The stop for supplies landed them - no, him - in a rather small town, too small to pay for proper stone walls but too populated to not protect its own economy, so it made-do with a wooden stockage of tall logs that went all the way around. His car parked itself outside the premises among the pines. Like a ruby necklace in the snow and black velvet, his stay was to be as short as jewels stayed in boxes. Just had to pick up some cases of water, food, and buy some replacement batteries. A day-long operation at best. But he had finished too quickly, and the lingering dread of yet another journey of never-ending roads gave him a free afternoon that could be spent among the limited, quaint shops that littered the town's tiny Main Street, so it came to reason that he was scratching his head, trying to find where this rumored tea parlor was.
Some of the locals at the store were gossiping about it with another customer, that a woman named Fleur and her husband finally opened that tea parlor they wanted to open. Said they got their hands on a good stock of cardamom and could make some great Southern Chai. That had caught Gray's attention all too quickly, much like the growing number of voices in his head did. When was the last time he had chai? Father's would always be the best but for the sake of nostalgia and for the want of the flavor of home, he immediately asked where he could find it. He needed a breather. After everything that was happening lately...
"Yeahhh, like that one time everyone at that cute little school was killing each other?" His face contorted into a grimace at the boy's voice jutting into his thought process, but he didn't respond, swiping his fingers as violet eyes squinted at the map on his phone screen.
The less attention he gave to it, the better.
"Ouch, ignoring me again, huh? Not that you'll be able to get rid of me, soooo~"
It wasn't showing up on the map. Maybe it wasn't ready yet?
"Your dad did make totally great chai, by the way. Can't blame you for wanting more of it."
Or it could be in some other store's attic...? It was very new, after all.
"But you have to settle for this cheap stuff.... Wherever it is.
Settling for cheap didn't sound right when it came to tea of all things. Just a small treat.
"Since you sort of killed a bunch of people for my sake, right?"
"Noël, be quiet please. I'm thinking."
... Damn, he just said that out loud, didn't he?
