Moved to https://discord.com/channels/1151902831310274651/1332123490161000599

There's an emphasis on vacation that makes her think there's more to it than a simple vacation. But he seems reluctant to talk about it, and she's too scared to push it. "Well.. I don't really know how to celebrate, I think it usually involves giving gifts, and uhm, I don't really have anything to give you.. But happy Christmas, Elduin." She smiles a little brighter. He's been trying so hard to put her at ease, it's the least she can do.

He shakes his head at her, but still smiles. "No, you usually go on these... vacations alone. A few others left at the same time as me, but we all go to separate places. And I don't think we would've celebrated regardless."

Mim follows his gaze outside, seeing the snow makes her shiver as a reflex, even if it's nice and warm inside. She's relieved she doesn't have to be there right now. She tries not to think too far ahead. Her life is too unpredictable to think too far ahead, it only causes more stress. She yawns before she can try to speak, hit by a wave of exhaustion. "Sorry." Both an apology for yawning, and sympathy for not having someone to celebrate with. She knows well enough what that's like. "I never really celebrated either. Is there no one else from your farm here to celebrate with? No one joined you on your vacation?" Could he really be just as lonely as she is?

He fastens the dishcloth onto his apron, before he slides into the seat opposite of her, looking out through the window. It's snowing, and he can't help but feel relieved that Mim wants to stay in here, even if he does feel bad for everyone who has to stay outside tonight. "Oh- no, I come from a place where we don't really celebrate," he smiles, "It would've been just like any other day, and while I think Christmas here sounds gorgeous, I have no one to celebrate with."

Mim returns the smile carefully, and stands up at his encouragement. She waits just outside the door until she hears the door close and knows the customer left. She really doesn't want to cause any issues in case he would have seen her. "Sure."She nods at his suggestion of a table. It seems as good a table as any, near a window so they can look outside, but not in plain view of everyone outside. She walks over and slides into the padded couch on one side of the table. It is a lot softer than the stool had been, and Mim shifts a little getting comfortable. "How come you have to work the night shift on Christmas? Do you not celebrate?"

Elduin makes quick work of making the sandwich for the customer. He wraps it up in a paper with the diner's logo on, before smiling at her. "Come on," he says, going out ahead of her to give the sandwich to the customer, waving him off. Then, with the restaurant void of customers, he grabs a dishcloth to wipe down a few of the tables, while he waits for Mim to come out as well. He points to the table he's wiped down first, "How about this one?"

The bell startles Mim a little and she's not quite sure if she imagined Elduin blushing or if he really did. Do creeps blush? Not that she's noticed, though luckily she hasn't run into many. She contemplates what this means while Elduin is busy with the new customer. "Oh, uhm, sure. That way you can sit too, you're legs must be getting tired." She's used to walking and standing all day, and the stool is plenty comfortable for her. But it does start to feel a little awkward that she's sitting and he's standing, or leaning on the counters.

He smiles at her, feeling his own cheeks heat up a little when she admits she likes talking to him. Just as he's about to answer, however, the sound of the bell can be heard from inside the restaurant. "One moment," he tells her, before he heads out to the register. A man is waiting there, and asks him for a sandwich to go. Elduin takes his payment for it, and asks him to wait for a moment, before he heads back out into the kitchen to prepare it. "There is no one in the restaurant after this man leaves," he tells Mim, "If you like, we can both have a seat there, in the actually comfortable seats?"

Mim looks at him for a moment, considering. Maybe she takes the chance, maybe he is just nice, and if he isn't, it's only for one night. "Okay.. I'm usually asleep already so I can try and sleep through the coldest part of the night.. So I can try to stay awake until you finish your shift." She shifts a little as she blushes. "I don't mind, I kind of like talking to you.." It's true, even if he turns out to be a creep, so far it has been nice. Maybe that just shows how incredibly lonely she's been.

Elduin nods at her, even if he's still a little worried she might find his helpfulness odd or overwhelming. "Yeah... back home I don't have a bathroom as nice as the one I have here, but I'm happy to share it."

A shower. Actual warm running water that doesn't smell of sulphur, to have the time to get fully clean. "Y- you have a shower?" Of course he has a shower, people who have places to live usually have a shower. She looks back at him as he's cleaning already clean counter tops. Could he really just be nice? She is surprised by how much she wants him to just be nice, and to continue being nice. It's hard to hope, knowing how she got burned before.

Elduin decides to busy himself with wiping the countertops with a wet rag. Just because he feels like he's making things awkward. Still, he can't help himself, "Um... I don't mind dirt. And if you'd want to clean yourself, you'd be free to use my shower, too." He's probably coming on way too strong, he's starting to realize. A sandwich isn't that bad. Many don't even consider it a proper meal. But a warm place to sleep? A shower? It might be too much. "Sorry. I- um... you're free to sleep here as well, of course..."

She's getting more confused, and she feels like she's hurting his feelings. "No, no.. it's fine. I just.. it's been a really long time since someone was nice to me.. A- and I'm dirty, and I probably smell, and.. I mean, I'm fine." She looks up at the clock, it's just past midnight, later than she usually goes to sleep. But for the warmth, and the promise of food, she can keep herself awake. "I'm sorry, thank you for offering to let me sleep at your place. I just haven't slept with someone in a long time.. uh, someone close by, I mean.."

He senses more uncertainty in her voice, despite his reassurance, and he really doesn't want to make her uncomfortable. Is it... wrong to help people like this? "Um... until six in the morning, but... you don't... You really don't have to come if... if you don't want to, I just figured I'd offer you something more comfortable than the floor..." He's really not sure whether he's only making it worse with his words.

She smiles and nods with something that approaches a grateful look. "Okay.. Sure, that's really, incredibly kind." Sure, she'll 'sleep on the couch'. Anything to make it sound less creepy, less like an exchange. Just when she thought she'd found someone good, nice. She should have know better. "So, till what time do you work?" How long do I have to mentally prepare for this?

Elduin senses her uncertainty, and he figures it must be because of the same reason she didn't want to take his sandwich that one time, but this isn't the same. She's not going to take anything away from him by coming to his apartment to sleep there, if she cannot sleep tonight. He nods at her encouragingly, "Yeah, I can let you sleep on my couch, so you can have your rest, and you won't have to be cold."

She blanches at the suggestion, not entirely sure what he means. Is he just being too kind? Is he.. Are there now strings attached to the sandwiches? She just looks at him for a moment, he just seems like a nice guy, the way he's been speaking isn't creepy. Sure, he's a little odd, but he seemed like the good kind of odd, and she can't judge, she's plenty weird. Could she refuse him though? She needs the food, what if he decides to stop making them? Decides to put a lock on the dumpster outside? She can't risk it. "Th- uhm, that's really uhm generous? I don't uh.." Don't be weird, don't scare him off, sure it's been ages since Emara, but you can do this. "If you're sure.. I guess I could."

He looks at her, furrowing his brows in worry. She really thinks the floor is comfortable enough? Sure, she probably sleeps outside on the ground, usually, but it still feels wrong for him to make her sleep on the floor. He's slept many a night on the ground, outdoors and in the cold, as well, but that has been to watch over the herd of sheep during the summer. It's not comfortable, even if it is necessary, and he's always been very relieved to come back to his bed at the farm. "Well, if you want to, in the morning, you could come over to my place?" Elduin doesn't even realize how inappropriate the thing he is suggesting might be.

Mim gives a small smile at the reassurance, finally eating that last bite of food. "It's okay, the floor is probably more comfortable than what I'm used to just because it's warm in here." It's said so casually, offhand, because it is true. It's been years since she's had a bed or something else comfortable to sleep on. "I don't want you to get in trouble if a customer shows up."

Elduin just shakes his head, "You're not in the way, I promise. It's just me here, after all." With the apparent lack of customers, with it being Christmas Eve and all, it'll be nice to have someone with him all night... though he does feel a little guilty about possibly making Mim stay awake all night. "There is no really comfortable place around here, but... if it gets quiet out there, maybe you can huddle in one of the customer booths? The padded sofas are comfortable."

Mim bites the inside of her lip as she takes a moment to think. Could she? She'd really like to stay here, where it's warm, where there's an actual person to talk to, who's nice. She'll have to find some other time to sleep or something. "I- if I'm not in the way.. I think I'd like that too.. Maybe I can help?"

Elduin seems a little relieved, both about Mim having had enough to eat, and her gratitude. Still, he shakes her off just a little. "Don't worry about it. It's my pleasure," he smiles, before glancing out towards the window, "Like I said... you're free to stay the night here, if you like. I don't mind... I think I'll like having some company."

She immediately looks back up to him. "Oh, no, you don't have to. I- I couldn't eat more if I tried. That was great. Sorry, I don't think I said that yet, thank you so much." She's rambling. She doesn't actually want to finish, to leave. She'll have to go back out at some point, back out in the cold. "It's just.. It's nice here."

Elduin watches her with a fond smile. He's interested, the same way he's been interested about everything else that's completely new to him in this city. It doesn't feel right to pry, since he can't imagine anyone being on the streets out of their own free will, so he tries to refrain from asking her anything too intrusive. A part of him does, however, want to ask her how she ended up in this situation. Instead, he focuses on what she's doing. "You don't have to save the last bite," he says, "I can... I can even make you another one, if you're still hungry?"

Mim gives a slightly tense, shy, nod. "Yeah.. I mean I'm usually very wary, especially with people on the streets." She stares at her plate, pushing her last piece of sandwich around on it. "I never really paid attention to who was inside before.. Just, after the note.. I was curious who it was from.. So I started to.."

At that, Elduin raises his eyebrows, mostly in surprise. She's been watching him? And here he was thinking he's been watching *her*. He chuckles a little, his own cheeks actually starting to heat up a bit as well, "I didn't think you were... I suppose it's only natural for you? To... to get a scope on the people around here."

Mim looks up at him from the corner of her eye. "I guess that explains why I haven't seen him in a while. Not that I spend a lot of time watching or anything.. Just.. Over the past couple of weeks, trying to figure out who you were." A blush rises on her freckled cheeks. "Sorry, I'm not some creep, I promise."

Elduin nods. Lae'zel could very well be known as the angry one. When Mim describes a pale man, however, Elduin furrows his brows. "Huh... I think my coworkers have talked about someone like that... but he left before I got here."

"Is Lea'zel the angry looking one? It wasn't her." She tucks some hair behind her ear, a little shy about retelling the story. She has no idea if he still works here. "I don't know his name.. but I remember he was really pale, had platinum blond hair? I don't remember much else, I ran away pretty fast."

Elduin puts the ingredient containers back into the cooler cabinets underneath the counter, chuckling a little at Mim's words. "I think it was just bad luck," he says, before he hops up onto the counter to sit there, since Mim has the only stool in the kitchen (Gurk says that kitchens aren't for sitting), "because most of my coworkers are really nice, I don't see them being the kinds of people to chase you off... except for Lae'zel."

She smiles briefly when he comes back into the kitchen. Despite her earlier nerves and fear, she's really enjoying his company. Now that her sandwich is nearly finished, she's worried about having to leave soon. "I try to find places like that, where the dumpster isn't in plain view.. People still don't like it." She says with a shrug. "I've been chased off here too, though it's been a while." Her lips curl into a small, careful smile as she tries to make an approximation of a joke. "I thought I was being sneaky, but apparently not enough."

Elduin listens to her, but disappears briefly to take the sandwich out to the customer. He glances around to check that all the other customers are fine, before he heads back to the kitchen. "Well, for what it's worth," he says as he starts gathering up the ingredients he'd taken out onto the counter, to put them away again, "I don't think you're scaring away any customers. None of them really go into that back alley, so it doesn't look bad to anyone."

"It looks bad on the restaurant, scares away customers, and is 'generally disgusting'. O-or so I've heard." She's obviously repeating words she's heard before. After 10 years of living on the street, she's been caught enough to have heard almost every bad thing. "I'm glad you're different." She gives him a small smile and nod in response to their gesture. "Sorry, I don't want to stand in the way of your work."

"That's something I don't understand," Elduin says as he finishes assembling the sandwich for the customer, "Why would people not be allowed to go through the trash, and take what they want? You already threw it out once, after all..." He takes the plate with the sandwich, gesturing to her that he's going to take it out to the customer. "It saddens me that you have to do it, but that's an even bigger reason for me not to chase you - or anyone else - away from it."

Mim's eyes go back to Elduin's face, the blush hasn't fully left her face. "You saw me and didn't.. Most people storm out, chase me away.." Elduin clearly isn't like most people Mim has met. She keeps a hand on the napkin, it's dear to her now.

Elduin looks over at the napkin Mim takes out of her pocket and places onto the counter. It's the one with the message he left for her - after she'd first left one for him. "Oh- you... you saved it?" he says, smiling at her. Then at her next question, Elduin glances out towards the back door for a moment. He sees no reason to lie to her. "I saw you... going through our trash one night. I felt... bad, I suppose? That you'd have to eat someone else's scraps, after they've thrown them out..."

Mim blushes a little as she starts to dig in her coat pocket for the napkin he left her. It's worn, crinkled, but it's probably in a better state than you'd expect for a napkin that's been in someone's pocket for over a week. She carefully smoothes it on the counter. "You did mark it.. That meant a lot. Besides, how were you going to mark it if you didn't know who was taking them?" She frowns a little when a thought hits her. "H- how did you even know to put them there?"

"Yeah..." Elduin chuckles, his chest feeling warmer as he remembers the napkin with the message she'd left for him. She's kind too. He sees no reason to treat her unkindly. "I should've probably marked it in some way, to let you know that it was for you. Now, I can write your name on it."

His kindness keeps surprising her. She looks back up at him when he mentions the sandwich in the plastic bag. The one she hadn't taken. "I remember.. I thought it was someones lunch I kept taking. I- I felt really guilty over that."

Elduin looks over at Mim again when she speaks, raising his eyebrows. "Oh, I'm not getting into trouble," he assures her, "I... you know that sandwich that was in a plastic bag? I made that one at home. So it's not always that I'm using ingredients from here."

Something in her stomach tightens when he offers to keep making the sandwiches. Her eyes fall to the sandwich he's making. It's still a decently filled sandwich, but it's not as stuffed as hers. She had figured people had just eaten some of the filling before throwing the rest out. But now, maybe Elduin had been over-stuffing the sandwiches he's been making for her? "I- I.." She swallows the lump that's forming in her throat and takes a deep breath. "I can't.. I would really like that, but I can't pay for them.. I really don't want you to get in trouble."

Elduin nods slowly. He doesn't have to ask where she gets her food from. The first time he happened upon her - without her knowing - he saw her rummaging through their trash outside. "If you don't mind, I'd like to continue making them for you," he says, smiling at her as he assembles the customer's sandwich, seemingly not as carefully as he assembled hers. He uses every ingredient sparingly, whereas he'd made sure to put extra of everything on Mim's sandwich.

She nods. "Most days.. I usually find something." She plucks at a frayed knot in her sweater. She doesn't want to say how she finds the food she eats, knows it's disgusting, but what else is she supposed to do? "Th- the sandwiches have been really nice." There's a slight hitch in her voice, and she bites the inside of her lip to keep some control over herself.

Elduin begins making a sandwich similar to the one he made Mim. He eventually comes over to work at the counter next to her, while she eats. It pleases him to see her eating the sandwich he made. He has been feeling weirdly worried about whether his sandwiches have been enough, and now that he knows she also helps two cats stay fed, he thinks that they might not be. "Do you get food from other places during the day?" he asks, hoping he's not prying too much.

Mim smiles and sits back down on the stool to continue eating the sandwich. "O- of course, you uhm, you still need to do your job. I don't want you to get in trouble for me." She takes another small bite, enjoying feeling warm and at least a little clean. She tries not to think about how she can't stay here forever. At some point she'll have to go outside again, into the snow. Besides that, it's nice, talking to Elduin. As nervous as she is, she likes talking to him, it's good to have someone to talk to again.

Elduin's face breaks into a smile again, and he nods at her. "Of course," he says, before he goes to grab a new piece of bread, "I have to make a sandwich for a customer, I hope that's okay with you." He finds himself badly wishing for Mim not to leave. His eyes dart towards the back door window, and he can't help but shudder a little when thinking about the cold air outside. It's warm in here.*

Mim turns around quickly when she hears the door open behind her. Of course it's only Elduin, there's no one else here who'd come to the kitchen, right? She finishes drying her hands, her face is already dry and any dirt that had been on it is now gone. "I'm fine.. I just, forgot to wash my hands." She puts the towel back and shows him her hands, now also clean. "I hope that's okay."

Elduin takes the order from the man - just a simple sandwich - and he pays in only small coins. Once he has taken great care in counting the money, Elduin gives him a polite nod, "Please, have a seat, sir. I'll bring your sandwich to you in a little bit." With that, Elduin heads back into the kitchen, a little surprised to see Mim no longer sitting on the stool where he'd left her. Instead, she's by the sink. "Oh- everything alright?"

Mim startles at the sound of the bell, immediately ready to go. But Elduin insists she stays, and before she can say anything he leaves the kitchen. She's a little unsure of what to do as she keeps chewing, so she just looks around the shiny clean kitchen. Whoever the cook is, they take good care of their workplace. She sniffles and wipes her nose on the back of her hand. That's when she notices the dirt on her hands. She'd been chased out of Bluelake park before she'd had a chance to wash her hands and face. She gets up and glances out of the serving window to see Elduin talk to the customer. As long as he's busy, she migh as well make use of the sink. She goes over to it, letting the tap run until there's warm water running from it, then washes her hands and quickly throws some water on her face.

Elduin just smiles at her when she takes up on his offer to come and sit down. For a moment, he doesn't know if it's appropriate for him to just stand there and watch, but luckily the sound of a bell from the service counter saves him from making the decision. "A customer," he explains to her, wiping his hands on his apron as he moves towards the open door to the restaurant, "You keep eating, I'll be back." And so, he heads out to serve the customer waiting; an old man with ragged clothes, who looks like he's definitely in need of a meal, kind of like Mim.

She ducks her head and sits down on the stool. Unsure of what to do with her coat, she drapes it over her legs. She looks from the sandwich to Elduin. She's so hungry, and after all these years it's hard to remember what manners are. "Thank you. Really." The words don't seem adequate for what he's been doing for her, not just today, but over the last week. But it's all she has to offer. Her stomach growls loudly and it sends a pang of hunger through her, her body screaming at her to just start eating. And she does. Small bites, lots of chewing, it would be proper lady behaviour, if it wasn't born out of a need to feel as full as possible, on as little as possible.

Elduin smiles at her and nods. He makes a mental note to continue putting extra meat in her sandwiches, maybe even more than he has thus far. "That's true," he says, going to grab a napkin, placing it on the plate next to the sandwich, before he reaches underneath the counter and pulls out a kitchen stool. "Come on... sit. It's for you," Elduin smiles.

She smiles a little shyly. "Yeah, cats.. I uhm, I befriended two strays, they sleep next to me most nights in exchange for some scraps of meat I find during the day." The sandwich looks incredible, though it's not that different from other ones he's made for her. Het mouth waters at the sight, and she continues talking as she tries to distract herself from the gurgling in her stomach. "I like cats.. They're mostly independent, which makes it more rewarding when they choose you to befriend."

"Cats?" Elduin's tone is kind, and he smiles at her as he finishes off the sandwich with a generous amount of homemade mayonnaise. "I like animals," he says as he finishes assembling the sandwich, "They're easier to talk to... maybe because they don't talk back, but they also don't hesitate to show you how they feel about you."

She relaxes her grip on her coat, a small hit of relief in her sharp exhale. She doesn't have to leave, not yet. "Sorry.." Internally, she kicks herself for being so incredibly jumpy. "I think this is the most I've spoken to anyone in years, if you don't count cats." The more she hears about the farm, the weirder it seems. All he does is work there, he only talks to the people there, the obvious face tattoo that feels like a mark. There is a burning curiosity that surprises Mim, she wants to know more, about the farm and about him. But she needs to be careful.

Elduin looks up at her, his face one of genuine surprise. The way she'd asked him about the tattoo was in no way disrespectful or mean. He's gotten used to the curious looks and sometimes even horrified stares, so it's actually quite refreshing to have someone – an adult – ask out of curiosity instead of disdain. "Oh, I didnt think you were!" he says quickly, seeing the readiness to leave in her body language. "It's... it's okay. I didn't talk to a lot of people either, before I got here... At least not strangers."

She drapes her coat and scarf over her arm, unsure about where to leave them, she doesn't want to just put her dirty stuff down on the clean counters. She sees him pause briefly at her question and she freezes in turn. His one word reply is like an ice shard, even if he still smiles she knows she's done something wrong. Her hands tighten on her coat. "I- I'm sorry.. I didn't to pry. I don't.. I don't talk to a lot of people." Please don't make me leave.

Elduin pays Mim no mind when she takes off her outerwear. It's a common thing to do, and he was starting to feel rather curious as to why she wasn't taking them off until now. Her clothing would shock many with its ragged condition. Elduin? He wears something quite similar to it back home. At her mention of his tattoo, Elduin blinks a little. Many have looked at him weird for it. They have pointed, whispered amongst themselves, and some kids have asked him straight out. Some have asked him what it means. To him, it means he can never have a normal life outside of the commune. "Yeah," is his only reply, and he smiles at her as he grabs a few slices of tomato for the sandwich, laying them out neatly on it as well.

Mim takes off her coat, she doesn't want to get used to it indoors. She's wearing a worn brown knitted sweater underneath, there's a tear in the neckline, and a number of frayed threads have been knotted together to keep the whole thing from unravelling. The sweater hangs off of her, clearly too big. "You've only ever worked on the farm? I- is that where you got the tattoo too?"

Elduin arranges the cucumbers neatly along the entire sub, before he reaches for a handful of chopped lettuce. "I've never really been to a party. Or done anything that doesn't involve working at the farm. I don't think it's really my scene... though I think I was sent here on vacation to realize just that. So that I'd come back to the farm once my vacation is over."

It's not quite an answer to her question, but she won't push it. It's nice in here, *warm*, and she really doesn't want to have to leave already. Her fingers just stopped hurting, her feet are no longer numb. Besides, it's nice to have someone to talk to again. She quietly pulls down the zipper of her coat and takes off her scarf, like any sudden sound or movement might scare him. Like he'll realise she's making herself comfortable, and he'll change his mind. She keeps watching him make the sandwich, eyes flicking from his the tattoos on his face to the food. Did he get the tattoo because he was bored too? "Bored? Isn't there a lot to do in the city? All the tourist-y places and stuff?" He seems about her age, though it's hard to tell with half-elves. He's social, kind, outgoing perhaps. "And there's parties everywhere this time of year. Why are you working, when you could be celebrating?"

He chuckles a little when he hears the amusement in her voice, and he shakes his head. "I don't think it's what people usually do," he says, reaching for the container with sliced, fresh cucumber in it, "But I'm used to always doing something, and... I felt a little bored, I suppose?"

Mim relaxes a little, now that she's no longer the subject of conversation. She no longer feels like she needs to watch what she says as much, afraid he might send her away if she says the wrong thing. She is surprised by what he says though. She doesn't have a lot of experience with work, but remembers enough to know people rarely find a job when they're on vacation. "Y- you went to find a job, while you're on vacation from your job? Do you uhm.." She can't quite suppress a soft short laugh. "Do you usually do that?"

Elduin reaches for the containers with deli meat in them, grabbing several slices of three kinds of meat, which he place onto one half of the bread. "I think so," he nods, "I work at a big farm, with a lot of other farmhands. I'm on... sort of a vacation from there, I suppose?"

"Sure.." She mumbles when he says he'll be fine. She had thought she'd be fine too, she hopes he isn't wrong. He does know how to handle a knife, so that's good. She nods at his question, her mouth is watering from just looking at the bread and she needs to swallow before she can talk. "I- yes, I guess so. I haven't really thought about it." No use thinking about people being kind when she knows they won't be.. Though he is.. "Are people nice, where you're from?"

Elduin smiles at her, warmth filling his chest at the kindness she is displaying towards him. "I think I'll be okay..." he says as he grabs a knife and expertly slices the bread in half. For someone who doesn't do much else than assemble sandwiches and other dishes, he knows how to work a knife. Though that's a skill he already knew before he got here. "I know I'm not like most other people in this city..." he says as he spreads butter onto each half of the bread, "I only got here... a few months ago, and I come from a place that's very different from Neverwinter. I think all people here could do with some kindness... don't you, Mim?"

Her eyes follow the bread before snapping back to Elduin when he speaks. "No, no I promise I'm not." She says quickly. She's messing this up. She takes a step forward on instinct, a hand reaching out in what might be a calming gesture before she puts it back in her pocket. "I uhm, it's happened to me.. I wouldn't want that to happen to someone else.. To you." She'd been too trusting when she got to the city and the betrayal still hurt, years later. No one should have to go through that.

Elduin has heard those words before, thankfully. Most of his coworkers have told him that he's too nice, and too naive. He figures it comes from not having lived in a city ever before, but he is learning. And sometimes he feels like people here are being too suspicious of other people's niceness. He goes over to grab some bread from the racks of ready made ones, holding it up for Mim to see. "I'm going to make you a sandwich," he says, "Because I trust that you're not taking advantage of me."

"Sorry.." She mumbles as she takes the napkins and dabs at her eyes. She looks back at him and sees only sincerity in his eyes. She feels the need to warn him, to prevent what happened to her from happening to him. "You should be careful, about being too nice. Someone will take advantage.." She doesn't want him to end up like her, for his sake, and because that would mean she can't get any more sandwiches. "I got myself here, and I know it seems awful, but sometimes it's better than the alternative."

Elduin quickly realizes she is getting emotional, and his eyes go wide in panic for a moment. He hates seeing people cry. It makes him sad too. "Oh- um," he says, looking around the kitchen, before he spots the napkins by the order window. He quickly goes to grab a few, and then comes back to give them to Mim. "I... I just think it's unfair, I guess?" he says, "Like... why should I get to be in here... eat... be warm... while you have to be out there, you know? I don't understand the people in this city... casting you out like that..."

His offer stuns her. She was expecting to get a sandwich, and get back out, it's why she hasn't taken off her coat yet. At most she might have been allowed to stay in to eat. But to be allowed to sleep here? "I couldn't.. I don't.." She wouldn't have to go to the bridge. She could be actually warm, sheltered. She hates when her eyes fill with tears, she runs a hand through her hair as she tries to blink away the tears. "Why?" She looks back at him. "Why would you offer? Why are you being so.. *nice*?"

His worried look remains. Elduin was afraid that that would be her answer, but it doesn't make him any less worried that she confirms his fear for her. "Well..." he says, glancing out towards the customer spaces. He can see the counter from where he's standing, and can tell that no one is waiting for him to come out and serve them just yet, "Today is Christmas, and with none of my coworkers being around, you're free to stay here tonight." He gives her an encouraging smile when seeing her hesitance, "Don't worry, I'm here alone until the morning, and you can definitely stay until then. For warmth."

She rubs her hands together, trying to clear the burning sensation from her hands as they continue to warm. Her eyes flick back to his, she can see the worry on his face. Nobody cares.. Why does he seem to? She bites the inside of her lip, her only answer is a small shake of her head. She can't quite get the words out.

Elduin raises his eyebrows, looking over at her, before he furrows his brows in worry. "Somewhere... warm?" he asks, tilting his head to the side. She looks far from warm - except now that she's indoors she seems to be doing a little better.

One glance in the fridge is enough to make her eyes go wide with how much food is in there. Of course there would be, but to see it.. It makes her mouth water. "Oh, uhm.." Technically she does, she has the bridge, her place against the city wall with Socks and Tabby.. But she knows that's not what he means. "Yes?" She winces at how unconvincing she sounds, even to herself.

Elduin just smiles at her when she thanks him. It's difficult for him to imagine just how thankful she is, but he figures it's similar to how thankful he is for being away from the commune. "I'm glad," he says as he goes to one of the counters, with refrigerated drawers, and starts pulling out containers of ready-sliced vegetables, "I sometimes worry... about people who don't have any place to stay, especially when it's cold and wet outside... Do you have a place to stay?"

Mim looks around the kitchen as Elduin talks, partly to stop herself from staring at his tattoos. Why would someone wear tattoos like that on their face? The kitchen is not as cramped as she expected, they always look busy on the TV screens in the electronics store windows. There are many fancy shiny appliances, all she really recognises are the stove and a microwave. Her fingers start to hurt when her hands warm up, and she balls them into small fists. "Oh.." She should say something more but she hasn't spoken this much in a long time, and she's a little lost on how to talk to someone. In her pocket, she finds the napkin with his words on it. "I uhm.. I never thanked you.. For the sandwiches.. I appreciate them more than you could know. Thank you doesn't feel like it covers it, but it's all I have to offer." She turns her eyes back to him, forcing herself to look beyond the tattoo, into his eyes. They're two different colours.

Elduin chuckles a little. Sometimes he forgets most people don't really know what happens in the kitchen of a restaurant. It's not like he himself knew, but it is the first and only proper job he's ever had, so he's gotten used to it. "No, actually, our cook makes most of the food," he says, "I do assemble sandwiches, mostly for myself, and now you... He's usually around to do all the customer orders, but since it's Christmas, he left already, but I have everything I need to assemble and heat up most orders customers might make!"

She bites the inside of her lip when he leads the way to the kitchen. She shivers when the heat in the room hits her, and she pulls her beanie off her head, her dark wavey hair falling down around her jaw. Her two layers of gloves quickly follow the beanie into her pockets. "Really? Why? You must make a million sandwiches every day?" There is genuine surprise in her voice.

He smiles at her, then. Even if she seemed to be bothered by something, Elduin isn't going to push her. He has a feeling she's a little uneasy about being in here in the first place, and he wouldn't want to scare her away. "You're not a bother," he chuckles a little as he leads the way into the kitchen, "I actually... really like making you sandwiches."

Her cheeks are reddened from the cold, but they turn a deeper shade of red when she realises she's staring at his tattoos. "No, sorry I uhm.." Don't be rude, don't give him a reason to kick you out. "The uhm, the kitchen is good.. I don't want to be a bother.. Make the customers uncomfortable."

Elduin blinks when he realizes she stops talking mid-sentence. He tilts his head to the side. "Is... is something wrong?"

She stamps her feet in an effort to rid them of snow before going any further. "Yeah, that's probably o-" She turns towards him when she speaks, but when she looks at him in the bright fluorescent lighting she's startled. She couldn't tell in the dark outside, or when she saw him through the window, but now she can see the bright red lines over his face, down his chin, over his nose and cheeks, his forehead. Tattoos aren't rare, Emara had a large neck tattoo. But she hasn't seen facial tattoos often and these somehow look more like a mark, possibly because of the bright colour.

Elduin just shakes his head, the smile never leaving his lips when she - Mim - steps inside. "They're customers, and they're just here to have a meal, so I think they'll be fine. And back here, it's only me. You can eat in the kitchen, if you like." He closes the door behind them and gestures towards the kitchen ahead of them. It's silent, save for the dishwasher whirring away in the corner.

She'd nearly forgotten about the sandwich, though from the sharp pain in her stomach, her body certainly hadn't. She tries to ignore it, to not scare Elduin off with how famished she is. "N-nice to meet you, Elduin.." She tries to meet his tone, but her tone is still slightly nervous. She steps into the hallway after him, glancing around. She's only seen it through the window, and it's bigger than she thought. "Are you sure? I uhm, I saw there were people inside.. I wouldn't.. uhm, I don't want to scare them off.."

Elduin smiles, giving her an encouraging nod when she steps a little closer. "Nice to meet you, Mim!" he says politely, before he steps inside before her, as if to show her how to enter through the door, "It's really cold out here... it's much warmer inside. Maybe... maybe you can eat your sandwich inside?"

He seems surprised by her statement. Then again, he has been providing her with sandwiches where most other people would have chased her off. Maybe he is different, maybe he is genuinely kind. She takes a careful step forward, it's getting darker, colder, and the light in the hallway is bright and inviting. She also doesn't want to slip on the ice again. "I'm Mim.." She plucks at her mittens nervously as she takes another few steps towards the door. Into the light and warmth beyond it.

Elduin simply raises his eyebrows. He's understood the general attitude towards homeless people is mainly negative, and people don't want them around, but he doesn't understand why. Is it that they look dirty? Well, Elduin is from a farm, where he's spent most of his days being dirty. There's no use in showering if you're just going to get dirty again. "Yeah," he nods, gesturing to the door, "Oh– um, I'm Elduin, by the way."

Mim glances at the open door. The hallway she has looked at so many times now is lit, and open to her. She looks back at the person who's been feeding her, the kindness in his voice is mirrored in the smile on his face. She has no idea how to even begin to thank him for the kindness he has shown her, and now he's inviting her in? It's probably warm inside.. it's been days since she's felt warm, and her hands hurt from the cold. "A-are you sure? I'm.." homeless, dirty, disgusting. Unfit to be let indoors " People usually don't like me being inside their places."

Elduin is just looking at her the whole time, an encouraging smile on his lips. "Yeah," he says, nodding. She looks cold, despite having bundled up as well as she can. Her clothes don't look very warm, with how torn and ragged they seem to be. His chest aches when he thinks of all the ways he could've helped her besides just making her a sandwich each day. "Um... would you like to come in?"

Her eyes go back to him, looking beyond the apron to see his face. She thinks she has seen him, vaguely recognises his frizzy curly hair, when she spent time looking through the window. "Th- that was you?" She wants to fall on her knees and thank him, but she's also still terrified this might somehow be a trap. She pulls her beanie lower over her ears.

Elduin looks closely at her face when she turns to him, because he's never really seen her properly, so at first he's not even sure it's her. She is early, but he's pretty certain there can't be another person that resembles her this closely. "No, I–" he begins speaking, "You're... you're the one I've been making sandwiches for... right?"

She's already flinching, expecting harsh words, but instead the voice is.. kind? Almost like they're happy to see her? But that can't be possible. Her posture relaxes a little though she's still wary, people are rarely nice for long. When she looks at him, she immediately notices the purple apron. He works here, that must be why he's nice, he thinks she could be a customer. "H-hi.. I'm sorry." Her eyes flick to the step, to see it's empty. A brief stab of pain can be seen on her face. "I uhm, I took a wrong turn." She's not supposed to be her, if she can get out, maybe she can come back later. Maybe she's just too early.

Elduin has just tossed one trash bag into the dumpster, when he hears the sound of someone's foot slipping on the ice nearby. He's not scared, even if the sun is already setting and it's getting quite difficult to see in the darkness of the alley, but his head still snaps towards the sound, and he sees her. Only a few feet away, it's her. The stranger. "Oh– hello!" It's the first thing he thinks of saying. Surely, greeting her is only appropriate.

She's still on edge from the encounter, glancing around at every sound, even if she knows the Protectors Enclave isn't as policed as the Bluelake District, she still doesn't really feel safe. She tries to distract herself while she walks towards the diner. Would the person who feeds her have gone through the effort of making her a sandwich? Or would they have forgotten in the warmth of celebrations, of being around loving people. The diner is nearly empty when she walks by the front window. Maybe it's always this quiet around this time, she's not sure, she's a couple hours earlier than normal. The good thing about being early, is she might get a warmer, more sheltered spot. The snow still crunches under her feet as she enters the alley. She's only made it a couple of steps into the alley when she hears the door open with a squeak. Shit, someone's here. She hasn't been able to see the step yet, hasn't seen if there's a sandwich. What if this person finds it? Takes it? She tries to turn, to pretend to walk away, but her foot hits an ice patch and she slips and nearly falls. Her arms spinning to keep her balance. The slide of her foot makes enough noise that she knows she can't slip away without being seen. She tries to make herself small, expecting a shout to tell her to get out of here.

There are no footsteps following her, but she doesn't stop running until she gets to the bridge. She pauses there to catch her breath. She'll have to be more careful in future, keep an eye out for him and skip the park more often if needed. She stamps her feet to the floor, in frustration and in part to get some feeling back into them, her toes went numb with cold a while ago. She ducks her head into her shawl, and sets off towards the diner. She's earlier than she'd normally be, with the Christmas celebrations and the incident at the park.

he watches her run away with a small smile on his face. It feels good to get rid of the filth.

"Yes, sir." She swallows and backs away until she's far enough away from him, that she feels safe to turn and start running.

He can almost smell the fear coming off her, and it gives him a small sense of satisfaction. It's his job to keep this area clear, and damn it if he doesn't do a good job. Homeless people, like he suspects this woman is, aren't supposed to be in the Bluelake District, let alone Bluelake Park. "You better make it fast, and I better not catch you around here again. D'you understand?"

She flinches when he interrupts her, backing away towards the footpath. Warming her hands in the lake isn't worth getting caught. She's terrified and ready to run if he gets too close. "I'm sorry sir, I'll go. I promise."

"Don't you go making up excuses." He squints at her, she might look harmless, but he doesn't trust her in the slightest. With her bedraggled clothes, the stains. As he gets closer he can tell she's wearing more layers than normal.

She startles at the voice, cursing herself for not checking, for not being more careful, more wary as she turns around. Not just any park-goer, police. She avoids his stern eyes, sensing malice behind them, in an effort to avoid getting into trouble. Not here, if she gets caught here she'll be in big trouble. "I'm sorry sir, I- uhm, I got distracted.. I-"

Elduin has never worked a night shift at the diner, much less a combined evening and night shift, like tonight. Gurk is still there, showing him the ropes of all the things he might need to use in the kitchen, but the cook has premade almost everything for him, and says there won't probably be many customers coming in anymore. From what his coworkers have told Elduin, Christmas Eve is usually a very quiet night, but there are some people who do not celebrate at all, or come to the diner to eat as a way to celebrate. Elduin can't help but hope that this year will be busy, since it'll feel weird to just hang around the diner alone. Once everything is done, and the few customers in the diner have gotten their food, Gurk finally signs off for the holidays. He tells Elduin he can call him, but Elduin has a feeling he won't need to. Gurk deserves to celebrate in peace, with his family. So, after waving Gurk off, Elduin checks on the customers – a lonely but still strangely happy old man and a middle-aged couple, who are escaping the terrible cooking of a sister – and once he's made sure they're alright, he decides he might as well clear out the trash for the day. While he gathers up all the trash bags to take them out, he starts thinking about what kind of sandwich he would make the stranger today. It's only about an hour the usual time that he leaves the sandwich out for her. Perhaps he'll make her something special, because it's Christmas.

The half-orc has been scanning the park when he notices Mim walk by, her worn stained clothes, her frayed beanie, they all scream someone who should not be visiting this park. He follows her, trying to see what she'll do, how she'll misbehave. When he sees her step off the path, he doesn't hesitate. "Where do you think you're going?"

Mim is never excited for Christmas. She hadn't been back when she lived with her foster parents. But even less now. She wakes up early and sneaks away from the bridges without waking any of the other homeless people there. The city is mostly empty because of the holidays. The Sealed Chasm Market is closed, though she still wanders around there, hoping to find anything that was thrown away yesterday after she went on the rest of her trip. Her whole schedule is slightly off, the early start, the closed market, the square in front of the House of Knowledge is filled with families lining up to have their small kids sit on Santa's lap, so she can't sit there. Even if she could, all the pigeons have been scared off. At least the bridges across Neverwinter River is mostly empty, and she can sneak through the Bluelake District fairly easy on her way to the other side of the city. The snow crunches softly under her feet while she walks through the city. She doesn't like the snow, hates that it's cold enough that it doesn't melt. But there's something about the feeling of snow crunching under her feet that makes it better, even if it's just for right now. The flowers on the bushes have not survived the frost, so she plucks them off. Maybe the weather will clear, and some new ones will grow. She goes on to the Bluelake Park, hoping to be able to warm her hands in the warm water instead of her armpits. The park seems clear, it's earlier than she's usually here, but it's also Christmas, and most normal people are about to have dinner. She wonders whether the person who gives her sandwiches celebrates Christmas, whether they'll have dinner with their family, in a warm home, filled with laughter. She's lost in thought and forgets to look around when she steps off the path, into the bushes that will hide her from sight while she washes.

And so, Christmas comes around..

The days pass and every evening, without fault, Mim finds a sandwich on the step by the backdoor. There are no more messages, no more napkins, and she finds she can't leave the one she has behind. Those 9 words, she's read them over and over and can't seem to part with them. It's only a napkin, and it's rumpled up from being in her pocket, but she can't give it away, can't throw it way. It's the most interaction she's had with someone who isn't police since Emara left. The message, the sandwiches, they mean so much to her that she doesn't even know how to put it into words. She gets excited to go there every day, knowing there is a meal there for her. It's not enough to live off of, but having at least that bit of stability is incredible. She knows it won't last, good things never do. But for now, she's grateful, and the only way she can think to show it is to stop digging in their trash. She still scrounges for food in other places, but knowing that she'll have something to eat every day, whether she finds food or not, is such a relief. She spends some time looking through the front window of the diner. There's no way to know, and she's too scared to go in to ask. What if they change their mind when they see who they're giving food too? So her days pass, the worry about food partially replaced by new worries, as it slowly gets colder. The time comes to start sleeping under the bridge, so she doesn't wake up blanketed by snow. She doesn't like it, even if it's slighly warmer, sheltered from the cold winds and falling snow. There are more people there, and though most of them prefer to ignore her, the ones that don't are unkind. Sneering, leering, only able to lessen their own misery, by making others more miserable. Mim makes sure to eat her sandwich before she gets there, before someone else can take it from her. At least now, she's a little less worried about not rationing her food. She just hopes Tabby and Socks are okay until the cold ends.

Elduin feels overjoyed when he peeks out through the door later on. There is only an empty plate, and with even the napkin gone, Elduin knows the stranger must've read it. So, from that day on, Elduin makes it his main goal – in addition to his usual tasks – to assemble one sandwich a day, and place it outside on the back step. It's sneaky business, to make sure none of his coworkers notice, but thanks to him working fairly late shifts, it's fairly easy. With the sandwiches disappearing each night before he heads home, he feels like it's worth it. Even if he never speaks to her, never really sees her, save for some tracks in the snow, Elduin can't help but feel affection towards her. She's loyal to him, the way he's loyal to her, showing up each day, and receiving her sandwich. One might ask why Elduin does it, but to him there is no question about it. His heart aches from the mere thought of her having to dig through the trash again. All he can think about as the days pass, getting colder and colder, is whether these sandwiches will be enough...

Back at her spot along the wall she pulls the sandwich out of her pocket. There's more slices of meat on it then on previous ones, and even those had been richly filled. It's like whoever made them was trying to compensate, or knew she was feeding cats too. She still can't believe it but she has the napkin, and the words are really on there. Sorry for missing a day. These are for you.' There was someone there who was either making or buying them for her. For *her*. And they.. They apologise for what? Not feeding her? There are a number of very conflicting feelings running through her simultaneously. She's immensely grateful that someone seems too care, confused that someone would, relieved that she hasn't been stealing from someone. At the same time she feels ashamed that she needs this as much as she does, guilty for not being able to feed herself, but that she needs someone else's help. She keeps staring at the note until her stomach rumbles, and she becomes aware of the stabbing pain of her hunger. These are for you. She eats the sandwich, and for the first time, eats the whole thing in one go. Sorry for missing a day. She decides to hope, hope that the message is true, that there will be another one tomorrow.

She just crosses the road, and walks in the alley. And there it is, another sandwich like they make them in the diner. She swallows away her hunger. That's someone else's, not yours, never yours. You can't take it, don't be like her. She walks to the dumpster to look for her usual scraps. Her eyes keep darting to the full sandwich, her mouth watering, when she catches the black lines bleeding through the napkin. Could there be something written on it? Curiosity gets the better of her. She can look at the note, right? She won't touch the sandwich, won't take it. But she can be curious? She knows it's dangerous to tempt herself like that. There's a good chance she might cave. But she does it anyway. In a careful neat script, careful of the bleeding ink of the marker, is written what she had thought she was stupid to hope. These are for you She looks around again, like she did the first time she had found a sandwich here. Someone was really making these for her? Had they seen her? They were sorry for missing a day? The blinds in the window are closed as they always have been, and a peek through the round window in the back door shows her nothing but an empty hallway. She's so overwhelmed by this small gesture, she doesn't know what to feel. The simple act of making a sandwich for her feels like the biggest act of kindness. And she doesn't even know who to thank, or even if they know who they're giving it to. She takes the pen she found the day before, intending to write thank you on the napkin, but there's a noise outside the alley, and she scrambles to shove the sandwich and napkin into her pocket and dashes out the alley before she can be seen. Maybe if she hadn't been in such a rush, she might have gone back to look through the front window, to look, and try to see who it might be. But she's learned to run at a sudden noise, or people approaching.

Elduin just gives Gurk a quick nod, before folds up the napkin and places it into his pocket, before heading out onto the floor, ready to get yelled at by Lae'zel for the tables she hasn't cleared yet. All he can think about as he gathers up the empty plates and cups from the finished tables is the note in his pocket. She left him a note. What if... what if he left her a note as well? With a fairly slow day at the diner - it is less than a week until Christmas, after all, and people have a lot of preparations to do - Elduin doesn't even feel guilty to be making a rather meaty sandwich to take outside. He grabs a clean napkin - white with purple accents along the edges, as well as a cheesy quote, courtesy of Mr. Dekarios on one side ("One With the Weave") - and he writes on it with a black marker. 'Sorry for missing a day. These are for you.' Elduin considers signing the note, but out of fear of one of his coworkers finding out, he doesn't dare to. If she shows up, if she sees the plate, with the napkin and the sandwich on top of it, she'll know. So, he places the plate with the sandwich in its usual place, before he goes to drink two whole cups of water for his own lunch, and then heads back to work.

Gurk just lets out a booming laugh, going back to his beef on the grill. "Alright, get going out there, and make sure to give Lae'zel the good news. She'll be thrilled to get to spend her Christmas Eve being angry at home, rather than being angry here."

The napkin looks used, and Elduin hopes Gurk hasn't been using it, but he still accepts it and opens it up. Just like Gurk said, in squiggly handwriting, barely intelligible, it says 'I'm sorry'. He stares at it. It must be a message from her. But why? What is she sorry for? She didn't take the sandwich, but she left a message to say she's sorry... "Well... it does look like a decent sandwich," he says, his wits finally catching up to him, when he realizes he's been staring at the note for a little too long, "What a... what a strange customer."

Gurk digs into his back pocket. "I saved it, 'cus I feel like it has to be from one of our regulars. I don't know why they'd make us a sandwich, though. It's not like we don't have enough sandwiches around." He laughs a little, before he hands a crumpled up napkin to Elduin.

Elduin doesn't even remember to pretend to be perplexed about the sandwich, but instead steps right up to it and grabs it, turning it around. "Where's the- can I see the note?" It's not like he knows the stranger's handwriting, but... he still wants to see it.

Gurk turns around, noticing that Elduin seems a little less enthusiastic than usual. He quirks an eyebrow at the half-elf. "Oh?" he says, noticing Elduin is staring at the sandwich, "I found that on the step this morning. It's got a scrawled note saying 'I'm sorry'. The sandwich seems fine, Karlach said she wants to eat it, so I saved it. It's just thawing."

Elduin just stands there, staring at the sandwich for a moment. "Um... yeah... sure..." he replies, barely even listening. Did the stranger not come by yesterday? After him missing out on one day, she must've thought there will be no more sandwiches!

"Hey, Mr. Dekarios wanted me to ask you," Gurk says, not turning around from where he's tossing around the meat on the grill. "Since we have no one - except Lae'zel - willing to work the night shift on Christmas Eve, would you like to do it? I kind of feel like we need someone with a little more warmth and Christmas cheer for that night... Lae'zel is going to scare everyone off, Krampus-style."

Elduin blinks a little, but he doesn't think twice about it. Gurk is pretty much the man in charge here whenever Mr. Dekarios isn't around - which is most days, sadly, but he works as a teacher in the morning, so it's understandable. "Yeah? What about?" Elduin asks as he takes off his jacket and scarf, and grabs his purple apron from the hook next to the others. He walks over towards the grill, while tying the apron behind his back, and that's when he notices it, on the counter next to the grill. His sandwich. Still in its ziplock bag.

The ogre is by the grill, frying up beef, and he looks over when he hears the back door open, and Elduin's voice calling out. "Oh, hey, El! I actually wanted to talk to you before you start your shift."

The next day, Elduin is finally scheduled to be back at work. He's probably the only person in the world who's excited to go back to work after his days off - at least according to his coworkers - but today, he has a whole other reason. He comes in later than usually, but decides to use the back door, simply so that he can check if the sandwich is gone. The step is empty when he arrives, and his chest feels warm with joy. The stranger really did come back, and he managed to feed her once more! So, he enters the diner, calling out to Gurk in the kitchen, "Good afternoon!"

It takes her a while to find it, nearly falling into the dumpster in the process. She really shouldn't be going through all this effort. She's staying here too long, making too much noise. The pen is nearly empty, which is why it's in the trash but she manages, her message is short anyway. 'I'm sorry'. It's short, messy because of the failing pen, but that's really all she has to say. She puts the napkin under the bag so it won't blow away. For a second she contemplates giving in, taking the bag and running. But she doesn't, and puts the bag down before running off so she can't change her mind again.

He doesn't even glance towards the front of the diner when he arrives, but dives straight into the alley. No one is around, and judging by how full the dumpsters seem to be, the trash has already been taken out. Confident that none of his coworkers will find the sandwich, he places it on the doorstep, secure in its ziplock bag. Another quick glance around, before he heads off, straight back home - even if a part of him really wishes to stay behind and make sure that the stranger comes by today.

She's nervous, and she's spent at least another 15 minutes looking at the diner. Why? Why is she nervous? It was only a couple of days that there was food. Was she that weak that she'd already started to count on it? To depend on it? There wasn't going to be anything there. Whoever she had stolen that food from, they were not going to make that mistake again. She was not going to make that mistake again. She steels herself, pushing away her nerves and goes into the alley.

That's what he's supposed to be experiencing here in Neverwinter. Strangers being awful to him, so that he can go back to the commune, and the elders can tell him 'We told you so'. Still, Elduin can't help but feel like he's being the stranger in this scenario. The stranger, who makes sandwiches, and leaves them out for another stranger. And there is no ill intent about it. She eats them because she needs food to survive. Elduin makes them because... He blinks a little. Because it hurts to think about her having to go hungry. If he doesn't do anything about it, then no one will, and he doesn't even want to think about what the stranger's fate would be if no one was around to help her. Elduin's eyes flicker towards the clock. It's around this time that he usually goes out to check the alley, and find the plate empty. His chest twists painfully again. It takes every fiber in his body to stay home. All he wants to do is go to the diner, make a sandwich, leave it out for the stranger, and head back home if he has to. He doesn't even have to work. Just make the sandwich. He decides against it, after having been chased off the property several times before, when trying to go in on his day off. Gurk and Lae'zel are very adamant on him keeping his free days. They say Mr. Dekarios isn't the type to take advantage of innocent guys like Elduin, but that he won't hesitate to put him to work if he is in there even on his days off. It's his right, so Elduin stays in bed, staring at the ceiling. Until he has an idea. There is a small grocery store that is open until midnight on his block. If he heads down and buys ingredients for a sandwich, he could just make one at home, and head over to the diner to leave it on the doorstep! He doesn't even have to go inside, no one has to know! Elduin pushes himself off the bed with a wide grin, practically rushing over to the door to get dressed. This way, he can make sure he will never have to miss out again.

Elduin makes his sandwich for the stranger with care, every single day. He switches the protein up, mostly according to what they have in stock, and makes sure to always add a lot of it. Gurk has taught him that to save on costs, they shouldn't put too much protein in their subs, and instead add vegetables if it seems meager. This is different, however, but Elduin never takes enough for it to make an obvious impact on their stock for the day. When Elduin's day off comes around, Elduin doesn't know what to do with himself. It used to be this way in the beginning, when he still felt like the apartment was boring and lonely, but over the past few months, he'd come to learn to appreciate his free days. He'd use them to explore the town, or just stay in, watching movies or surfing the internet - things he couldn't do back home, since free days weren't a concept there. Now, however, the TV stays dark, and his laptop closed on the bed. He's laying there, staring at them both, but his mind keeps going to the stranger he's been making sandwiches for. What if she shows up, and notices there's no sandwich? She very probably will show up. She hasn't missed a single day so far, and Elduin feels horrible for possibly letting her down. He tries to make himself lunch, but has no appetite, and simply puts the food back into the fridge for later. Then, he simply paces around the apartment. He looks out through the window, at the street below, full of cars and people bustling around, and he wonders if she is out there. How incredible it would be, if he could just walk out there, and run into her. What would he even tell her if he ever did run into her? 'Hello, I'm the one who has been leaving you sandwiches. Did you like them? Do you want more?' What a silly thought. Elduin was always told that you should never accept anything from a stranger. He was taught that all strangers want is to hurt him and corrupt him, and that the commune is protecting him from it.

She has a small smile on her face as she makes her way into the alley. The sandwiches have been slightly different every day, and it's been nice, getting to experience them whole. She bites the inside of her lip to hold back the excitement. Ever since that second sandwich, she's started looking at the step first, where she'd always been solely focussed on the dumpster. Her hope shatters when she sees the step is empty. You knew it wasn't going to last. This is your own fault for hoping, for thinking someone cared. Not only have you been stealing people's lunch for days now, you've actually deluded yourself that someone was doing something for you. She slumps against a wall, sliding down to stare at the empty step while tears roll down her face. She can't believe she's been this naive. Thinking something good was finally happening. She got her hopes up, even when she knew she shouldn't. She thought she had accepted this was what her life was going to be. It's hard, and other's might not be able to imagine that this could be a good life, but it is to her. It's better than where she came from. Some nights she's even happy, when Socks and Tabby curl up beside her. But there are these small moments that she feels like something more, something better should be possible. Sometimes she yearns for other people's kindness. She thought she'd found it, but she should have known better. A loud laugh of someone leaving the restaurant startles her. She needs to get out of her, to stop feeling sorry for herself. She wipes the tears away with her gloved hand, wipes her nose on her sleeve, and rises from the ground. She needs food. She goes through the trash, like she always does, finding small leftover bits. This used to be enough, and it'll have to be again. She stands back from the dumpster and looks at the window at the door, there's no one there, at least there's no one laughing. She blinks back more tears and leaves the alley

Elduin exhales, realizing he was holding his breath the entire time he was watching her. He can only assume that what she ate out of her pocket was the sandwich he'd left her the day before, and his chest twists in pain at the thought of her having to ration her food that way. One sandwich, which he would've eaten in five minutes during his lunch break, and she kept it for a whole day. Hells, probably even several days? She did, however, grab the new sandwich, much to Elduin's delight. In that moment, Elduin makes a decision. For every single day that he is at work, he will make her a sandwich, and he will always leave it out on the back door steps for her. And that is exactly what he does.

There's no one in the hallway inside. She stands back and looks around her. She can't seen anything. The blinds to the window are closed as usual, the rest of the alley is clear. She's almost afraid someone is pulling a prank on her. People have a cruel sense of humour. She pulls the small bit of yesterday's sub from her pocket. It doesn't look like much, squished from being in her pocket for a full day, only a small bit remaining. She was going to save it for breakfast tomorrow, but if there's another whole sub.. Can she really take someone else's food again? She takes a few slices of meat from yesterdays sub and puts them back in her pocket. Those are for Socks and Tabby. Then she quickly eats the remainder of yesterday's sub. She still keeps an eye out for anyone looking, anyone approaching. Some people walk by the alley, but no one comes in, no one watches her. She hesitates, her hands making small grabbing motions as she looks at the sandwich. Then she takes it, looks around, and dashes off out of the alley and back towards the Chasm District.

Elduin hasn't only been cleaning the break room during his shift. He did go out onto the floor to clear a few tables, mostly because he started feeling sorry for Shadowheart having to man the place all on her own. Luckily, she seems fine, and Elduin figures it might be because it's a quiet day. Karlach told him that it's because the mayor is giving his yearly Christmas speech outside of the Hall of Justice, and a lot of people take the opportunity to go Christmas shopping, before heading there to listen. All Elduin can do when he eventually leaves Shadowheart to it is wonder whether the person he left the sandwich for will be there today. If there are a lot of people out, perhaps she won't feel safe to come here. Just when he enters the break room, however, he spots movement in the alley, through the little gap in the blinds. He ducks down, trying to be as immovable as possible, while tries to get a better look. It's her! She's by the doorstep, but he can tell she seems a little... conflicted? He can't really see her face properly, but Elduin almost wants to go out there and tell her it's okay, that the sandwich is for her. Still, he feels like that might scare her, so he just stays put, spying on her through the window.

She wanders around the city that whole day, still wondering about the sub. When she gets to the diner at the end of the day, she looks in, wonders who it was that left the sub outside. It must have been by accident. Who did she take the food from? There is, of course, no way to tell. She's never really focused on the place, never really paid attention aside from the lights, the tree, other holiday related decorations they do. They have purple Easter eggs in the windows in spring. Why does she know this? Because this has been her route for 10 years, ever since Emara showed it to her. She's been coming her for that long, even if you don't pay a lot of attention, you still notice things. Like a purple themed restaurant, that despite the stereotypical decorations always picks purple. In the alley she check the entrances, the door, and there, on another plate is another sandwich. This can't be accidental? She looks around, steps up to the door to look in again. What is happening?

She'd never agreed with that particular lesson. But Emara had always thought herself more important than anyone else. She'd even left Mim in the dust when something better came along. She shakes her head of the memory, after all these years it still stung and she didn't want to cry right now. Stealing or no, she's already taken it, and she doesn't know who to even return it to anyway. Besides, she's already eaten a apart of it last night. She might as well eat the rest. She takes a small bite, actually enjoying the sandwich. It's good, the small scraps she's found in the trash have all been well made, though not all to her taste. She can't really be picky when it comes to food. She eats what she finds, whether she likes it or not.

*You take what you need to survive, from the trash, or from people's pockets, it's fine so long as you don't get caught. *Our survival is more important than anyone else's

Another day, slightly colder now, and Mim pulls herself as far into her coat as she can. Snow is still falling, but it's not cold enough to stay yet. She'll know to risk staying under the bridge when it's cold enough, snowing hard enough to stay. She keeps a look-out for police, but the square is clear, no sign of the dwarven woman, or any other kind of police. Feeling a little safer, she sits on the bench at the square and pulls the sandwich from yesterday from her pocket. She gave some of the slices of meat to Socks and Tabby last night, but it's still well-filled. She feels bad, for taking someone else's food. She has no idea who she took it from, that person might be worse off than she is. Though it was on a plate. She knows what it's like to be starving, you don't put it on a plate, you don't leave it behind. Maybe she didn't take it off of anyone who needed it more.. That makes it a bit better, but she still took it off someone, and she doesn't like that. She hates stealing.

All Elduin can do is give him a soft smile. "Will do, Gurk." From the break room, he actually has a good view of the alley. Usually, the blinds are drawn shut - Gurk says the view is terrible - but if Elduin opens them just slightly... he might see who it is that comes by to eat his sandwich. So, that's what Elduin does. With the mop in hand, he cleans the break room (it is, indeed, very long overdue), and keeps glancing towards the window the whole time.

The ogre lets out a booming laugh, turning to the cleaning cabinet next to the doorway, and grabbing a mop from inside. "Well, then get to it!" he laughs, shoving the mop into Elduin's hands.

Elduin tries to not make his exhale of relief too obvious when Gurk doesn't ask him about the sandwich, or even suspect that he's doing anything else out back than *eating*. He blinks a little, though he has to admit that he does agree with Gurk. No one should have to have their lunch outside. "Well... I suppose it is in need of some cleaning?"

Gurk meets him at the back entry, standing there with his arms crossed. "El," he says, sounding worryingly serious, "You know, if the break room isn't to your liking, feel free to do whatever you can to make it more pleasant. No one should have to have their lunch outside."

The next day, Elduin comes in a little later than usual. With the first round of trash already having been taken out, Elduin doesn't know if anyone stopped by to look through their trash from the day before. Still, the person has usually showed up quite late, and he hopes today will be the same. He asks to take his lunch break a little earlier than normal, and luckily no one seems to bat an eyelid at that. Or the fact that he makes a sandwich, and heads out back with it. A note feels like too much. What if it's a raccoon anyway? He leaves just the plate with the sandwich on the step.

She stands there for a minute, debating whether to take the sandwich. Her fingers twitching, aching to take it, to stuff her face with it. She steps over the sandwich to the door, has to stand on her toes to look through the window, but there's no-one there. Just an empty hallway. Why.. Why would someone do this? It must be a mistake right? Someone went outside to eat, got called back in, and forgot their food? She can't fathom that someone would actually do something nice for her. Why would they, the homeless are looked down on by all. She caves to her hunger, before anything else can happen, she takes the sandwich, puts it in her pocket and runs. She doesn't check the bins, too afraid the person who left it will come back out. She runs back to her safe space for the night. She can't help but cry when she gets there and the whole sandwich is still real, not a dream, or a hallucination. It's real. But she'll need to be careful. She's never this lucky, and it won't happen again. She breaks off a small piece. She had some food this morning. She doesn't need the whole thing.

The rest of her day feels off, even if it passes uneventful. She continues looking over her shoulder, but the officer didn't follow her. Mim's lie hadn't been convincing, she could tell. But she'd let her go, why would she be following? She's at the harbour too early, the lunch rush hasn't passed, so the trash hasn't been taken out yet. She can't linger here too long, or she'll risk someone noticing her, and she's already seen too much police today. The dwarven woman had seemed nice, but the police is never safe. Another lesson Emara had taught her that still checked out. Never trust police, even if they pretend to be kind. They are not your friend. But never antagonise them, you'll only end up in more trouble. Be friendly, respectful, and get away as quick as you can. At the end of the day, Mim makes it back to the purple diner. She smiles a little wistfully at the Christmas tree, with purple lights. It's been at least 10 years since she celebrated Christmas, and even then her foster parents didn't really celebrate. Not like normal people do. Not like she's dreamt of. This is much better than what she had, even if it's far from what she dreamt of. She wishes she could go in, join in the rest of the merry people eating, laughing, enjoying the warmth inside. But she's stuck, always looking in. She shakes her head, and goes to the alley. She needs food, not to daydream. She goes to the alley, straight for the dumpster after having checked that no one's watching the entrances. The streets are relatively empty due to the cold. When she looks back to the dumpster, she notices a plate on the step. She looks around again, but there's no one there. The window.. Had someone seen her? They must have.. Shit She always checks the streets, but never thought about the door. It's not opened since she first found it. Is it safe? There's a whole sandwich there, and she's *hungry*. She could make that last for 2 days at least.

She nods again, trying to hide her fear and anxiety behind a similar smile. "Of course. Have a nice day ma'am." She stands up, picks up her backpack and leaves the square.

It hurts to see the fear on the other woman's face at her question. It's pretty clear the woman has nowhere else to go, but there's really nothing she can do. Taking her in isn't going to do anything, and for what even, feeding some pigeons? No, that'll only make it worse. "Then I suggest you move along, ma'am." She gives Mim a kind smile.

Don't take me, don't take me.. She nods carefully. "Y-yes, ma'am. I do." She has her route, she always has somewhere to go so it's not a complete lie, even if she knows that's not at all what the policewoman meant.

She eyes Mim carefully, her unkempt hair, the smudges on her face, the threadbare clothes. It's pretty clear to her that Mim isn't well off. Hard to miss really. She doesn't enjoy this, but it is unfortunately part of her job. She tries to be as kind as possible about it. Softening her voice to one of subtle concern. "Do you have anywhere to go?"

The voice behind her startles her. Mim is usually more aware of what happens around her, but she'd been so absorbed in watching the birds. She turns towards the sound ready with an apology to whoever is walking by. But behind her stands a dark-skinned dwarven woman in a police uniform. Shit, a police officer. Shit shit shit.. "I'm so sorry ma'am.. I didn't think.. The uhm, it was just crumbs falling from the sandwich I was eating.." She puts the remaining bread back in her pocket, trying to hide the plain bread isn't a sandwich.

"There's no feeding the birds, ma'am"

She's managed to find a piece of bread this morning, so she's been sharing it with the pigeons, a thanks for keeping her company every day. Maybe they keep her company because she feeds her every now and then, Mim doesn't really care. She's just thankful for any kind of company.

Elduin knows it's not right. He's seen and heard the tone people in Neverwinter use when talking about homeless people. It saddens him, that people can be so cruel to someone who doesn't have a roof over their head, and cannot even buy themselves food. Working at a diner comes with its perk of being allowed to make yourself lunch and eat it. At least Karlach tells him it's definitely a perk, and that not all establishments offer this to their workers. Mr. Dekarios is a generous man - at least to his workers. The next day, Elduin makes himself a sandwich for lunch. He puts an extra amount of deli meat on it, and when no one is looking, he takes it out into the back alley. It doesn't feel right to put it in the dumpster, even if he knows she'll look in there, but as long as he's the one to take out the trash today, he can place it on the doorstep. So, there it waits. A large sandwich, on a white plate with a purple rim. All Elduin can do is hope that the actual raccoons don't show up.

During the next few days, Elduin gets to do more unusual tasks at the diner. With the lights outside being to Mr. Dekarios's liking, he tasks the innocent trainee with pretty much all of the decorating of the diner for the holidays. Lae'zel doesn't seem too keen on participating anyway, mumbling something about Christmas being a 'stupid human holiday', and while Elduin has never celebrated Christmas with quite as much lights, glitter and decorations, he actually likes it. Karlach actually helps him with setting up the large Christmas tree in the corner of the dining area, but she leaves him to decorate it alone. It takes him a good few hours - he tries to make it look as similar to the massive tree outside of the Hall of Justice - and the glitter is just so difficult to get wrapped around the tree. Nothing else really changes in the diner. The same amount of customers, both regulars and irregulars, come in, they serve the same food, the toilet is clogged again... Except Elduin has started volunteering to take the trash out every day. He doesn't want to admit that it's due to any reason in particular, but he does find the trashbags meticulously torn open - in a way a raccoon would never. Their claws are too small, and they're too messy. Of course, he knows it's not raccoons, which is why he finds himself going over to the back door to glance out through the window on all of his breaks, and he never walks out without first having a long look through it. He sees her on the fourth day, when he comes back to the back door with his cup of water in hand. Sweat is coating his brow, it's scorching hot in the kitchen despite it being quite cold outside, and Elduin is longing to go outside and get some fresh air. Now, all he can do is watch as she gathers up a pathetically small amount of food from their trash, and his chest twists in sympathy for her.

A couple of days pass. They all kind of blend together for Mim. The Sealed Chasm, the House of Knowledge square, the harbour, across the bridge, checks on the berry bushes, but it's going to take longer for the berries to regrow. Then on to Bluelake park, back across the bridge to the restaurants in the Protected Enclave, and back to the Chasm District. Every day. She notices more police around Bluelake Park some nights, so she has to skip it. It gets a little colder, but not cold enough that she has to risk sleeping under the bridge. Overall she finds enough food to keep her going, some days more than others. Slowly more Christmas lights appear in windows of homes, restaurants and shops. It's on days like these she thinks she misses home. She know's she doesn't, not really. Home had never really been a home anyway. Socks and Tabby were more home than her foster parents ever were. But Christmas makes her miss people. Having someone to talk to, to spend time with. Each day she returns to the small purple themed diner, she has most luck with scraps there, and a lot of them have meat that she can feed to the cats. The alley is also mostly clear, and unwatched. Dumpster diving isn't allowed, the homeless barely tolerated. It's why she's so careful not to be spotted. She's so focussed on watching the alley and the street beyond, she doesn't think to look at the restaurant, or the door, the face in the window that might see her every now and then.

With nothing to do to pass the time when he wakes up at five in the morning, Elduin decided to start looking for a job. He was given a phone and a laptop from the village elders, since according to them, they come in handy in the 'Outside World'. It has taken him four months only to learn how to use text messages. He landed a job at The Weave simply by walking down the street and seeing a job ad in the window of the diner. It was a lucky shot, Elduin has come to realize, since getting a job - especially without having any particular experience in the field - is apparently very rare around here. Mr. Dekarios was simply impressed by his work ethics and positive attitude, and took him in as a trainee. Naturally, all Elduin usually thinks about when he unlocks the door to his apartment is that he cannot wait to get to go back to work in the morning. When he has days off, they feel almost unbearably long, and he spends them staring at his laptop, trying to learn how to use it. That's horribly boring. Today, however, when Elduin steps inside the apartment and flicks the light on, his mind goes back to the person he saw rummaging through the trash out back. He closes the door behind himself, and looks around the apartment. At his unmade bed, wondering if she's sleeping anywhere near as comfortable tonight, and at the refrigerator - knowing there's not much in it, but still enough to fill his belly - wondering if she scraped together enough food from their trash to get herself a proper meal... Somehow, he just can't shake the image of her.

When the cats finish the few pieces of meat she has for them, she walks over to the city wall, and sits down against it. She should sleep, it's late and right now her hunger isn't enough to keep her awake. She slides down to lie on her side, back against the wall. The natural vent under the wall makes it feel slightly warm. Tabby and Socks follow her, and snuggle up against and on top of her, helping her keep warm. She eats another bite of food, it's not much without the meat she's taken from it to feed the cats, but it's all she can have right now. With her head pillowed on her arm, she strokes Tabby's back, scratches behind Socks ear, and settles in for the night. "Good night, guys. Don't miss out on too many mice because of me." The cats are usually long gone by the time she wakes up, back to hunting, but at least for a little while, she has company.

Elduin stands by the door, watching the person as she is rummaging through their trash. Where others would open the door and ask her what she's doing, or chase her away, Elduin can't bring himself to move. She's collecting small edible pieces of food from the trash. He furrows his brows as he watches her eat - what could compel a person to eat from the trash? His living conditions back home aren't exactly the best, but he has been taught that trash is not for eating. Why is this person eating trash? She runs off remarkably quickly once she is finished. The 'meal' she had was very small, barely a few bites. Elduin finds himself hoping that it's not the only meal she has had today. When he finally steps out into the alley, he looks towards the street, and he wonders, did she go right or left? Then, Elduin lets out a soft sigh. At least now he knows it's not raccoons. How would raccoons get into the middle of the city anyway? He tosses the trash bags into the dumpster, covering the opened ones the person ate from, just a moment earlier. Then, Elduin once more looks back to the street, before finally being able to tear his gaze away and head inside to hang his apron up and clock out.

She pockets most of the scraps she finds after closing the lid to the dumpster. She might not find anything tomorrow if there are no berries, so she needs to be careful. She eats the meatball sub that's about two bites. To at least take the edge of the hunger pangs. She checks the exits to the alley again, but she's clear. She sighs in relief. Time to find a place to sleep. She leaves the alley and continues on her way, back towards the Chasm District, where her day started.

Mim's next stop is the park around the Bluelake. This is a dangerous stop, because it is in the middle of the Bluelake District, the rich district. It's full of high-rise buildings, expensive luxury homes. On better days she likes to look through the windows, see the happy families eating an early dinner, living their full happy lives. She envies them their warm, loving, easy lives. But she doesn't do that today. It's too cold to stand still, even if the heated ground from the vulcano is making the snow melt, it's not enough to keep her warm while she walks around. There's even less snow on the streets here, than in the other neighbourhoods. She remembers a newspaper headline, they'd found a way to channel the hot water springs and heat from the vulcano to heat homes. Of course these efforts were mainly focused on the Bluelake District. All that money.. Just to give more luxury to the people who already have it. She shivers, pulling her coat tighter around herself, putting her gloved hands in her armpits for any kind of warmth. No use thinking about it, it'll only make her upset, and it's not going to change anything. She makes it to the park without incident. This is the one place she can wash with warm water. The lake is a hot spring, and if there's no one around, she can use it to at least quickly wash her face and hands. Thankfully, because of the cold, there aren't many people. It's always quieter around dinner time, or at least, normal people's dinner time, especially so when it's cold. She goes to the spot she knows, half hidden behind some bushes where she's less likely to be spotted and takes of her woollen hat, mittens, and gloves. Despite the layers, her hands still feel cold, and she hisses slightly when she dips her hands in the warm water. She rubs her hands clean in it, and then bring it up to her face. She scrubs her face like this a couple of times, until she feels like her face is as clean as she's going to get it.

Elduin just nods at him as he goes around the kitchen to grab all four trash bags from the bins spread around it. All in the name of effectiveness. He heads for the back door, stopping just as he's about to push it open, when he sees someone through the round window on it.

"Aww, thanks, Elduin!" the ogre calls from the cooler, before he emerges with his large arms full of tomatoes, bell peppers and pickles. "Make sure you close the lid on the dumpster when you're done. Those raccoons, man..."

Elduin is happy to work the register. He gets to meet all kinds of people, and usually everyone is very nice! So far, only one lady has yelled at him for having pickles in her sub, but when Lae'zel came over to ask her if she's having a problem, the lady said the pickles were fine and went back to her table. Lae'zel insists that a murderous look is enough to shut up even the most difficult customers. Elduin isn't so sure about that. The rest of the afternoon goes by quickly. It's a surprisingly busy day, especially after Karlach has come out of the restroom (the toilet is fixed!) and turned the lights on outside, as if people come over only to have a look at the Christmas lights. Christmas is apparently a very big deal for these people. Elduin has never celebrated Christmas, but the lights are very pretty, with how they sort of reflect against the windows, illuminating even the inside of the diner in a slightly purplish hue. With the clock nearing nine - the end of Elduin's shift - and with the flow of customers having calmed down, Elduin heads back to the kitchen to help Gurk with cleaning up. He has been prepping for the night customers, so that he can go home and sleep, while some of their coworkers come in to work the night. Elduin has yet to work a night here, but he has a feeling Mr. Dekarios will let him do that quite soon. "I'll help you with the trash, Gurk!" he calls out to Gurk, who's currently in the cooler fetching more vegetables.

Lae'zel seems very relieved to be let off the front register. She doesn't care that the new kid has only worked the register for two weeks - she'll be happy to let him do it all the time. She gives him an unamused look, before she heads onto the floor to start clearing some tables. Not once does she smile at a customer, or wish them a good day.

Elduin just smiles and nods at her. He gives the customers a polite smile, before he ducks out of the restroom, heading straight for the kitchen this time. In there, Gurk, the ogre, is busy frying up meat for the next order of sandwiches, and Elduin simply gives him a small wave before he heads over to wash his hands. Hygiene, very important in this establishment. He can almost hear Mr. Dekarios's voice saying that. After having dried his hands off, Elduin grabs his own purple apron, and puts it on. One look in the mirror, straightening his name tag (Hello, I'm ELDUIN [trainee]!) before he heads out to the front again.

Karlach wipes her brow with the back of her hand, grinning over at him. "That's awesome, El!" she says, pausing to give the plunger a few rage-induced shoves, "Ah- uh, yeah, I'll come over and turn it on after I'm done here! Gale'll be fucking thrilled when he sees it!"

Elduin bites down on his lower lip, watching his coworker work the plunger like a champ. "Uh... I finished setting up the lights, like Mr. Dekarios asked, and I was wondering if you could turn them on? N-no hurry, though! Wash your hands first!"

The tiefling waves her hand dismissively. "Nah, I'll be fine! There's one other toilet to use after all- sorry about the line, folks! I'll manage, El. Oh, did you need anything?"

Elduin stands there, brows furrowed in worry. Modern plumbing still manages to amaze him with how terrible it can be. "Hey, Karlach... uh- do you need help?"

There is a small line of customers waiting to get to the bathroom, and from inside, familiar grunting can be heard. Karlach is there, trying to unclog one of the toilets. "Just a minute, folks! This'll be done in a jiffy! Oh- hey, El!"

Elduin blinks. Yikes, he has to come over and save their poor customers as quickly as he can. First, he needs to get Karlach, though. He quickly pours himself some water, drinking it while he heads for the customer restrooms to search for his other coworker.

Lae'zel gives him another sour look, but jabs her thumb over her shoulder, towards the restrooms. Then, she turns to a couple of customers who have approached the counter. "Yes?"

"Uh- sorry, Lae'zel, that was... that was way harder than I thought!" Elduin heads for behind the counter - he needs a drink before he can do anything else - and grabs himself the plastic cup with an 'E' written on it with a black marker. "Oh- hey, is Karlach around? She needs to turn the light on."

"Elduin." The githyanki seems very displeased about having to work the register, and her tone sounds very sour when she spots the curly-haired half-elf finally entering the diner.

Elduin struggles with the lights for the most part of the day. Patrons come and go, some offering him advice while he's hanging up the lights above the door. He thanks them and wishes them a good day, doing his best to stay cheery throughout it all. He's starting to understand why no one volunteered. By the time he's fastening the last of the light strand at the other corner of the diner, the sun is already setting. They're a twenty-four hour diner, and there are quite a lot of people popping in to have subs for dinner, as opposed to having to cook at home. Therefore, it's no surprise that the diner is bustling when he finally enters, wiping the sweat off his brow.

Mim's days always follow a set pattern. She starts by going to the Sealed Chasm, the open market there. Sometimes people leave food out, sometimes she can steal an apple or something. Anything. Around noon, she makes her way to the square in front of the House of knowledge. There's benches there, and there are usually a lot of pigeons there that she likes watching. They've gotten used to her, knows she brings them crumbs if she managed to get some food. They make her smile, which is a hard thing to do. After that she goes to the harbour on the south side of the river. There's some restaurants there and sometimes she can find food in the dumpsters. Or she can try and find fish from the fishermen there. Then she takes a bridge over the Neverwinter River, has to sneak past the Castle. They do not like homeless people there. Bad for tourism, the rich deserve to live without having to see the homeless people in the city. Mim doesn't really care what reason people give, she just doesn't want to get caught. Unfortunately, all the bridges lead to the rich district. If she makes it through, she treks all the way to the other side of the city. There are some berry bushes there that produce fruit at odd times due to the warmed ground under the city. Today there are no berries, unfortunately. Probably won't be for a while. She sighs. Hopefully she'll have better luck at her next stops. She looks around warily. There are many homeless people in the city, but she's learned to stay away from them. She's small, easily overpowered, she's had the few things she owns stolen from her before, she doesn't want that to happen again. She straightens her scarf and tucks it into her shirt to stop the snow from falling under the 5 layers of clothes she's wearing, basically all the clothes she own. She digs her hands into her pockets and goes to her next spot.

Elduin sighs. "Thank you, Gurk!" He's never been the bitter type, which isn't something you can say about the others working here. Except Gurk, of course. A massive, scary ogre, fit to be a bouncer at any of Neverwinter's rowdiest clubs. Here, however? He makes the best Italian subs in the city. Mr. Dekarios knew exactly what he was doing when hiring him as a chef. So, Elduin climbs down, and pulls his ladder along with him, to go back to where he started, around the corner by the dumpster out back. Purple lights, fit for Mr. Dekarios purple theme. It fits the name of the diner too, somehow. The Weave. Elduin likes it here.

The head of a massive ogre peeks out through the drive-through window, shaking his head at the half-elf, climbing on a ladder at the other end of the diner's outer wall. "The other end is coming off."

It's a month left until Christmas. The snow has started falling lightly on the streets of Neverwinter, and Elduin is starting to believe that whoever came up with the city's name, probably wasn't right in the head. With Mount Hotenow warming the grounds in a large radius around it – including the city – the snow doesn't stay on the pavement for too long, before melting. For someone who hasn't spent most of their former Christmases shoveling snow off the corn fields, it would be a depressing sight, but Elduin can't help but feel relieved at the lack of snow. It is much easier getting his job done thanks to it, after all. At least his job for the day. Mr. Dekarios brought in a large cardboard box full of Christmas lights this morning, asking for any volunteers to hang them up. Strangely, no one else volunteered, and while Elduin has come to love his job as a waiter, getting to do other things can be just as fun. His boss is a kind man, though a little too busy not actually running the diner he's the owner of, but no one seems to mind. Elduin's coworkers are nice, once you get to know them, and he's thankful for having this job.

@Clara - Tav: Mim / Anareya # 🔥🌿🔥🌿🔥 A Mimduin (Mim / Elduin) story, set in a modern, non-magical AU of Faerûn. Closed RP, but readers are very welcome! TRIGGER WARNINGS themes of homelessness, lack of food, unhealthy eating habits, difficult family relationships, problematic cult-like backgrounds, discussion about gender-affirming care Other potential trigger warnings will be added to this first message (and the messages they appear in, if needed) when they come up! # 🔥🌿🔥🌿🔥

Warmth [Closed RP - NSFW]

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Alvilda (Tav: Helaena+)

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Clara - Tav: Mim / Anareya

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Ell (Tav: Rosie and Co.)

polarized2023

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