[ti]open[/ti]Sunday Morning

It took a while for the cake to be served, so Arthur tried his best not to drink much of his long black until the dessert arrived. Coffee was best enjoyed with sweets after all - he always liked chasing that combination of sweet and bitter, perfectly balancing each other out. The NPC that served them by the counter also seemed to be the only one who was waiting tables, as she had to leave the counter to place the plate on the white round table. He gave a polite thank you before letting Gou have the first bite.

Thank goodness Pokemon didn't seem deathly allergic to chocolate. <Woah! So sweet!>

❝You like it?❞

The Chimchar let the piece stay in his mouth for a little bit, chewing it slowly before swallowing. He didn't respond immediately, closing his eyes as if deep in thought. <Maybe too sweet...>

Arthur let out a chuckle. ❝That's fair. Maybe we'll get something milder next time.❞ he made sure to get some of the self-service, cold water so that they could both have something to parch their throats after the strong chocolate. From there, all that was left to do was to enjoy the coffee and cake.

But it didn't look like he was going to have a lonely morning - another pair, trainer and Pokemon, soon passed in front of the cafe before entering it. Arthur didn't recognize the Pokemon that was walking beside the trainer, but it was tall, and looked like a final evolution. A water type, if he would hazard a guess, since it looked like a frog but more humanoid or something.

<Will I evolve to be that tall?>

The question surprised Arthur for a moment, mostly because he didn't expect it. ❝Yeah. Maybe. In a rush to evolve already?❞

The Chimchar had a bit of a pout. <N-not yet.>

Altair

Arthur had actually blocked out what the other trainer and Pokemon were speaking, thinking that it wasn't really all that relevant (if the situation called for it, he would say that eavesdropping was bad, but he would be kidding himself since he eavesdropped all the time in the real world. Sometimes people speak so loud that one wouldn't call it eavesdropping). He wished he had been paying attention though, because not long after, the same pair were standing nearby him, and it wasn't like he could mistake them for approaching anyone else.

There was no one else.

❝Do I mind what?❞ he asked, completely serious. Was he going to have to socialize this morning?

Gou also had his eyes on them both and was getting a better look at the Pokemon that stood behind the trainer. Could he be that tall when he evolved, he thought to himself again, and could he look that cool?

Altair - oh no lol

Okay, if Arthur were talking to someone else, he would swear up and down that there were barely other NPCs occupying the tables when he got here, so he really didn't think that there was any reason for this guy to be nudging into the seat across him. But when he looked around again after the player said that all the other seats were occupied, it was like stuff buffered in, and suddenly there was noise.

He would blink, completely confused, wondering if this was game logic, and if this guy had some kind of special power or was his internet just so shit that he didn't see everyone else.

Well, he sat there corrected, he supposed. ❝I suppose you can join in.❞

His avatar was pretty, he would give the other player that much. Clearly fictional by the ears, but he wondered how this person looked like in real life, and if they were just as much of a looker. Maybe a little too feminine for his taste, but it was too early to say how he exactly felt about the other person.

He took another sip of his coffee before following where the other player was gesturing to. Oh, they were referring to that weird cafe that only opened on Tuesdays. ❝Is that place really that popular? I just got here, and it was one of the marked places on the map, so it just seemed like a spot to check out. The cake here isn't all that bad though.❞ and so was the coffee, but he had had better.

❝Were you also trying to get into the cafe?❞

Altair

❝Hm, it's still not clear to me if this person is a NPC or an actual player. Could go either way really.❞ like, it could be a dev joke or it could be someone who's really sticking to their theme, or something. But if the locals were touting about it, then it made him more wary about the place. He supposed this one was decent, and it wasn't like he was playing UNOVR for the great food. He could always order something more suitable in real life (and actually feel a proper, complete wash of the process of eating rather than this...weird half-ness of pure taste).

Speaking of food, the stranger also had a question about it, and he seemed really chuffed about it, or at least amused by the virtual reality they were playing in. ❝Well, no one's force feeding us in real life. They wouldn't be able to get past the screens.❞ he took a piece of the cake and then paired it up with another sip. Really, the bitterness of coffee quieting down the intense sweetness of cake was the best. Whoever thought of this combination was a genius. He was a bit bothered that the cup was already half-empty; there was a bit of a brown stain on the cup that he wiped away with his thumb.

❝I'm sure some people would enjoy finding that out though, being able to eat without worries, though I haven't found a place here yet that serves anything better than what I've had before. Unless you have any recommendations?❞

He wondered what his Chimchar would think of the conversation, if his program could even figure out what they were talking about. Maybe the concept of real life and virtual life didn't make sense to the Pokemon. After all, if he were in his position, he would have a hard time believing that there was another reality besides the one he lived in now, but then again...

Altair
+1 CAFE MASTER REQ: USE COFFEE OR TEA-RELATED IMAGERY IN YOUR POSTS

❝Ah, that so?❞ was that player still active, or had they decided they had enough of the place? Arthur mused what kind of player they would be to pull such a stunt. Likely they must've been an equivalent of a founder, or a day-one player, whatever they called those types of people in these types of games. Whatever the case, if he were to run into them eventually, he probably would know. ❝Busy-ness cannot be avoided. Living a life...❞ was already hard as it is. The words did not form in his mouth, though, since he wasn't sure where this conversation was going to go. Maybe the player in front of him was not in the mood for existential chatter, the separation of fact and fiction.

But he was mistaken, because perhaps the question was not as odd as it might have been. ❝I suppose so.❞ he hadn't even considered those that might've been dealing with health issues or disabilities in real life - how would they feel in UNOVR? It could easily go beyond providing experiences to people who could not, or never, experience such, but giving those things back, perhaps? He stirred the coffee in his cup, already lukewarm, inching closely to room temperature, whatever that was in virtual reality. ❝Maybe they nerfed the food so that it wouldn't be as tempting.❞ the words did not come out exactly right, but in any case, he didn't want to lean too hard on it. It wasn't like he was an intellectual.

❝Hard to say. It's easier to judge something as better or worse rather than best or worst.❞ he had one hand resting on his cheek, looking thoughtful. ❝But coffee can only be judged properly if you can smell it as much as taste. Like wine, I suppose. Anyway, you will get no satisfactory response from me.❞ he then showed a smirk, half hidden by his palm, ❝What about the best tea you've ever had?❞

Altair

❝If someone decides to focus nothing but on the taste of food, surely it will be done soon enough.❞ well, or so he felt, as usually with games there was normally one or a few things that were focused and polished more than others, creating an imbalance. Now, whether or not the pros outweighed the cons in making a game fun, that was up to the person, but then again one didn't need to be in a game for VR and food, he supposed. There could be a restaurant that could just use VR as their gimmick or something. What kind of cyber dystopian would that be?

Arthur would lightly shake his head. He was not exactly someone who was familiar with tea and had not taken much notice of it. His mom liked it perhaps because it made her seem more sophisticated, and all of the rich seem to love tea. Think about the health benefits! The aesthetic! But it looked like he triggered a topic that the other player liked, because he kept on going, and it felt like he was listening to a Youtube video of someone really loving tea. Like, a whole beginner crash course for it. ❝I get that the real deal is always better than mass-produced. Almost everything edible follows that logic. I admit though, I don't drink tea all that often, nor know of the different kinds. I think Mom likes green tea, or something? Tastes Chinese?❞

His mind wandered for a bit, thinking about how if he forgot where he was, well, it was like he was in the real world, talking with a stranger. Only the stranger had elf ears and his Chimchar was still beside him along with a large bipedal frog, and they were also in a western-themed town ripped right out a movie. Okay, maybe it was more fantastical than the real world, but the feeling, the smells, the sun gingerly poking through the clouds...

❝Hey so, have you been playing a while? 'Cuz I'm just starting out and would appreciate any tips.❞

Altair