Fortune of Harara Sidequests

WC: 1301/300

Connie walked down one of the side streets of Harara, the loud music coming from all directions pairing nicely with the many smells of street food trucks coming from either side of her. It was busy, it was exciting, it was new. Just what Connie was looking for in her travels.

As of right now, she was looking to get a bite to eat, as she had just finished up some magic training with Camellia and Grimm. Intense focus leads to intense hunger. That’s just how it is.

Lots of unique foods were to be seen in such a unique place, that’s for sure. Connie had decided for herself a few days ago that she could literally just pick any restaurant she saw and be able to get something there she hadn’t seen before. She walked into a restaurant she didn’t look too hard at the name of, not caring too much at the moment. The only thing that made her choose this one over any other building was the lack of a long line. She wanted something fast- whether or not she was going to sit down and eat or take out was another story.

Connie looked around once she had stepped in. The aesthetic was similar to that of a Rainforest Cafe, but plopped into the Celestial Seas universe. There was a line of around 2 people, which was fantastic in comparison to the other restaurants’ lines she had seen. Though, one of the people sitting down at a table and looking at a menu looked… familiar.

She craned her neck to get a better look. Her heart sank when she realized who it was.

She got some scowls as she pushed past the two other people in line, the waitress bird looking at her with a frown.

“Sorry- I have someone here waiting on me. May I go join them?” Connie asked. 

The waitress bird looked at her with some confusion, but sighed and nodded, gesturing to let her go back. Connie bowed and thanked her profusely as she made her way over to the lone satyr sitting near the back of the restaurant.

It was quieter here. There weren’t as many lights, and due to the positioning of the table and the walls, not as much sound penetrated the area. It felt like Connie was stepping into an isolated bubble when she approached the smaller than average table. 

The satyr who was sitting there looked up at her when they heard her approach. They froze. Connie froze. Time seemed to stop for a couple moments as they stared each other in the eyes.

“C…. Connie?” The satyr sitting at the table asked. Connie didn’t even respond. She just fell to her knees and wrapped her arms around their shoulders. They flinched, tensing up for a moment before letting out a shaky sigh and wrapping their arms underneath Connie’s.

“What are you doing here?” Connie spoke softly into their shoulder.

“I’m… trying to get used to more crowded places, but… I… didn’t expect to see you here…” They whispered back. Connie squeezed them tighter, nuzzling her face into the crook of their neck.

“...I missed you so much, Selkie...” She said. Selkie said nothing. They just sat there for what felt like minutes, but in reality it was only a couple moments. 

“...Is it okay if I join you? I unders--” Connie started, but was cut off by Selkie.

“Please.”

Connie let out a shaky laugh, standing up and rubbing her eyes before walking back and pulling out the chair to sit down on.

“I’m so, so sorry I haven’t reached out to you…” Connie commented, brushing her hair out of her face. Selkie sighed.

“I know you’re busy. I don’t blame you for not having the time-”

“That’s the thing though. I have had the time. I have all the time in the world. It was from my own negligence and I realize now that I should have set more time aside to talk to you. This is entirely my fault and I am so sorry that you have to be on the receiving end of this. You deserve better,” Connie explained, setting her hands down on the table. 

Selkie was quiet for a minute before taking a deep breath, and then smiling.

“I accept your apology. I just miss talking to you…” They said, placing their hands gently atop of Connie’s. She felt her face heat up and she looked away briefly.

“I miss talking to you too. You should visit again sometime soon.”
“Oh, for sure. I want to see dad again as soon as I get home. I want to pick something up to bring back for him, but he’s always so hard to get gifts for…” Connie commented, rolling her eyes. Selkie laughed quietly.

“You’re telling me. You know how hellish his birthdays are,” Selkie added. A waiter began to approach their table, and they both took their hands back. Neither of them were really hungry anymore.

“Hello, and welcome to the Kapok Cafeteria. I’ll be your host today- could I get you guys started with some drinks?” The server asked.

Connie and Selkie looked at each other. Selkie fell silent.

“Just two waters for us,” Connie said with a smile. The waiter nodded and walked off again.

“...We should probably look at getting something to eat. This will be on me tonight- you don’t get to say otherwise,” Connie insisted. Selkie frowned and stuck their tongue out at her, making a fart noise. She did the same thing back at them until Selkie rolled their eyes at Connie with a smile. 

“When coming in here, I saw some really weird fish with legs… I’ve seen a lot of fish in my day, but never… ones with legs… Maybe we could try those?” Selkie commented, picking up a menu and shuffling through it until they found a picture. “Aha-! These things!” They remarked, turning the menu around to show a picture of the dish to Connie.

Connie picked up the menu and glared at the picture.

“I’m almost disgusted. Let’s do it,” She chimed, closing the menu and giving it back to Selkie. 

Selkie nodded in response, taking the menu and setting it down next to them before looking back up at Connie.

“I… Don’t exactly have any plans for after this. Unless you count exploring the reefs here- it’s starting to get dark and the water’s gonna get colder, so I don’t expect there to be many snorkelers out,” Selkie hummed.

“That sounds like a great idea. I’ve yet to explore the reefs here and there’s no person I’d rather do it with than you,” Connie replied warmly.

“Consider it done then.”

Connie and Selkie eventually got their weird leg fish, which to both of their surprise, was much more filling than it looked. By the time they left the restaurant, it was dark out, but that didn’t stop the city from continuing on its festivities. The beach was much more barren though, with almost no people still swimming. The two satyrs both made their way down to the dark beach, heading into the water and making air bubbles around both of their heads with their water magic. Connie made a couple little bubbles of air containing small flames around her head to light up the area as she swam- Selkie, with their awesome night vision, didn’t really need it, but the sight of Connie swimming through the reef proved to be quite nice nonetheless.

There they were, sitting across from each other beneath 40 feet of water, feeling the movement of the waves above them as fish swam around both of their bodies. It was quiet, it was warm, and they were together. It was almost like Connie had never left.