royal_musings | [Open Post] Where the Streets Have No Name

Piper took a moment to assess the other man and sense if anything was awry. There was something there that she couldn't quite put her finger on. He didn't have any magical talents so to speak... yet?

But, there was potential.

Well, that was interesting.

She nodded at the comment about the café. "Perfect. But please, let me buy you a coffee. After all, I'm the one that reached out to you out of the blue like this," she said with a little smile. This conversation would be better to have sitting down anyway. Piper took a moment to wonder how much this man knew about Mal and what she had been able to do and if she was bringing unnecessary drama into his life.

While Eames has embraced that the supernatural is real, it's not part of him as far as he knows. He just knows this is life now, and will believe it as much as he had faith in dreamsharing.

It's why he's accepting that maybe this was meant to be. Possible that Mal wanted him to meet this girl. He's not sure he trusts her but he truly does wonder.

Laughing though at her negotiating, spreading his arms wide and inclining his head. "Fine. You can buy me a coffee. They have a great pastry selection too."

He turns, heading that way and keeping a careful pace to let her keep up with him. "You come here often?"

If there was anything that was remaining at the forefront of her mind, it was that Mal wouldn't have put a spelled letter in a book and lead her astray. What she wasn't as sure about was how much to reveal to him about... well, the things that went bump in the night. Did he know? Was she really the one to tell him?

She felt a grin tug on her mouth at his response and nodded. "Good, I could use a pastry. I've always liked their pastries here," she said, walking along aside him. "No, not as often as other places. I really should return more."

And, if she were the old Piper, she'd definitely want to spend time here soaking up the language and learning everything she could about the Czech language. But if it were the old Piper, she'd have her friends here as well and she wouldn't be in this position. Perhaps one day when their mission was complete. But that was still a ways off and right now, she couldn't let things like that distract her.

"What about you?"

"You always hear about Parisian ones and people forget how could they can be in Prague, and in Russia," he says, thinking about the last time he was in St Petersburg he knows they were amazing, but he's not been back in a while.

"Since I've been here?" He pauses, thinking about it and how long it's really been. "I haven't been out this way in nearly five years. I miss it though."

Even if he's realizing they're heading into a historic district and he doesn't know what he's going to do if something approaches him.

"Isn't that for sure? They don't get nearly as much love as Paris does, though I suppose I get it," Piper admitted with a little smile. She'd had a great some great pastries the last time she'd been to Moscow.

She nodded in understanding as they walked closer to the historic district. "There's definitely something unique about this place. People don't readily think of Prague as being a major influence in architecture and art but it was at the forefront of it all." She paused before shaking her head. "Sorry, you didn't come here to listen to me ramble about this place." Perhaps it was knowing he had known Mal that made her feel comfortable with him, she wasn't completely sure right then.

As they walked, Piper kept on the lookout for anything out of the ordinary. Ghosts and spirits were more often found in locations like the one they were heading toward. Truth be told, she had no idea how she was going to handle it if they came across someone or something that needed help.

"Paris is the worst spot I've ever visited," he says, nose wrinkling and making a face. "I like parts of France." If only because of Mal. "But not Paris. Overrated. Don't get me started on the supposed romance of that damn tower," he says, though he's smirking. Maybe he's playing with her. Or maybe he's just comfortable enough to be honest about it.

"Actually I came here to listen to you ramble, just not about that so I don't mind. As for this country, there's so much people overlook about this part of the country."

He gives her a look though. "You a history major or architecture?"

Piper laughed at the comment about Paris and shot him an amused look. "For shame," she said, attempting to sound scandalized. "Paris in of itself is highly overrated, I agree. There are beautiful parts of France and I don't regret the time I spent there but in general," she said with a shrug. She felt comfortable enough with him that she could be honest in that regard.

"Well, yes, you did but not about my thoughts on Prague," she mused with a little smile. "International Relations with a minor in languages, actually. I've always been fascinated by cultures and art."

As they walked, Piper fell silent. She wanted to ask how much he knew about Mal but knew that likely out of both of them, he'd known the woman more than she did. He simply may not know about her magical side.

"Hey, but it's not calling the Taj Mahal romantic," he points out, because that's the worst in his book and he hears it all the time.

He finds himself smiling though, more at ease than he thought he might be around her. He was expecting a trap and now he's not sure that's what this is. He's not really sure what it actually is, but least it's not likely to end in his death. He hopes.

"So you went to college to study how to write off traveling as a business venture? Fair enough. More than you can do with an art degree." Unless, of course, you're a forger and you're a brilliant student of both art and art history. "But it's done me well enough."

"True, very true. I've heard that too," she said with a laugh, shaking her head. "I can't even begin to understand why."

Piper smiled at the question. "That might've been only partially the motive," she admitted with a grin. "At the time, I really enjoyed traveling and talking and connecting people. I was also learning Spanish and French and figured, why not put that to use." Looking back on it, she had a few regrets - namely how much pressure she'd put on herself to excel and get done without simply enjoying the process. "I can't knock an art degree though, I'm sure it has it's own uses. Especially if you study art history."

"Is this our café," she asked, as they came up to one on the right. These days, Piper truly tried to tune out a lot of her senses but even she couldn't ignore the way she felt in this part of town. She only hoped it was on the spectral sort and not the sort that could actually cause a ton of damage.

Eames knows he is a romantic at heart, even if he doesn't want to let others ever see it. He works hard to hide it but in talks about things like this, he can't hide it. He doesn't even think about trying to hide it.

"Only partially?" He grins at that though when she goes on. "Yeah, I learned those and then I just used them to sell my works throughout the world. Hasn't gone too badly," he say, knowing he's admitting too much about himself, but talking about his art career before dreamsharing was better than even getting into what they do now. Hell, he should get back into forgeries to keep them going.

"Yeah, it meant I could scam rich collectors into thinking I stole works that never went missing."

He glances at her as he says it, even as he shifts. It feels like someone's watching them even as he slows, giving her a nod. "You okay with sitting outside?"

Piper laughed. "I figure why not get paid for something I'm clearly decent at," she asked, looking at him with a grin. If you took into account the supernatural hunting she and Jordan did during those years, it really was some sort of international relations. It just went a bit further than the countries, places and people than was traditional or expected.

She grinned at the mention of selling his work around the world and scamming rich collectors. "You definitely had a much better thing going on than I did," she laughed. Though, they had made a tidy profit during those years.

She wasn't going to say anything out loud, Piper felt the same thing he did. Someone or something watching them. "That's perfect," she said with a nod and entered the patioed section. She chose a clear table and took a seat, setting down her copy of The Count. Piper had half a mind to cast a privacy charm around them but that required for him to know and they weren't exactly there yet.

"I should have introduced myself properly," she said and reached across the table, offering a hand to shake. "My name is Piper, Piper Allison." It was a name she didn't go by as much these days. She preferred to use her alias but this was a contact of Mal's and she owed the memory of Mal that much.

Edited (/facepalm because I needed to fix a couple of errors. Lol.) 2020-11-17 17:46 (UTC)

Eames falls silent a second and then he just can't help but to smile. "Honestly? It's done me well. I've had other jobs..." Documents. Dream sharing. But his art still pays off and pays well. Or just looks good in museums and he loves it.

Settling in, he sets his copy down on top of hers and then he takes her hand.

"Eames. Just Eames. Like Bond but with one name," he says with a smirk. "Not that you'll ever see that name on my works. Unless you're looking at chairs. I did not forge those though," he admits with a tooth grin.

"So, tell me then. How is it a woman gone a while now somehow gave you my information?"

"Nothing wrong with multiple streams of income," Piper mused with a smile. "Actually, if there was another thing I learned from my classes, most smart business people do," she continued with a teasing tone. It really didn't bother her one way or the other if they were exactly legal or not. "Mal may have hinted at one of your other specialties actually."

She smiled and nodded. "Of course not. You don't want it traced back to you directly, after all." If their conversation was anything to go by, she could see why Mal was absolutely charmed by him.

Piper fell quiet for a minute as she considered how to explain it. "In a letter, actually," she started just before a young woman with long blonde hair walked over and sat herself down at their table.

"Which one of you can help me," she asked, first staring at Piper then at Eames. "And please tell me you can see me because I am over this being a ghost thing. I thought the unlife and ghost thing would be cool but this is decidedly not."

Eames laughs at that, liking how she takes it in stride. She was definitely someone he could see keeping up with Mal and her mindset. He arches a brow as the lady herself came up in their conversation.

"Oh? Which one? I could name about five she might have mentioned."

Okay so he's thinking two. Documents, and dreamshare, but he's not sure which of those she brought up to this woman.

But then that all dies as that woman sits down across from him.

Eames goes still, staring at her and just staring. He should say something but for a long time he can't help but stare. The worst part is that he's pretty sure he can help her. He just doesn't know he's not the only one.

He glances at Piper but is speaking to the girl, watching to see if Piper sees her.

"Depends on what kind of help you're looking for."

Anything that Piper might've said was thrown right around the window when the woman sat down at their table. She didn't say anything for a moment, simply watching what Eames would do or say, if anything, after the other woman spoke. Her eyebrows shot up when he acknowledged her and nodded just enough to convey that she too saw her.

Now that was just interesting. She still didn't sense anything out of the ordinary from him, other than the very real potential of manifesting something at some point in his life. However, he could see the spirit of the woman and even acknowledged that he could help.

"We can help, yes. I assume since you're ready to not be a ghost any longer that you're ready to move on," Piper said, keeping her gaze on Eames so it wouldn't appear that she was talking to thin air.

"Oh thank God, you can't imagine how many people I've gone up to and tried to talk to! But no one has been able to see or hear me," the woman exclaimed, feeling almost giddy at finding these two. "Yes, I am definitely ready to move on to... well, wherever! I want to talk to people again and have them listen!" At least she assumed that's what would happen when she went to wherever it was she'd go to.

He's making an admission he doesn't know how to handle but he also knows he can't ignore a ghost looking for help. Maybe some could but he couldn't imagine being that desperate for someone to listen and finally finding someone and to ignore them? No, he couldn't be that guy. He just couldn't do that to her.

"We assume so," he says, smiling. "We just don't know but it's a chance," he says wishing they had better answers. "But it'll be better. I believe that. Those that gone have asked for that and felt they could handle it. If you're ready..."

He considers her with a pained look. "Why haven't you gone? The last person we had wanted their mother's wedding ring because it had been stolen by a rival. Is there something keeping you?"

Sabrina, the woman who was now slouching in her chair at their table exhaled. "I am definitely ready," she said and looked at the man then the woman. "I chose to stay. I really thought it would be the best time until... well, it's much harder to haunt a place than you would expect." At least, she didn't think there was a reason she was still here other than her own sheer stubborness.

Piper couldn't help herself and allowed herself a laugh. "Sorry," she said, glancing at the woman before she cleared her throat. "I remember a time when I told a friend that I would do the very exact same thing." She was not going to think of that right now.

"Right? I mean, from the tv shows and stories you hear, being a ghost sounds awesome. It's... not, at least, not here," she said with a little huff, looking around the cafe. "I mean, you do learn a ton about the people that you see frequently. Like, the barista inside? He's absolutely in love with the man who runs the rival pastry shop down the way and vice versa. I really wish they would just own up to it already. He'd be much suited there anyway. Don't get me wrong, this place is great but... they're kind of adorable."

"Well," Piper started out and tilted her head in consideration. "If there is nothing holding you here, you should be able to see a light but if you don't right now... maybe you've made it your mission to see them together." Which was, as things go, the most surprising but cute.

Ghosts and moving ghosts onto the after life was something she and Jordan had been able to do and did as needed. But they'd always left it to others who that was their true gift.

Whatever Eames is expecting from this young ghost - and that alone is depressing because she should still be alive and enjoying life and not a ghost haunting a few coffee shops in Prague. Yet here she is with no future, wishing that being a ghost is fun and finding out its not. He feels for her in ways he's not even sure how to express.

Yet he knows what he can do to help. Let her move on. Help her so that she can move on.

He glances at Piper and then to the girl again.

"You think that might work? I mean, I'm all for a little matchmaking."

And for making a ghost happy.

"You think we can handle this, Piper?"

Hell, maybe it's not just for this ghost. Maybe it's for Mal as well and maybe this is what brought them to this point, together.

Piper glanced at him and grinned. "Let's be honest, it'd be fitting considering who brought us together at this point, wouldn't it? Besides, I love a bit of matchmaking myself."

"Do you really think it'll work," Sabrina asked looking at them. "Wait, did someone match make you two? Because you're adorable."

"No, no - a mutual friend helped us meet though," Piper admitted with a laugh and looked inside the cafe, spotting the young barista at the counter. "Is that him?"

Sabrina hummed consideringly and looked at the two before looking inside. "Yes, that's Adam. He's adorable, isn't he? The man at Au Gourmand - is Paul. From what I can tell, he makes the best pastries. You know that is something I really miss. Pastries. And coffee."

Piper grinned. "Two of my favorite things."

Despite the way he rolls his eyes, he grins at that. "Course you are." He can't imagine it from anyone else but from someone Mal hand chose. Not that he wasn't one himself. Or that he knew for a fact that Mal had done her work with him and Arthur. He had just been downright stubborn and so had the point man.

Now though maybe they could give that to someone else, and help this girl as well.

Eames blinks at that, deer in the headlights and then shakes his head. "Naw, she matched me with someone else," he admits. "He couldn't make the trip." Or Eames wouldn't let him in case it was a trap. Wouldn't do to have them both there, after all.

"Yeah, I would definitely miss coffee."

He glances between the two women, considering the options. Suddenly he holds his hand out to Piper. "Let me see your necklace?"

Piper laughed. "Though, it has been a while," she admitted, remembering the happier times when Jordan would give her a hard time about matchmaking everyone they knew. She'd been the one to insist that not everyone needed to be together with someone and Piper knew that. But she'd been so happy at that time and she thought everyone should be happy like that. Looking back, it was a bit much. Without delving in that thought for too long she cleared her throat and focused on the conversation.

Sabrina smiled wide. "Okay now that is super cute and makes this even better!" After all, who was better at matchmaking than someone who had been set up before? Okay, perhaps not perfect but it was much better than what she was capable of in her current form. "I miss coffee, pastries and alcohol... and sex but not necessarily all in that order."

The word sex threw her for a minute before Piper snorted, trying really hard not to laugh. "Everything and above," she agreed then looked at Eames with a raised eyebrow. "My necklace? Why?" But even as she asked it, she reached up and unclasped the chain.

Eames knows that is part of the reason he had come to meet Piper today. Because if Mal had done something to lead to them meeting, and it was real - as it had been - then he needed to meet her. Even if it wasn't romantic, it was still meant to be.

He makes a face, nodding. Despite it, he can't help but smile at this poor girl though. "Yeah, that sounds like the things I would miss too. Definitely not in that order." And Arthur. So much Arthur. He doesn't even want to think about that.

He winks at Piper. "Because I need a pendulum," he says, unbuttoning another button on his shirt and suddenly his look is utterly beautiful and sultry.

"You," he says, pointing at the server, holding the necklace up and letting it sway. "Adam, right?"

The server blinks, staring at him confused and it shows. "Yes? Can I help you?"

"Who's Paul?"

He goes pale, staring at Eames with a whole new look. "What? Why? Who are you?"

He waves a hand at him. "It's not about who I am. It's about what you are not doing?" His accent was now slightly Russian and his English a bit broken. "There is a spirit here, and that spirit is upset with you. Upset that you would ignore love!"

"Oh I like him," Sabrina said with a wide grin, watching the interaction between Eames and Adam.

Piper's mouth quirked up as she watched Eames work. Oh, she could see why Mal simply adored him and why she thought the man could assist her. She watched as Adam went pale when Eames asked about Paul.

She stood from her chair. "Oui, true love does not come around very often, monsieur," she said. "Do you care about 'im?" She wasn't full of accents but French and Spanish were ones she could pull off decently enough. And it wasn't like she probably needed to by any means but why not? "I 'ear he makes the best pastries."

Eames draws himself up, letting the necklace sway like a pendulum, like he's using it for psychometry.

"Listen to what she is speaks of," he says, glancing at Piper and then to Adam. "Paul, he loves you like you do him, does he not?"

"What? What? No. He doesn't." He glances between them, eyes going wide. "Does he?" He steps closer to them. "I want to... I mean, I've had these thoughts. About us. About starting a new place. I thought about... About a place of our own but..."

"But what?"

Piper's mouth curled up as she watched Adam's expression. "But you're afraid that he may not care about you in the same way you do 'im, hm?"

Although he may not have admitted it to himself yet, she could see that he did care about Paul very much. It was simply adorable.

This little bit of matchmaking honestly brought a smile to her face. "You will never know how 'e feels if you do not talk to 'im."

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