Analysing the Crowd[Open]

[Bartimaeus]

Commotion, loud noises erupting from the people of Luca going off their ships and into the big city. Of course, most of them were Blitz Ball players pumped up for the big games. Series of loud steps and runs burst from the boats and onto the wooden bridges. Meanwhile, Bartimaeus sat on the edge of the sturdy wood and looked out to the vast sea. Bellowing announcers and cheers from some of the people around the city echoed throughout the area.

Steambane only looked closer at the waters beneath his feet. Goggles protecting his eyes from being seen along with the gas mask. The marksman took out one of his Steam SMGs and flipped it around. Moving it sideways, throwing it up and catching it once more and backward. He was somewhat bored, but not enough to go do his job...He needed a break for once.

[Katsumiko]

I'll cast a wish into the sea,
with hope for smiles and happy beginnings.

It had been awhile since the young priestess had gone outside, she had been couped up inside doing shores and filling orders for potions for some customers. But, now she was free. She wore a blue dress that was a bit revealing, her hair lay neatly on her shoulders as she stepped out into the cool crisp air. It was mid-afternoon. She stretched her arms as she exited, she noticed all the other people scouring about. It looked like there was a Bliztball game today, too bad she would have to miss it.

She side stepped through the crowd, tilting this way and that way to navigate through the enormous crowd that all seemed to be shuffling towards the arena. She headed towards the dock, a small lunch bag in toe. She was going to have lunch, since she had skipped it earlier, near the docks. She practically raced through the crowd and finally came near the dock, she almost jumped over the side of the railing as she softly giggled to herself and let the afternoon sun cascade over her face as she plunged it towards the sky. A smile on her face, she opened her eyes and then leaned against the railing, resting her head in her hand. She continued to smile as she looked out at the sea as it danced. The small breeze ruffled her strawberry hair as she stood there, dazzled by the sparkling ocean.

[Bartimaeus]

Bartimaeus sighed, hanging his feet for a litle more before standing up and leaning upon the railing himself. A woman had stood beside him with a bag of lunch. She wore an elegant blue dress that revealed some parts of her body and wrapped around her curves just nicely. His eyes wandered upon her before slowly looking back to the waves the ocean was making. Crashing down upon the shores and slamming upon smaller competetion.

"Who might you be?"

His voice had an Al Bhed accent, thick but a ring to most common people's ears. It sounded smooth; the gas mask however made it sound a bit more...Radio. His fingers clasped around the metal lightly, this woman was beautiful. But of course, every women in Luca was fit and had great features. He couldn't quite put his finger on who she was, or why she was somewhat important to him either. She just was he guessed.

[Katsumiko]

The woman became a bit startled by the monochrome radio voice, she hadn't even realized someone was next to her. She was lost in her own thought, her own world. She slightly blushed as she became a bit shy. Her blue sparkling eyes looked over th er, the man. A black suit and a gas mask. Odd. She tilted her head some as she said, "Oh~ Hello there, Sir." her voice was sweet and kind, with a hint of shyness to it.

She then pointed to herself, "Me?" she asked, recalling what he had said, asked her. "My names Katsumiko." she said to him then offered him a smile. She wondered why he was wearing a suit and a gas mask. He was really...odd.

[Reeve Tuesti]

Reeve watched the sugar dissolve as he placed it into his coffee, minute spoonful by minute spoonful. Giving it a sip, he decided it was passable - if a bit metallic, an unusual coppery tang that was no doubt a part of the coffee's supposed charm - and settled down to watch and listen.

He did this often. Wandered into a city and melted into anonymity, priestly robes discarded in favor of a dark, almost nondescript overcoat. A man much smarter than he had once called it taking a city's pulse. Reeve found it a fair description.

Luca was a strange place. Stranger still was its sport.

After a few minutes of idle chatter with the girl manning the cash register and more time spent just getting a feel for the waves of conversation that enveloped and became part of the cozy atmosphere in the coffeeshop, Reeve had discovered that nearly everyone that spoke only spoke on one subject. Blitzball.

Idly, the priest took another sip. Nearly spat out his coffee as he looked through the window.

Reeve squinted. Rubbed his eyes. He would have sworn that there he had seen a man wearing machina on his face.

Hm, well, maybe not. Probably just his imagination. Returning to his coffee, Reeve let the thrum of the city fill his head once more.

[Bartimaeus]

Bartimaues nodded slowly, extending an arm out to her at a swift manner. His head turned to look over to her, cocking his head to the side. It was an open palm, the man seemed friendly enough at least. You'd think one would be able to hear the breathing from such a helmet he wore. However, there wasn't even the faintest sound of his breath which was very odd.

Steambane stopped for a moment to look over at the man drinking coffee...He had seen him and reacted. Perhaps it wasn't best to come to Luca...Shrugging he returned his attention to the woman. Opening his lips he spoke in the strange voice once more.

"I'm Bartimaues. I just came here to drown myself in the crowds....Why are you here out by the docks? Like the water as much as I do?"

[Katsumiko]

Katsu saw him offer his gloved hand as he extended it to her, she took it. Shaking it as he then introduced himself as Bartimaeus, he was really strange. He was trying to lose himself in the crowd wearing an outfit like that. She shrugged the thought off and started to answer his question, "Oh, I just came out to get some fresh air..and I ravish in the sight of the ocean, especially at sunset. I could probably watch the ocean all day long." she offered a small giggle as she stood there and recoiled her hand back to her side.

"It's so calming, ya know?" she tilted her head some as she looked back over at the man, Bartimaeus, after she gazed out at the ocean again. "It's such a contrast to the busy streets and the roars of the crowds." She couldn't help but stare at the man before her, she bet his was Al Bhed. With the mask and all and the machina. But, race didn't bug her so much, she was friendly with about everyone. Yet, it bugged her some the way he was decked out, with the mask and all. But, she wasn't much of one to judge people by first impressions.

[Reeve Tuesti]

Reeve decided that it wasn’t the coffee, a trick of the light, a hallucination or a waking dream. The last two had been after applications of cure and pinching didn’t do anything to dispel the image there in front of him.

Namely, a machina-ladden thing out there, blissfully chatting away with a pink-haired girl.

Had the Yevon church really fallen so far?

Not two years ago, none would have dared to walk around with so much machina. They would have been mobbed and likely lynched – the double perversity of machina and close physical proximity to it being enough to send the faithful into a boiling rage.

Reeve felt conflicted as he watched the peaceful scene. He was happy that the city had matured. Machina – with the correct operators – could become beneficial. Not merely machines of war. But by the flipside same token, the fall in the Church’s prestige came to him as a near-physical blow: no one cared about Yevon’s teachings anymore.

Pondering, he watched the Machina-Man carefully.

[Bartimaeus]

Bartimaeus nodded, the waters really were more of a peaceful thing than the people aroudn here. Of course, a lot of people looked at him in awe to be wearing machinma around here. Of course, Yevon had lost power and not many minded anymore. This is probably what he saw that man doing, he looked like a priest. Didn't matter to him really, his authorities gave him money to do their dirty work.

Yevon had lost its pride in its religion and mainly just wanted power; just like any other. Of course, this didn't matter to him...He just wanted to stick to his job. Leaning back, he rested upon his left leg and tried to think of something else to speak of. Talking about the environment was good and all, but it got dull. He needed to ask her more questions.

"Are you a summoner? Or some kind of magic user?"

[Katsumiko]

Katsu rested her elbow on the railing again as she continued to converse with the man, the Al Bhed, before her. She couldn't help but stare at the ocean as he spoke, from the corner of her eye she looked at the man as he spoke. "Both," she stated,"I knew white magic before I became a Trainer, or as you so put it Summoner. But, recently I've been into the Healing part of magic. I even work at a Potions shop."

She looked him over again, Machina Guns. "What about you?" She couldn't figure out much about him, which had her a bit tongue tied and wanting to know more about him. He seemed so dark and mysterious, something that usually repelled people away but this man. Bartimaeus held her interest. He was such a contrast to her, who had pink hair. Blue eyes. Wore pretty stuff. Light colors. She wondered what was behind his mask. Maybe, he had scars from battle. Or had been burned during a fight and that was what he was hiding beneath his mask, because he did not want anyone else to know.

[Reeve Tuesti]

Reeve realized that just watching the two of them speak was actually pretty boring. With the machina covering the man's face (he presumed it was a man though it was equally as likely to have been a women and more than likely to have been an Al Bhed) it was impossible to even read lips. And the position he was in really wasn't conducive to eavesdropping even if he had been a lip reader which he wasn't.

Bah. If nothing happened soon he'd go out and greet them. This was by far the most interesting sight he'd seen all day. Talking to the two of them would no doubt be... enlightening.

[Bartimaeus]

Bartimaues turned his head to look at her once again, he couldn't tell her what he really was. If he did, he'd break the contract he made with the Maesters of Yevon and his cover. He thought up a quick solution, since he was so cunning. He spoke in his strange voice once more.

"I'm an engineer, I work on machinma...Mainly transportation. Not too much about me, just a simple Al Bhed man."

A big fat lie this was, but he didn't want any other people trying to figure out who he was. Onto another subject, he sensed she was some kind of magic user. His gaze shifted to the man looking at them...He'd probably sense he was staring right at him. Bartimaeus' senses allowed him to pick up who was staring at him, and the surroundings that he stood in. Who was he?

Shrugging his shoulders, he stared back at the woman.

"Any particular potion you love in the potion shop?"

[Katsumiko]

Katsu couldn't help but say, "You don't look simple given what you're wearing.." after she had said that she thought he might feel ill of her, that she shouldn't have said that. She wasn't much of one to speak her mind but she had sort of just blurted that out. That she had said it before she had time to process what she was saying. "Though, you are kind..." she tried to recover herself, but didn't know exactly what to say. That was all she could come up with on the spot. She hadn't even known that man that long. She then remembered about her lunch and that she hadn't eaten yet. She set her bag onto the railing in front of her.

She began to open it as she said, "Oh, I don't really have a favorite.. but I have a thing for the Love Potion,"

[/font][/size] she winked at him. "It's really popular now a days, specially with Sin defeated.."[/font][/size] she said to him, she didn't really like to say Sin because it's monstrous name held bad memories for her. She pulled out a sandwich and took a bite out of it so he couldn't tell that she was affected by saying the name Sin, though she had been the one to say it. [/blockquote]