile on his face. Listening in silence as Kaleb talks about the pheonix, he reaches into his pocket and pulls out his small papers from his pockets, flipping through them he picks out a red one as Kaleb talks, slowly he begins to fold the paper, a look of concentration on his face with each fold. "Pheonix are really amazing creatures." he says softly with a smile, before he brings up a small Origami Pheonix. He sits it right in front of Kaleb with a soft smile on his face, "Thank you Mr. Gamp, for joining me for dinner and brightening it with your stories." he
"Thank you, Odori Takeshi, for inviting me to join you and for listening to me talk on and on about creatures." Kaleb says cheerfully. "If you hadn't invited me to join you, we may not have had this nice conversation. And believe me, my night was shaping up to become one of me finishing dinner and then listening to my goose honk at me while I make notes in my rented room upstaires!" He grins. Staring down at the origami phoenix, his grin turns into a soft smile. "Is that for me?" He asks, looking up at the young gentleman.
@emit %r%tTakeshi smiles softly, "I certainly hope we get this chance again." he says slowly with a small nod. Looking at the Origami piece he smiles softly, "Yes, you said it was your favorite. So I thought you might like to have one you could carry with you." he says with a nod, as he stands up pushing his chair in slowly, "Though you will have to excuse me now, Mr. Gamp. I do have an early day in the morning." he says before giving Kaleb a soft bow, "Sayounara Mr. Gamp."
Takeshi smiles softly, "I certainly hope we get this chance again." he says slowly with a small nod. Looking at the Origami piece he smiles softly, "Yes, you said it was your favorite. So I thought you might like to have one you could carry with you." he says with a nod, as he stands up pushing his chair in slowly, "Though you will have to excuse me now, Mr. Gamp. I do have an early day in the morning." he says before giving Kaleb a soft bow, "Sayounara Mr. Gamp."