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Greek cafe
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Greek cafe
Greek cafe
You are wandering the streets of Greece when you see a cafe. Like all the other cafes. But somehow different.
You enter, and the smiling young woman gives you the menu. "Welcome to the Greek Jewel Cafe," she says. "My name is Hera, after the goddess."
/Rose ice cream/
/Ruby water/
/Jade water/
/Sapphire chocolate cake/
/Meditteranean pastries/
/Sumac scones/
/Croissants tourmaline/
You frown at the many mentions of jewels as you make your order. You realize that your adventure here will not be finished as soon as you finish eating.
submitted by Agalia, Athens
(April 8, 2023 - 10:42 am)
(April 8, 2023 - 10:42 am)
I breathe in the fresh scent of baked goods and flowers as I stand in the sunny cafe. I gaze at all the colorful options; the pastry dough is iridescent in places, shimmering in rainbow hues. I decide to pick based on my favorite colors.
"A jade water, please," I say to the mysterious Hera, "and a slice of sapphire chocolate cake."
(April 28, 2023 - 1:03 pm)
Hera smiles. "Of course," she says. In a moment she's served you. The jade water has the same delicate, half-luminous look of lemonade, and it's almost the same color; the sapphire chocolate cake is, rather disappointingly, just chocolate cake, but it has a scalloped, hard blue candy at the point of the slice, shaped to look like a shell. Again, you see something strange: this isn't exactly typical Greek food, or typical food from any country, actually.
While you are eating, a young man pushes open the glass door and enters. He seems startled to see you, but shrugs the whole thing off and crosses to the counter where Hera is standing. "Meditteranean pastries," he says carelessly.
"Only that?" she asks, looking startled and slightly troubled herself.
"Yes." He leans closer, and in a low voice that you hear anyway, adds, "Agalia, what is this girl doing here?"
Hera shrugs and turns away, filling out his order. "This is supposed to be a cafe, Kostas."
Supposed? Something tells you that you've just blundered into the middle of a mystery.
/<>/<>/<>/
Enjoy your order! And feel free to RP as much as you like.
(April 30, 2023 - 5:37 pm)
(April 30, 2023 - 7:48 pm)
I step inside, nodding to Lupine--how interesting! I didn't expect to see anybody I knew here in Athens, but look at that, there's another CBer here--and the one other person in the cafe. I stick my hands in my pockets and stand a little behind the customer at the counter, waiting for my turn to order.
I can here them talking to Hera in what I think they mean to be a low voice but isn't actually that low, as I can hear it just fine and so can Lupine. The stranger calls Hera by the name Agalia, and asks what Lupine is doing here. How interesting. The person behind the counter has lied about their name, and this person who I thought might be a customer isn't a customer, or at least not a normal one. Hera--or Agalia, as it may be--responds that it is, in fact, a cafe--or rather, supposed to be a cafe. Curiouser and curiouser. Perhaps I shall stick around after all.
(May 1, 2023 - 9:17 am)
I slip in silently. Walking up to the counter, I wait my turn. When Hera approaches me, I request a croissant tourmaline and a ruby water.
(May 1, 2023 - 11:30 am)
Hera smiles, handing Kostas his pastries and turning her full attention to you. "Ruby water and croissants? Of course," she says with a smile. As she serves you, you notice that Kostas doesn't really seem interested in his pastries at all. He has sat down at one of the small tables, and is leaning back in his chair, gazing out into the street as if he's looking for something.
"Here they are?" You turn back to Hera and find her smiling and offering you a plate with designs swirling around the edges, on which are some croissants almost the color of the jewel they're named for, and a glass with a dark red drink inside it. The flavor of the ruby water reminds you faintly of pomegranates, but it has its own quality too. As you sit down, you look into the street yourself, curious about what or who Kostas could be looking for.
(May 2, 2023 - 5:51 pm)
I sigh. Gosh, it's been a long day. The lady at the counter says "Excuse me, are you ready to order?" Oh, I must have zoned out. Great. "Yeah, sorry," I reply. I stare at the menu. Why are all the options so good? I check the prices. I can afford this. "Can I have one of each?" "Sure," the woman says, eyeing me, thinking. I grab my food when my name is called, and walk to sit down. Even the smell of the food is entrancing, and my first bite tastes like heaven. Jeez, I think, my day isn't so bad after all.
(May 1, 2023 - 7:12 pm)
You're glad the menu is so short, as you would have found it hard to choose otherwise. The cafe is pretty, filled with dancing sunlight that flashes through the glass doors and sparkles on the tables, making the place look as if it has a light of its own. Sadness seems to be dispelled here, as if there isn't any place for it and it knows it can't survive. Even the mystery of Kostas and Hera/Agalia seem to slip into the background, adding a feeling of aliveness to the cafe.
Somewhere out on the street, a musician is playing. The music enters the cafe softly, lilting and gentle, capturing the sunlight of the Greek streets. There's a strange sort of magic here, one that can't be equalled by the usual kind of magic. You smile. OK, the world isn't perfect; but here, it almost seems as if it is.
(May 2, 2023 - 5:57 pm)
I step up to the counter and order. I've got an incredibly large stomach and all of this food sounds interesting, so I order an entire sapphire chocolate cake and one of everything else, then I step off to the side and wait. When the food is ready, I grab my order and slide into the booth Lupine is at.
How interesting... four CBers, all running into each other by coincidence at the same small cafe. I need more information. I motion for Avara and Pheonix to come and join us.
(May 2, 2023 - 8:55 am)
The food is delicious - ordinary, despite the bizarre names, but with a quality of perfection that lends so much to it. These people could make a fortune out of this cafe, you think. But the cafe is small and tucked away into this little side street, and no one is here except for four CBers. And, of course, Kostas. There's a feeling in the air that tells you it's a quiet place, where no one really ever goes. And what did that Hera or Agalia or whatever say? "It's supposed to be a cafe"? It is a cafe. Yeah, there's definitely something strange going on here. But you don't quite like to come out and ask.
Agalia, however, notices your expression. She glances at Kostas swiftly, who meets her gaze and shrugs, though with a little shake of the head too. What is going on here?
(May 2, 2023 - 6:03 pm)
Hera seems to understand what her customers are thinking. "Agalia is - my nickname," she said in explanation. "Kostas comes here quite often, and we know each other from other places besides. So that's what he calls me."
Kostas gets up suddenly and goes outside. For a moment he can be seen, conversing rapidly with a man in the street outside. The low jumble of their voices enters the cafe, but the actual words are indistinguishable.
A few seconds later Kostas nods, and the other man disappears up the street. Kostas re-enters the cafe, and his step seems somewhat jauntier than before. "I might have some jade water too," he tells Hera. "Or not." He smiles.
Agalia smiles too, her whole face lighting up. But, "Of course," is all she says. "Meditteranean pastries are too dry to eat by themselves."
They seem to understand each other perfectly, but no one else seems to. Hera looks around, and sighs suddenly. "Maybe we should tell them, Kostas," she says.
"There's nothing to tell," Kostas says shortly. It's fairly obvious that he's warning her: No, don't tell them.
"I suppose not," Hera says lightly, and busies herself with sorting the food on display.
/<>/<>/<>/<>/
(May 2, 2023 - 6:09 pm)
Getting Daydreams Cafe nostalgia here~
Tired (as usual), I walk into the cafe. I see some CBers I know and exchange a few smiles with them. How did I get here? I don't know… It's all so blurry.
I look up at the menu, then at Hera. "Ah, um, hello. Might I have some ruby water… Whatever that is… And, ah, rose ice cream? Please," I add quickly, with a smile that does its best to be charming but is probably just awkward.
(May 2, 2023 - 7:48 pm)
I walk into the cafe and consider the delicious-sounding options on the menu. Milkweed, one of my AEs, reads the menu over my shoulder. /it all sounds so good,/ she exclaims. /maybe a rose ice cream? I like flowers and ice cream./
"sure," I reply. I look up at Hera. "I'll have a jade water and a tourmaline croissant. Milkweed will have a rose ice cream." Milkweed nods happily.
(May 2, 2023 - 9:51 pm)
You notice that Agalia looks rather startled as you enter, but a quick smile covers her other expressions. "Coming right up," she says. "Quite a busy day," she adds casually, looking around. There are quite a few people in the cafe, so it takes a moment for her to serve you.
She hands Milkweed a cracker cup, with a few designs pressed into it, with a scoop of ice cream inside it. The ice cream has a gentle rose tone, and a few - real? - petals rest gently on top. You rather regret not having bought one yourself, but the croissant is more delicious than anything else could be, and the jade water is clear and cool, reminding you somehow of the scent of flowers and the look of the ocean. The man in the corner of the cafe, Kostas, also has a jade water, but he isn't even drinking it. Strange.
(May 6, 2023 - 1:28 pm)
(May 4, 2023 - 2:22 pm)