Serious: Following a Daring Escape (GoreFish and Gael only)

"I am glad to hear that your talents are not a sore point with you. That would have been most unpleasant to me, after things had been going relatively well up until now..."
Alvaro didn't find his companions remark on the boundaries of his ability quite as amusing, but still gave a weak smile.
"Then I would ask you to refrain fro ever turning yourself that old. Though I am positive you would be a charming pile of dust, it would be a true tragedy to lose that personality, not to mention that pretty face."
he had preferred the older version a bit, this one seemed more effeminate... And the clothes had fit him better. But in any way, Alvaro thanked whatever higher power was responsible for him dreaming up a man that had become his saviour in reality... He looked at ranyx younger face from the corner of his dark eyes. Even, young, almost innocent. If his companion hadn't told him so, he wouldn't believe how old this man truly was.
"So your body is currently younger than mine, then? Oh my...."
He didn't plan on going into detail with his age, and the situation saved him the effort of doing so, or rather, avoiding it, when he saw the "Blue Orchid". Hm, this walk had been shorter than he had anticipated.
"Ah, there we are."
He held the door open for his companion. It led into a rather nicely decorated room, though the owners obviously didn't have enough money to afford anything pricey. The floor was made of light wood, most likely because it was easier to keep wood clean, and there were a number of tables, far enough apart to allow the guests some privacy in their talks.
Soe of them were standing in front of the big, round windows, which had drawn back, deep blue curtains. The light was dim in some corners, and brighter towards the middle of the room, so the guests could pick what they preferred. Finally, there were the namegiving flowers, the blue orchids, which decorated the tables.
Next to the entrance, there was a young girl with red hair and a lot of freckles, who greeted the two of them.
"Good evening, gentlemen. A table for.... oh, hey Alvaro."
"Freya."
Alvaro nodded to the girl.
"Are you finally old enough to work here, then?"
The young girl was glowing with pride. Obviously, she had wanted to work her for a long time.
"I've been working here for almost two months! Where were you, anyway?"
He tried to dodge the question, obviously, no one here knew he had been in Impel Down. In his defense, he was dodging it very well.
"I've been to places you couldn't imagine in your wildest dreams, my dear. Now, table for two?"
Upon being reminded of her job, Freya jumped a bit and went red at forgetting it so easily.
"There's one at the window. You're lucky, it was booked, but they had to cancel it just an hour ago."
The young assassin smiled.
"Thank you, Freya. And this is Ranyx, my companion and knight in white armor."
"Oh.... ooooh. You're his date, then? But... aren't you a little young for him? He may not look it, but he's almost thirty! Unbelievable, right?!"
She showed the typical interest of a teenager in those things. The fact that those were two men going out didn't seem to faze her at all. Well, she did seem to have known Alvaro for some time, so most likely, she had gotten used to it.

Ranyx's laughter weakened and subsided, and he gave a nervous chuckle. "Sorry, my humor isn't really too compatible with most people... I just find stuff funny that others don't." He smiled, wondering if it would, perhaps, be better for him to change his age to something older. This really had just been to screw with that bouncer, and now that they had put several blocks between them and the bouncer, there was no more point. "You know... I could grow older if you like. Was my other age too old, or..."

Ranyx stopped short once they reached the inside of the restaurant and a rather lively waitress popped up to greet them. He tilted his head cordially to her, saying, "It's lovely to meet you, ma'am. A wonderful place you've got here..." Which it was... extremely cozy, and it somehow managed to look nice without overdoing it. Ranyx barely noticed Alvaro's strangely placed smile, wondering what he was up to. He could ask about it later, he supposed...

"Wow, thirty? I would never guess!" Ranyx smiled rather devilishly. "Luckily, I am, miss. Though, I don't think I'm too young for him..." The second she turned her back to him to lead them to their table, he instantly reverted to his thirty year old form. At most, he'd be about a year older than Alvaro, and the change wouldn't be too drastic. He stretched, now filling his clothing out perfectly. "So, I suppose you two have known each other for a while?" Ranyx asked politely, trying to stir up some conversation.

"Charming, isn't he? You don't have to lie about my looks out of politeness, if I look anywhere near as good at, er, 800 as you do, I can call myself a truly lucky man... Though, seeing as I am here with a man who does, I suppose I am already lucky."
Alvaro smiled. He maent every single word he said. Well, he always did.
"God, you're so posh!"
Freya said, through the wide grin on her face. Then, she turned to Ranyx, before Alvaro had a chance to answer the question.
"Yeah, my dad owns this place. Alvaro comes here quiet often, you know, when he doesn't have to be anywhere else, doing whatever he's doing that's so damn mysterious.... Wait, didn't you look different a moment ago?"
It was obvious she was very, very curious as to just what Alvaro was doing when he wasn't on the island, and even more curious as to how his date was aging so quickly... The young assassin got the drift and decided to skip the questions hanging in the air before Ranyx could get a possible chance to answer it.
"Yes I do. You could say this island is my second home... If I had a first one, that is. But Freya, if you don't want your father to chew you out, you really should work on that language."
Freya covered her mouth, in an obviously fake state of shock. The mystery of "how did this man turn old all of a sudden" seemed to have been forgotten.
"Oh gee, I almost forgot. Anyway, mister know it all and date, here's the table, have fun now..."
The small group stopped in front of a table at one of the windows, and Freya, after she lit the candle, scuttled off, a bit too obviously trying to look like she was sooo going away and ignoring them.
Alvaro dragged a chair back for Ranyx, and, before the young waitress was out of earshot, casually mentioned: "And no eavesdropping! This is grown ups talk."
"Damn!"
Freyas voice echoed from halfway across the room, and some of the people dining there turned their heads, obviously piqued.
Alvaro gave an apologising smile to Ranyx. He really hoped he wouldn't mind the manners of their waitress, or his secrecy about why they were here. But he had to make sure that no one else was listening in on them.
"I must apologise.... She's always been very lively."
Not the only thing he should be apologising for.

"Oh, really, Alvaro? Whenever did I lie?" Ranyx smirked cheerfully. Really, it was people like this who made life interesting. He remembered now why he didn't bother with the Marines any more; too much rigidity.
Another smile when Freya explained the ownership situation of the restuarant. "It's a lovely establishment; you and your dad should be proud of it." Ranyx could honestly see why Alvaro would choose to keep coming back: Freya seemed lively, and the atmosphere was fantastic. He chuckled at one of her other comments, "Yes... mysterious is a good word for it."
He sat down at the table, nodding and saying, "Thank you very much, Alvaro... I need to get quicker on the draw." Of course, he meant specifically about getting to the table first and pulling back the chair for Alvaro, not the other way around.
"To be honest, Alvaro, I love how lively she is. It's... refreshing, if you know what I mean." Maybe he meant uplifting, but he wasn't going to just tack that onto the end of his sentence. "So, you live in this area when you're not out and about on a job, then?" Ranyx asked, particularly careful to avoid implicating exactly what it was that Alvaro did.

Alvaro, once he had sat down opposite from Ranyx, nodded to his comment about Freya.
"I must agree... Though, if you know her as long as I hve, it does get tiring sometimes. She is very stubborn sometimes.... Then again, so am I, supposedly..."
He thought about it for some time, then listened to Ranyx' question. Oh, well... How should he put this? He didn't want to just go ahead and tell him every single detail about his job, or the reason he had been imprisoned...
But it was so closely connected to this whole thing...
He turned his head and looked out of the window, out onto the vineyards that stretched into the distance, and, in the middle off those vineyards, at the light coming out of a small estates windows.
It wasn't his house, naturally. Heaven forbid, he wouldn't survive having to live so far away from the town. But it was.... important to him.... in a way.
He looked back to Ranyx, returning fro the world of his thoughts, and found himself wondering if he should have rather stayed away. He knew other great places... but this one....
"I suppose I am away more often that I am here, but I do spend as much time here as I can sacrifice. Though maybe that will have to change now that I have been.... er, in such close contact to the marines institution... I will have to sell my residence here..."
It had been a very nice residence too... Only one he owned. Alvaro didn't like having a place people knew they would find him at. He liked being a bit more flexible in the matter. But he had made an exception for this town. Because of Martha, and her girls, and because of the Freya and her parents, and... because of something else too... But that really wasn't a good thing to even think about right now.
He waved his hand, as if waving the topic away.
"But enough of that."
He pointed at the dark blue menus Freya had left for them.
"May I recommend the mackerel? Really, all of the seafood here is exquisit. Not that I'd look down on the other servings either.... The desserts especially..."

Ranyx sighed, fully aware of what Alvaro meant. Even the greatest of company could dull, given enough time. Of course, there were always the exceptions that never grew old... figuratively, of course. Ranyx knew that he was not one of the people who could be personable for centuries, even if there was someone who could live that long to spend that much time with him.
"I suppose you're correct... though, her liveliness is a very welcome sight to see for me. I've, unfortunately, had to deal with rather boring, trudge-through-life individuals recently, so she's practically an emotional godsend."
Ranyx listened to Alvaro explain a few of his misgivings about living in this area, and Ranyx laughed.
"Really, if you like this place so much, it seems to me that arrangements should be made so you won't have to worry about returning. The Marines, while at times completely insufferable, can be molded in some ways in order to... avoid... certain issues." Ranyx gestured to the assorted objects he had brought to use as expensive collateral.
"Needless to say, I have several accesses to those channels, primarily one who can get a near infinite number of favors out of the Marines and the World Government. I'll have to see about getting whatever it is you do... ignored by those in charge."
His suggestion was waved away as the topic was changed to one with rather immediate consequences: food. While Ranyx did have a near infinite lifespan ahead of him, he needed his food.
"If you say that all the seafood here is good... I suppose..." Ranyx looked through the menu, finally finding some salmon there. "I'll probably ask for the salmon. Mackerel isn't quite my cup of tea, but thanks for the suggestion. What'll you be having?"
Huh, this is the first time in a long while small talk had ever been interesting. Color Ranyx surprised.

((This post's lateness is bad, and I should feel bad.))