It had taken a few tries, and Stride found herself having to snap some of the cartilage that had begun to heal, but eventually she had repaired her nose enough to her satisfaction. She snorted, wiped her face clean with her sleeve, and was pulling up the front of her mask when the guy beside her started talking. Stride gave him a glance over. Seemed friendly enough. Kind of like one of those guys you’d see in a movie, twirling a glass of scotch in his hand and spinning a gun on the counter. She leaned back in her seat, hair moving lazily in some imaginary wind as she reached for her whiskey. [color=#BC6101]“Not my first time, sure as hell not my last.”[/color] Stride took a moment to peel away the fabric concealing her mouth, revealing patches of scales smattered along her jaw and chin, before lifting the glass to her lips and taking a long swig.

She was just about to ask him how he knew her name when the guy gave an answer on his own. 

There was a pause.

Stride began to choke on her drink. 

She took a few moments to gather herself, the liquor burning her airways as she coughed into her hand, then immediately drew her sleeve away from her wrist. Her glowing, burning wrist. [color=#BC6101]“Shit,”[/color] Stride muttered under her breath. She lifted a hand in a “wait a moment” gesture, polished off the rest of her glass in one, long swallow, then pulled her mask up and back into place before taking Fritz’s hand. 

[color=#BC6101]“Well. It’s, ah, good to meet ya, Freid.”[/color] She gave him a hearty shake before releasing, pleased that the mark had decided to stop burning. Not really sure what else to say, Stride turned back to her chips, lowering her mask and tossing a handful down the hatch. She paused, pulled up her mask, and offered the basket to the guy.

[color=#BC6101]“Ya want some chips or...somethin’?”[/color]

[@Erklings25]

[hr] 

Madison was making decent time down the path, skipping about the occasional puddle that formed within the dips in the sidewalk and humming snippets of “We’ll Meet Again” under his breath. Even after the many, many years that he had been alive, he had always had a soft spot for the sweeter airs. The wistful. Perhaps it was just nostalgia for past lifetimes, but regardless, Madison found himself drawn to that particular facet of music. 

He found himself daydreaming about the past as he wandered along, head so far up in the clouds that it took a minute for him to realize that someone was calling his name. Confused, he turned, only to find a rather bedraggled young woman standing behind him. In her arms was a cute little vase, and the remains of a Forget-Me-Not bouquet. 

[color=#0A8558]“Oh, no.”[/color] Madison’s eyes widened. In all the excitement of meeting Russell and wrapping up his studies, he had completely forgotten that he had placed an order at the local florist’s. He quickly rushed forward, holding the umbrella over the woman’s head to allow her some reprieve from the rain. [color=#0A8558]“I’m incredibly sorry, Miss. You’ll have to forgive me- today was just such a busy day, I completely forgot- here, you can take my umbrella, if you’d like. I’m so sorry for making you come all this way-”[/color] 

In the midst of his rambling, Madison suddenly trailed off, a look of surprise on his face. Bringing his free hand up to his lips, he pulled his sleeve down with his teeth, revealing that the text scrawled on it had begun to glow faintly. Slowly, he lowered his arm, staring at the woman with a sort of wonder. 

[color=#0A8558]“Would your name happen to be Roe Emlinel, by any chance?”[/color] 

[@MissCapnCrunch]