Coming soon to a place near you -open-

[Daxmilta]

She tucked a few strands of hair behind her ear and looked down at the flower in her hand. It was red and look like any other Lily she had seen around the worlds. This one had the name of Galbana Lily, and it was a rare find in these parts. She found this one growing in a small patch on a cliff in the Desert. She was in the Desert looking for Cactuar's to get some needles for her new and improved tattoo guns. They probably had a different name, she wasn't aware of all that terminology, but that is what she called them because that is what they resembled. She grinned faintly as she slid one hand into her pocket, feeling the bag tinkle slightly as she walked. The needles were very sharp and would work perfectly.

She stopped walking for a moment and took in her surroundings. She had discovered this world, called Ivalice, by complete innocent. She had been snooping around the Organization castle and discovered a room full of maps of different worlds. This one was one of the newer maps so she was curious. She came here with the intentions of starting over and upon exploring Rabanastre--the city she had appeared in-- she had found the perfect building to do so. It's located in Lowtown, near the stairs to the city streets. She grinned faintly as she watched some of the rabble walk by her. They looked her over with their hazy eyes, no doubt curious as to why she was there.

She knew she looked strange to them. She had yet seen someone with dark hair, or any green eyes, she also noticed everyone one wore strange patchy clothing that hosted several different and bright colors where she herself wore black with only a tiny sliver of green. That color was however covered by her black Organization cloak that she had admittedly stolen. No one had bestowed one to her since she had started frequenting the Organization, and she didn't really care. She didn't like being around the rest of those Nobody's because they were...very dreary. They held no spark or fire that Humans had..or Humes, which is the term here in Ivalice.

She stopped in front of her new home, her Tattoo Parlor which had that name in neon above the door, and on the door was written in her handwriting, Open in Two Weeks. She smiled as she produced the key from darkness and opened the door, leaving it open behind her. It was a habit for her to leave openings for thieves or curious people because of her old hobby of torturing and tormenting innocent and sometimes less than innocent people. She was now trying to put that life behind her and had moved on to this profession because she knew stopping cold would have no positive effects on her, mentally or physically.

Dax dropped into her only reclining chair at the time and looked around the store, sure it was just one room that was pretty cramped for space, but a table, display of body piercings she did, and her tattoo equipment fit in cozily and that was all she asked for, and could afford at that point, of gil. The money here was strange but she found that the best way to earn her gil was to destroy the creatures outside the city and take whatever was left behind and sell it. It was so barbaric yet fascinating.

She was so comfortable inside her own head for the moment she didn't realize the figure in the doorway.

_{Status: Done
Tags: Anyone may join, whether it be to confront Dax about her behavior or a prospect customer.
Word count: n/a}

[Xelex]

On the other end of Lowtown a portal appeared, luckily not in the middle of foot traffic, and Xelex stepped out. This morning he had found a note for him left by Dax, asking him for help in setting up her new tattoo parlor. He was glad she decided to change her life, no longer out to get Jax or himself. Though, as he stood there looking around, he wished he had grabbed a map. He hadn't an idea where this place was, and Dax hadn't left him any directions in her note. Infact, the only thing he did notice about the note was the nearly perfect script it was written in.

Shrugging, he stepped forward into Lowtown, getting odd looks, not for the scars that adorned his face, but for his dark clothing. Everyone else had bright, light clothing. In fact, quite a few of the men and boys he saw didn't even have a shirt on. Another thing he noticed was how dilapidated the buildings, and the townsfolk themselves, were. Obviously this was the slums of the area. He chuckled a moment, realizing how fitting it seemed for someone like Dax with her personality.

He finally reached a heavily populated and traveled area. Unsure of what to do or where to go, he stopped a humanoid person that had scaly skin and a lizard-like snout.

"...Hey, can you tell me where the "Tattoo Parlor" is?"

"What's the matter Hume? Lost your way down here in Lowtown? Damn rich kid... You belong back upstairs where you came from..." the man spoke in a thick accent, and dspite his hateful nature, he pointed towards the stairs leading up to Rabanastre's main level.

"...Gee, thanks..." Xelex quietly spoke as he took off in the direction pointed out to him.

As he approached the door, he noticed the bright green neon sign above the door that read "Tattoo Parlor" and on the door, in the same script as on the note she left him, "Opening in two weeks." He stepped through the door and lightly knocked on it.

"Hey, Dax, you said you needed my help?"

[Daxmilta]

Dax was busy thinking about the complexities of the human nerve system--which was what she usually day dreamed about-- she hadn't realized a voice filled the room until it was all silent. She blinked for a moment and then sat up, much like a vampire rising out of a coffin, her eyes focused on Xelex and she smiled ever so slightly. "I was wondering if you were going to come. I would have understood if you didn't you looked really peaceful as you slept." She said, her eyes growing distant. She'd watched him sleep long enough to know if he was having a good dream or not, and this morning he looked particularly peaceful and she didn't want to wake him. That's what a friend was for right?

She looked around the room and then back at him. "It was all far more easy and smaller than I had first thought, so I got most of the work done this morning, actually. But, there is still cleaning, painting, decorating and more cleaning to do. Any maybe some expanding, because this twelve by nine stuff just isn't working." She said looking around. She then looked back at him and felt a little awkward, she'd could honestly say she had never asked anyone for help or confided in someone. She scratched the side of her face and sighed. "So any idea where we should get started?"

[Xelex]

"I would have understood if you didn't, you looked really peaceful as you slept...So any idea where we should get started?"


Xelex chuckled and smiled back at her as he spoke, "Well, you would know, wouldn't you? But anyway, I first should be cleaning. Get rid of the things you don't need, organize all your supplies, et cetera. The question is... Do you want to expand the room now, or are you willing to wait a bit until you get a business established? If not, we can start decorating. Otherwise, we can start making a plan for the expansion."

After realizing he was essentially making himself a project foreman and apologized, "...Sorry. I'm just use to taking charge in situations like these," He said, scratching the back of his head, "So... What goes and what says? Hey... This looks....organic..."

He had picked up a stray needle of Dax's that layed on a nearby counter. He looked at it and pricked his finger with it. It wasn't man-made, but extremely sharp. "Where'd you manage to find these?

[Daxmilta]

Dax watched and grinned faintly as he thought out loud about what she could do. When he apologized about his behavior she waved her hand at him, "Don't worry about it, Xelex. It's what I got you here for anyway. I don't really know where to start with. I mean I got all the things I would basically need."[/color] She said while looking around and nodding to the few other things in the room. "I do suppose it is a good start, the expanding can wait for later." She decided with a small smile.

She looked back at him and at the needle. She swung her legs over the side of the chair and walked over too him and carefully took the needle from him. She grinned faintly as she spotted all of the puncture marks on her fingers as well as the fresh one on his. "I got them from a Cactuar. Naturally hollow to allow the poison to seep through, and naturally very sharp and sturdy. And free." She grinned at him. "Don't worry about the poison part, after they are removed from the little fellows there is no poison."

"I decided they would be better than sterile metal needles because over time they would cost more than they are worth, and these are just so much more convenient because I won't have to travel farther than the Eastersand to get them." She smiled at him again before she placed the needle in a bowl with the rest of them and then took the bag of more needles out of her pocket and placed it in the bowl as well.[/size]

[Xelex]

Xelex's face twitched as the needle pricked his finger, a small drop of blood forming at the punctured area. As he listened to Dax explain why she chose these needles, he couldn't help but realize just how resourceful she was. Though, as that small drop of blood grew larger, he grabbed a napkin from the counter and pressed it against it to stop the bleeding.

"...Just a flesh wound. I must say, though, that's pretty damn clever Dax, how'd you manage to scrounge up the money for it? The slums or not, it couldn't have been all that cheap... And some of the residents down here don't seem all too fond of 'humes'..." he said as he recalled that strange lizard-man thing that gave him directions. He was glad, though, that he wasn't an extremist and didn't attack Xelex. Not that he couldn't handle it, he'd just rather avoid such a conflict in a populated area.

He turned his body and lifted himself up to sit ontop of the counter in an area that didn't have anything. Unsure of what to do or say next, he sat there quietly in thought, just happy that Dax wasn't trying to kill him. She was even smiling.

By the time that the chatter outside grew in volume, he hadn't notice because he was too deep in thought about many things, and didn't even notice what happened next.

[Raloxmly]

Auron meandered through the streets of the lowly slums of the place. There were so many erratic creatures roaming around, though he was one to talk. He was the only figure around wearing a red warrior's overcoat, and carried a large katana over his shoulder. Not to mention his various facial scars, his arm was worn in a sling, and in reality only had one eye. He must've been quite the sight for these folk. Of course, the slums were never the home of friendly people, locations such as these usually consisted of thieves, con-artists, and other kinds of wrong-doers. It was the wasteland for all the social rejects all well. So in a way, it was type of place that Auron belonged to these days. Even though he had grown up in Spira's largest city, the legendary guardian had always thought of himself as an outcast.

He continued to wander the streets, receiving some odd looks from the locals. He tightened his grip on the handle of his katana, ready to send enemies flying if they dared to cause him any trouble. Hopefully they knew better than to try and attack someone who was able to single-handedly hold a weapon that was about as tall as he was. Cause in reality, if you attempted to face a man like Auron, chances are you'd probably lose. Besides, no longer living had its perks sometimes.

The ridicule increased as he traveled further into the slums. He could have just whirled his blade around to get these people to leave him alone, but he wanted to keep as low of a profile as he could, as hard as that seemed with the way they took upon his outer appearance. He side-stepped into a nearby parlor, hoping the people wouldn't follow him in there. He drew in a sigh of relief and gazed around his surroundings. In this 'room' the red-coated man noticed the reclining chair, what Auron took as one or so tattoo guns, and on the counter were a bowl of cacutar needles. Also upon the counter, sat a black-cloaked figure with spiked black hair, and in front of him a shorter female being wearing attire that he would expect Lulu, the black mage back home in Spira, to wear.

The day just keeps getting better and better.

[Daxmilta]

"This place was actually empty, and there was this kid Seeq that was watching over the place. I just gave him some shiny gems I found out in the desert as I was looking for the needles and he seemed placated enough to leave me alone. The tables and chair I got from my old place, they just needed cleaning. And this was my creation.[/color]" She tapped the tattoo gun and the machine it was connected to. "It's all very simple and I must say, 'where there is a will, there is a way.'" Dax giggled faintly and looked around the store with a bright smile, and then back at him.

"Those things, the lizard people are called Bangaa. I think if you asked anyone a question down here they would have been rude. It is the Low part of this town. I wouldn't really call it the slums of this place because these people didn't fall down the cracks, they were forced here.[/b]" Dax sighed merrily and turned to go back to her seat but her eyes caught the red figure of an old man in her doorway. She stood there and took in his entire appearance before she spoke.

"Can't you read, old man? We don't open for two weeks." She said pointing a finger at the door.[/size]

[Xelex]

Xelex smiled as she tapped the tattoo gun, she was truly clever in her own right. What he wondered though, was why had it taken until her "date" with Roxas to change her ways? Only a day before, it seemed, she claimed she was going to kill him. He didn't want to think about that, so he changed the subject in his mind, and was about to speak when Dax spoke out.

Can't you read, old man? We don't open for two weeks."

Xelex ajusted his head to take in the new sight. It was a man in a red cloak, one arm in a makeshift sling within it. The other arm, he noted, was grasping a large katana that he had resting on his shoulder. On top of that, he only kept one eye open for some reason, and there were many scars on his face. There was also a jug attached at his hip, though the writing was in some foriegn language.

"...Wait, who are you? You dont look like you belong here..." Xelex stated. This man, whoever he was, didnt look like the other locals. He also appeared much older than himself or Dax.

[Raloxmly]

He caught the girl’s gaze from across the room; she was obviously not pleased or expecting him to be standing there, but he could tell from the way she examined him that she was indeed intrigued by his character. All was silent until she finally opened her lips to say something to the legendary guardian. ”Can't you read, old man? We don't open for two weeks.” She then pointed a finger in the direction of the doorway.

Following the indicated path with his eyes, he saw a bright neon green sign with the words “Tattoo Parlor: Opening in Two Weeks” hanging above the door. He hadn’t noticed it earlier, and to be completely honest, it was the least of his worries. He wanted to escape from the crowd of people that were inquiring too much from him, and if these two wanted him to leave, he’d do just that. No further questions; no further hassle.

”Sorry.”

He twisted around and started to leave the parlor, until the young male figure that had also been inspecting him spoke out to him. "...Wait, who are you? You don’t look like you belong here..." Obviously this young man had caught on to the fact that Auron was not from here. He spoke in a matter-of-fact tone, and unlike those outside, he wasn’t forcing anything out of him other than a name.

Loosening his grasp on the handle of his long blade, figuring the cloaked figure just wanted to talk. He turned his head carefully to the side, not completely looking back at the young man, but he knew he was still watching him intently. Auron was never one for long conversations, so now would not be an exception to that. But he knew it would be impolite to at least not share his name with the boy, especially since he had shown more respect to him than the girl did. ”I’m Auron.”

[Daxmilta]

Dax watched the exchange between the two of them through slightly narrowed eyes. This man seemed to either be confused, severally injured, or just stupid. She looked him over as he turned to leave with his simple apology. That sparked her interest immediately. Why was he so passive? She was rude, and he said 'sorry' and left. He did not complain, huff, sigh, or glare. He didn't tighten his grip on his broadsword, nor did he talk back to her. She was intrigued immensely by this man and she couldn't help but wonder what he actually came in here for.

He paused because of Xelex's question. Auron, he said his name was Auron. He spoke it over his shoulder as if he just wanted to keep walking, which meant he held no more interest for them or her store, or anything else. It was quite strange. Her eyes flitted down to the jug swinging at his side and her eyes widened slightly. She remembered where she had seen that writing before. The main question was, how did it get here? Spira and Ivalice are literally worlds apart. It could only mean he had a gummy ship like that one Keyblade holder Roxas told her about on their 'date', he was a Nobody, or he was something else. She got side tracked faintly by those thoughts but the flaming red of Auron's jacket brought her back. "Auron? How did you get here, to Ivalice? Human's in Spira don't have the technology to get here." She looked at his face expectantly. There was absolutely no doubt in her mind he wasn't a normal Human, he wasn't a Nobody either, she could tell. So...what's the deal?

Her arms folded across her chest as she looked at him waiting for his answer. She knew she was write about this. She never forgets a single detail of anything she ever comes across, and she knew for a fact she saw the writing on that jug on a sign in a place called Luca. She had picked up a strange creature called a Ronso, that was like a human but had aspects of a Lion. It was a thrill to break such a powerful and strong creature.

[Xelex]

Xelex was intrigued by this man. He was nothing like anyone he had known before, the attitude, dress, even the peculiar jug. These were all aspects he had never observed in a person ever before. Not only that, but the name. Auron. It was pretty strange as well. Then again, he couldn't speak of it. After all, what kind of names are Xelex, Roxas, Zexion, Jaxon, Daxmilta, Azure, Xinan and Xanidel? They had stranger names. In any case, there was something strange about this man.

"Auron? How did you get here, to Ivalice? Human's in Spira don't have the technology to get here."

Once again, Dax had blown his mind. Needless to say, this girl was much more traveled than Xelex himself was. His confusion was growing, he couldn't fathom what in the hell Dax was talking about. What was Spira? Becore it could grow any worse, Xelex spoke out.

"Whoa whoa whoa, wait wait wait. Dax, you know where he's from? I'm totally lost here..."

[Raloxmly]

Auron continued to make his way toward the door, since it was clearly obvious that he was not welcomed in this establishment. Well, by the female anyway, however she did seem very shocked at Auron’s reaction to her rudeness. After all, he hadn’t shown her any sign of rudeness in return; in fact all he had done was apologized and try to get back on his way. The quiet man was never the type to start any sort of conflict; he was often the one who put an end to quarrels. It was very silent as the ex-warrior monk headed toward the door, until he heard the female speak up from behind him once more.

"Auron? How did you get here, to Ivalice? Human's in Spira don't have the technology to get here."

Her mentioning of Spira made Auron stop dead in his track. He slowly turned around to face the girl and her companion once again, making a quick adjustment of his grip on his katana. It was very strange that she knew where he was from, he didn’t remember seeing her before, or even hearing her name anywhere in Spira before. He wasn’t even sure if the other civilians were even aware of Spira’s existence.

"Whoa whoa whoa, wait wait wait. Dax, you know where he's from? I'm totally lost here..."

The boy was apparently as confused as Auron was. So many questions ran through his mind that he wanted to ask this ‘Dax’ person, but he didn’t know where to start. In the end, he decided to remain silent and wait to hear the girl’s explanation.

[Daxmilta]

She honestly shouldn't have been surprised that Xelex had no idea what she was talking about. She chuckled. That boy hardly traveled at all. She doubted he even knew how to read a map, much less recognize the dialect of a different world. Dax sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose, even though she was amused by his antics because he was apart of his character, he had caused the man to not answer her so she was still insanely curious.

"Try too keep up, Xelex, I don't want to repeat this a second time." She chuckled at him and winked to show she was only slightly teasing, she then continued, "There was a world mapped out amongst those in the room where I discovered this world--Ivalice--now because I hardly sleep and have no other means to occupy my time like yourself, Xelex, I spend most of my time exploring the worlds our dear Organization have mapped out. And the world I discovered has a name, Spira, I thought it was a curious name so I teleported there, arriving in this city called Luca. I'm sure Auron here has been there because the sort of writing on the billboards and over restaurants is the same writing he has on his jug there."[/b] She pointed with a finger to the jug at his hip.

She smiled at Xelex triumphantly and then turned her green gaze to Auron, "So tell me, Auron, how did you get here? You aren't a Nobody so I know you didn't teleport."[/size][/b][/color]

[Xelex]

Auron stood there silent after Xelex and Dax made their statements. He wasn't sure what to think, because Dax was more educated than he was in foriegn places.


"Try too keep up, Xelex, I don't want to repeat this a second time." Xelex noticed she winked at him. Apparently, she was kidding. "There was a world mapped out amongst those in the room where I discovered this world--Ivalice--now because I hardly sleep and have no other means to occupy my time like yourself, Xelex, I spend most of my time exploring the worlds our dear Organization have mapped out. And the world I discovered has a name, Spira, I thought it was a curious name so I teleported there, arriving in this city called Luca. I'm sure Auron here has been there because the sort of writing on the billboards and over restaurants is the same writing he has on his jug there. So tell me, Auron, how did you get here? You aren't a Nobody so I know you didn't teleport."

Before Auron could reply, Xelex spoke up once more, "Not my fault I like to sleep, and that I'm not much of a traveler. I've done my share of traveling. In fact, I didn't even have an actual home from age 11 to age 18, and I'm 19. I'd like to stay home, if you don't mind." He hadn't meant to come off sounding a bit ticked off, but he was being honest. He scratched his head and crakced his neck before scooting himself back on the countertop so he was sitting all the way against the wall, waiting for Auron's reply.