From: evie_chanson	Date: 08/22/2007 20:33:52

Evie had finished classes early for the first time in months. Oz and Enki were both still in class, so she took Ari's advice and headed out of the academy. Ari strolled with her as they made their way out of Salem and headed for New Meridian. There was bound to be something in the city that would occupy their time. "Oooo! Sweets shop!" Ari purred as they passed a chocolate shop.

"Let's stop," Evie said. After a quick treat for the two they headed back out into the streets. They looked through the windows until Evie saw a wandering young man who had an odd, foreign look to him. She knew she had never seen this stranger before, but New Meridian was much larger than Salem. She decided to approach the stranger anyways. Ari gave a little sneeze as they drew nearer to the long haired man. "Hello," Evie said lightly. "Are you wandering as well?"

	From: _blackirish	Date: 08/22/2007 22:15:11

Seamus was watching a small child who barely came up past his kneecaps as she tugged on her mother's dress and pointed into a store. He looked up at the sound of the voice, taking a moment to realize the young woman there was actually speaking to him. "Hmm? Oh! Oh, well yes I suppose I am." He smiled. "I'm out gift-shopping, but I don't really have anything in mind."

	From: evie_chanson	Date: 08/23/2007 21:05:26

"Oh! Who are you buying for?" she asked still curious as to whether her suspicions were correct that he was a new comer.

	From: _blackirish	Date: 08/23/2007 22:23:25

Seamus's smile grew wider; he couldn't help it whenever he thought of Siobhan. "My wife Siobhan," he replied, as if he were revealing a secret to share. "We're newlyweds," he added, though the bright glow that lit his face probably clarified that bit all on its own.

	From: evie_chanson	Date: 08/24/2007 20:16:00

"How sweet," Evie said with a bright smile. The expression on his face clearly showed that he was a newlywed. "You've definitely come to the right place," she said looking at the city that surrounded them.

	From: _blackirish	Date: 08/24/2007 21:50:09

Seamus rubbed the back of his neck, long hair loose around his face. "I have to say, I'm not very familiar with the, uh, merchandise in the area. You wouldn't have any suggestions for what to get an easily excitable, fashion forward, gorgeous little blonde who loves cute things, pink, and magic, would you?" It was mostly a tease, but there was some sincerity behind it. Seamus had no idea where to start looking in this city. He looked down at the cat by the woman's feet and smiled. He looked a good deal like Murphy, their cat back home who was currently staying with Patrick and Saoirse. "Oh I'm sorry, my name is Seamus by the way."

	From: evie_chanson	Date: 08/25/2007 14:04:06

Ari purred at the new comer but gave a little sneeze. "Oh, this is Ari," Evie introduced the little tabby. "He's my familiar," she said fondly of the cat. She looked back at the young man. "We could show you around the city, right Ari?" she suggested. "There are a lot of exciting shops around the city with cute, pink things," she said with a smile.

	From: _blackirish	Date: 08/25/2007 15:58:23

Seamus winked at the cat - familiar, eh? He still had to get used to magic being so commonplace, but he shrugged that off with ease. "Nice to meet you, Ari. And what about you?" He looked back at the young woman. "What's your name? And honestly, I certainly wouldn't turn down someone who could offer a tour or some suggestions."

	From: evie_chanson	Date: 08/25/2007 16:59:16

"Oh," she was always forgetting about proper etiquette with introductions. "I'm Evie," she said brightly. "It's a pleasure to meet you," she had extending a hand to be shaken. There was something about this new stranger that seemed familiar, but she couldn't put her finger on it.

	From: _blackirish	Date: 08/25/2007 18:07:36

"Pleasure to meet you too, Evie," Seamus replied and shook her hand. The moment they met, his brows furrowed. There was something about her, something he couldn't quite pinpoint. It was like a familiarity, maybe, but he knew they was no way he could possibly know her. He let it pass; for all he knew it was some magic thing he was unaware of yet.

"So, would you do me the honors then, of showing me around?" Seamus's smile was full of charm as he let her hand go.

	From: evie_chanson	Date: 08/26/2007 20:36:36

"Most definitely," Evie said. "Now where to bring you first," she thought aloud. She started to lead him down the busy streets of New Meridian. Each shop had distinct types of customers looming near the windows and doors.

"That's the sweet's shop," Evie pointed to a cute little building where children's faces and hands pressed against the glass. "And right next door is the specialty wand maker," she said as they passed the empty looking building. "Not everyone uses wands, sometimes I think they can be helpful with spell binding, but... the power doesn't come from the wand, it comes from the mage," she caught herself in a little speech. "Oh, and right ahead is the fresh market," she said excitedly.

	From: _blackirish	Date: 08/27/2007 07:23:44

Seamus followed along behind her, making mental note of all the places he wanted to bring Siobhan back to later. Especially that wand shop. It was the same one they'd seen before, and had clearly interested the blond fairy.

He pretended to be interested in the shops themselves, but he was really paying attention to Evie's little explanation of magic. It wasn't a lot, but any information about how it worked here would be good to know. It'd also help them try to blend in some. "Fresh market? That sounds promising!" Seamus grinned at her again and kept up, noting how her familiar Ari also stayed close by.

	From: evie_chanson	Date: 08/27/2007 12:28:15

"Yeah, it's all the best food you could get," she said as they walked into the busy open market. "There are all kinds of vegetables and fruits you could get here. A popular gift is the fruit basket, but that's more of a gift for acquaintances," she explained. "I doubt we'll find much of a gift for your wife here."

They brushed through the market and emerged onto another street full of shops. "You should take him to the new fashion botique," Ari purred to Evie as they passed a few books stores.

"Good idea," she said to the cat and they rounded the corner. "This is one of the more artistic sections of the city. There are galleries, music shops, and clothes stores. Perhaps we could find something to suitable here," she suggested with a smile. She found this part of the city to be one of the more lively places and wanted to share the experience with as many people (who would appreciate it) as possible.

	From: _blackirish	Date: 08/28/2007 00:05:38

"Mm, yeah not exactly right, though I'll know to come back here for fresh fruits and vegetables," Seamus conceded. And then they turned the corner, and Seamus's eyes lit up. "Oh, oh I'll have to bring hi- Siobhan here," he commented, attempt to cover his near-blundered pronoun use with an inhalation of surprise.

"I like this place already. Hey, let's try in there!" He pointed at one store; in the window was something pink, with bits of white lace. It wholly screamed Siobhan, and thus Seamus needed closer inspection.

	From: evie_chanson	Date: 08/28/2007 13:00:19

Evie almost knew as soon as they walked near the shop that Seamus would want to visit due to the description of his wife. Pink, cute, and fashionable. "Looks like an excellent place to shop," she said with a nod, barely noticing the slip. She was proud that she could successfully lead a person knew to the city around and find the perfect place to shop. She smiled as they passed into the door and looked around.

There were any assortment of objects in the front room of the store and as the room stretched back the more bright the merchandise seemed to get. Ari moved slowly beneath the garments hanging on the racks like a small child would, inspecting everthing thoroughly and resisting the urge to play with the lacey things that hung just out of his reach. "I think Ari likes it in here too," she giggled.

	From: _blackirish	Date: 08/29/2007 07:35:19

It wasn't a lingerie shop, although some of the garments struck Seamus as being so. He focused on the dresses instead, looking for something that just called out to him; he hadn't had anything in particular in mind.

Seamus looked down at the cat and laughed. "He looks like he's having a grand time. I don't blame him. This is a nice place. I'll have to bring Siobhan here next time." The blond fairy would likely try to buy half the things in the store, Seamus noted. He noticed a dress handing on one of the racks and selected it immediately.

Size didn't matter - a good thing about being a fairy. Siobhan could charm it to a perfect fit, but Seamus made sure to find the smallest size there. "I think I've found a winner."

	From: evie_chanson	Date: 08/29/2007 13:39:40

A few of the garments had caught her eye and she made a mental note that she might want to come back here later. She was espeically fond of flowy summer dresses and loose clothes.

Evie looked over at the dress Seamus had pointed out and smiled. It was a lovely dress she thought, the kind of dress that could easily go from frolicking in the fields to a fine party. "That looks gorgeous," she nodded in approval. "I think your wife will love it," she added.

	From: _blackirish	Date: 08/29/2007 19:06:00

"I think so too." Pleased with the input from the girl, Seamus brought it up to the clerk. Again he garnered a strange look when he handed over unfamiliar gold money. The change he'd received was nowhere near enough to pay for the dress, so he was back to using his own money.

Seamus was all smiles with the package for Siobhan neatly wrapped up and he turned back to Evie. "Thank you for you help. I think this is perfect."

	From: evie_chanson	Date: 08/29/2007 19:13:26

"It was nothing," she said brightly. "I rather enjoy having company on my trips into the city," she said honestly. "Perhaps you would like to walk around some more?" she asked as they left the shop. Ari, saddened that he had to leave the pretty hanging things in the shop, followed along, right at Evie's feet.

	From: _blackirish	Date: 08/29/2007 22:23:52

Seamus nodded, slipping the package into a bag. "Yes, definitely. I know I haven't even dusted off the top layer of this city." He'd know when Siobhan woke, or rather when the fairy wanted him home. His hand went to his neck, more specifically to the necklace that hung there. Siobhan had given it to him on their wedding night and Seamus had never taken it off.

It was a piece of him, Siobhan had said, and Seamus became even more protective of it. Since he'd been wearing it, he had more of an awareness of him, a deeper closeness to him. He wasn't capable of the kind of magic it took to return the favor, but he intended to learn it. "I don't have to be anywhere else just yet."

	From: evie_chanson	Date: 08/29/2007 23:18:45

"Excellent," Evie chirped. She noticed the necklace that Seamus has immediately begun to play with as he thought over her offer. Perhaps this was a new sort of magic that she had not learned of yet. "That's a nice necklace," she commented, hoping he might explain what it was if it wasn't too personal.

	From: _blackirish	Date: 08/29/2007 23:26:30

Seamus looked down at it and smiled. "Wedding gift from Siobhan. It means a lot to me." It was in fact a new kind of magic, one that likely had not been seen in Aylasia, at least not by mages. Who knew what the fey here were capable of?

But Seamus didn't go into detail. He was still cautious, unwilling to reveal too much about himself or Siobhan, their magic, or where they'd come from. he took Hamlin's warning to heart, and wouldn't volunteer anything, even to someone as sweet as Evie. "I pretty much never take it off."

	From: evie_chanson	Date: 08/29/2007 23:39:31

"That's so sweet!" she grinned brightly completely forgetting her curiosity in the ring's power in the first place. She lead him further into the little artist's nook of the city. She and Ari lead them down the street and Evie pointed out building here and there as they passed, looking in the windows of pretty shops and looking over the shoulders of street artists. As they moved away from the artist's corner they found a few more interesting shops. "Ooo, here's Ari's favorite!" she said as Ari leaned toward the shop. "It's a pillow making shop."

	From: _blackirish	Date: 08/30/2007 08:42:47

Seamus made mental note of every place he wanted to return too, or any he thought might interest Siobhan. He looked curiously into the window of the shop that interested the girl's familiar. "Pillow-making? I cannot say I've ever seen that done." It was intriguing and Seamus wanted a closer look. "Does Ari want to go in?"

	From: evie_chanson	Date: 08/30/2007 21:59:50

"Yes please," Ari stretched his front legs up to Evie who scratched behind his ears. He gave another little sneeze.

Evie smiled and nodded. "I think it would make his day," she giggled a little.

	From: _blackirish	Date: 08/30/2007 22:17:22

Seamus couldn't help but laugh at Ari's antics, and so he opened the door and held it for them to go inside. He had to admit the process seemed interesting, and he thought he might bring Siobhan back here as well.

He found himself liking New Meridian, and Aylasia as well. It was a good idea to stay a little longer, though Seamus had thought of a concern. Time moved differently in Faerie from how it moved back home. He had no idea how time moved here. One day passing here could be a nmonth or an hour in New York. They needed to see how much time was passing, before Patrick and Saoirse grew worried. Seamus wasn't sure he could even ask Hamlin Graves that question. It might be something they'd have to find out on their own.

Inside the pillow-making shop now, Seamus first noticed finished pillows ready to sell. They ran the gamut of shapes, colors and sizes, textures and consistencies. Apparently a lot more went into pillow-making than he thought.

	From: evie_chanson	Date: 09/02/2007 11:43:30

"Why thank you," she said brightly as they walked into the shop. Ari purred to the strange, even though this particular breed of mage made him sneeze, he did not mind his company as he was kind.

"These pillows are pretty special," Evie explained as Ari went about bouncing in the already made pillows. "Some people order them in advance to get the precise measuremens and shapes. Ari's not so picky, as long as it's comfortable and looks fancy he'll take it," she added looking at him fondly.

They headed toward the back of the shop where one of the pillow makers was busy making a special pillow for a rather rich customer. There was a lot that went into these pillows, maigcal and non magical skills were very important in the process. "The pillow maker uses the air element to fluff the pillows to the right consistency and sitches it shut either using a needle and thread or some form of spellbinding," Evie explained as they admired the pillow maker.

	From: _blackirish	Date: 09/02/2007 13:37:23

"That's amazing," Seamus said, watching in curiosity. After a long moment he was about to comment again, but at that moment a tiny little glittery pink ball of light found its way into the shop and landed right on his cheek like a kiss dissipating as it did so. He couldn't help but chuckle as he looked at Evie. "I'm sorry I'm going to have to cut things a bit short, but apparently I'm being summoned."

He looked at Ari for a moment and then said, "Thank you both for the tour and your suggestions. I'll be sure to bring Siobhan here later." After he was done squeeing over the dress Seamus was bringing him back. "And hopefully I'll see you both again sometime."

	From: evie_chanson	Date: 09/03/2007 00:30:23

"Good bye Seamus, it was lovely to meet you," Evie said graciously. Ari purred. "Perhaps we will see you again soon," she smiled. She waved as Seamus left the shop and turned back to Ari. "Have you picked one out yet?"

"Look at this one over here, it's quite lovely and I can bring it outside when you're doing work in the garden."

"I'm sold," she said, she knew better than to fight him about pillows and handed over a modest amount of money for the delightful pillow that Ari had already begun dragging toward the front of the shop. Evie smiled and shook her head. "Oh Ari," she grabbed the pillow from him and they continued on their way home.