Miyu pondered the question for a moment. She had her first "real" dance class at... 6? And she was 13 now. The teenager smiled brightly at the taller, blue-haired girl.

"It's been about 7 years," she replied, "but I've got a lot of work to do before it can be my job."

Still, it made her very happy to hear that she looked like someone who had been training for a while. Her dream, the one thing she wanted more than anything else, was to be a professional ballerina dancing on stage for an adoring audience. For other people to recognize that kind of ballet "look" to her own appearance made her feel like it was really possible. There were so many other talented young women out there, she always had to remind herself. She could wind up just not being good enough to cut it someday, when she was old enough to seek a company contract. But oh how she wanted it to happen!

"Do you like being a swimming instructor?"

It seemed rather fitting that this aqua-toned older teenager would be spending a lot of of her time in swimming. Her hair and eye colours reminded Miyu of the way the water looked in a pool.

*Stephanie Sanders*

She was listening to Miyu and smiled when she told her she'd been dancing for about 7 years. "Wow thats pretty long and I think you will be a great dancer."

Stephanie then thought about the question asked to her, "I love it, its so nice to see the kids come in each day, smiling or not..and if not by the end of our class were all smiling. I'm just really glad to be able to use my talents to help people. It's a fun process though."

Stephanie took another drink and asked, "You mentioned about dancing not being your job quite yet..what did you mean? Are you going pro? I wouldn't mind seeing you dance sometime it would be fun."

She tilted her head a little at the concept of a system made up only of four planets. It made her think of having only the Inner half of the royal court and she made a slight face but quickly shook it off. “It does sound very small. Are your planets close because there are so few of them? My father is from a planet called Kinmoku, in the system Kinmoku-sei. He was a Star Light.”

Then she was being offered another drink. Chibiusa smiled gratefully before giving her cup a little shake. “I'd appreciate that, but I still have half of mine to go. And my mama and papa would yell at me if I drank too much sweetness at once time. I have to space it out a little. But you can get another one for yourself if you like it that much! Does your kind have a different metabolism?” She looked curious again.

Miyu giggled a little at Stephanie's question, but it wasn't a mean-spirited reaction.

"I'm not old enough for a job, even part-time," she began. "And yes, I want to be a professional dancer. I'm training at the Tokyo Imperial Ballet Academy."

Life was a whirlwind for the young teenager—junior high school classes during the daytime, ballet training after school... It was a good thing that her parents had never signed her up for cram school classes; she didn't think she could handle one more type of school on top of the existing two! Thankfully, Miyu's ballet instructors and faculty had convinced her father and stepmother that she had a real chance at a professional career, so she wasn't being pressured to focus on university admissions. High school entrance exams, that was another thing entirely, but through lots of hard work she was able to prove she could score well on the mock exams. So extra classes or tutoring were not a requirement—and that left more time for ballet.

It wasn't a school day for Miyu, at least not in the traditional sense, but she had been up early and in dance classes since the beginning of her day. In a few hours she had rehearsal for her school's Nutcracker Suite performance and then later rehearsal for her small role as a party-goer in the Tokyo Imperial Ballet's performance of the full ballet. Which, she realized, meant it actually was possible for Stephanie to see her perform.

"It's only on a few days, and I do mostly character dancing—the kind of thing you see in most musicals—instead of ballet, but I'm a children's cast member of the Nutcracker for this year!" she announced, brightly. "I'm also in my school's separate performance, but that's mostly for parents."

Sailor Draco- Princess Medea of Ladon

Medea could have sworn that this was the doorway to the Temple's kitchens, but as she entered, she was greeted by the inside of a very nicely decorated tavern. The air was permeated by a sweet, unfamiliar aroma, and there were shelves of beans in bags and spices and leaves in jars.

All confusion forgotten and replaced with curiosity, Medea adjusted her cloat over her white and gold gown and approached the counter. This menu had so many choices, some she couldn't even comprehend what they even were. Coffee? Latte? Frappachino?

But the entire shop smelled so nice, that they had to be good. She could drink tea whenever she chose to, so Medea ordered a regular coffee.

She did not expect the cup to be so big in her hands, but she did her best to not drop it as she found a table for herself. Medea sat the drink down and then struggled onto the tall stool seat, pleased with her window view.

Enyalius cocked a brow as the short blue-skinned winged girl that had taken the cup so gingerly found a table and hopped into a high chair to look out the window; she had taken quite some time to figure out her order, but she hadn't hmm'd or sighed or asked her questions about how things tasted, and then ended up ordering a regular - which just required pouring something from a pre-made pot - so, all in all, great customer. As she took her seat Enya turned her back to the door and leaned against the counter staring at the back room and wondering just when and how this place got restocked. 

They were running low on muffins.

Ari Tansya/Sailor Bastet

Ari had just finished a long day of studying and was severely needing a break at her favorite tea shop. She door opened with its usual bell jingle but once she stepped in something seemed quite different. It was certainly a cafe of sorts...but it was definitely not The Cat Nip. It had a different smell...it smelled very similar to the dark bitter drink the druids would drink during late night nature meditations.

She looked around the shop and realized that the girl at the counter and other patron were definitely not Bastiens. Well...Ari shrugged. She just rolled with it and went up to the counter to order from the girl with her back facing her.

"U-um...excuse me..." she spoke up, fairly quietly, "Do you have...cat nip tea by chance?"

Enyalius let out a small sigh and turned to face the new arrival, any hope that she would have been instantly interested in Wings over there dashed with a question about cat nip tea. She offered a quick, entirely fake smile - as required by contract - and replied, "I'll check."

She then left the counter, strode to the cabinet with tea flavors, threw it open, and started to read. ...she wasn't fond of reading. Mint. Darjeeling. Ginseng.... what order was this in, anyway? Not alphabetical - that'd be too easy right? She scowled up at the tea and continued to search. "I'm not seeing cat nip, but -- " she stopped herself as a small packet dislodged from the rest and fell on the counter below. She stared at it, the question of why she was even here crossing her mind yet again, and she corrected herself. "Never mind, here it is. I'll brew it for you - what size cup?"

Ari Tansya/Sailor Bastet

She smiled at the girl. "Medium, please. Oh, and can you add a touch of cream?" The last part came with a small purr at the thought of cream and cat nip. While she waited, Ari kept eyeing the other strange girl. She was taller than her but didn't seem as towering as others often appeared to be, what drew her attention the most was her skin color and that she had wings. She was trying hard not to stare at her, just catching quick glances when she could. She wondered if she could attempt to spark up a conversation...

Maybe after she's had a bit of cat nip tea in her.

Medea wasn't paying close attention to the door when the bell above it rang, still trying to find the best way to approach her coffee. Should she just sip it carefully, or wait until it cooled on its own? Well, she doubted she'd scald her mouth on something that was only somewhat warm to her, but was there a polite method to drink it?

It'd be a waste to just stare into the cup of dark liquid, so Medea carefully tipped the edge of the cup into her mouth. As soon as her tongue registered the coffee, she almost spat it back out. Instead, she set the cup back down and forced herself to swallow. It was so... bitter. Medea pulled a face as the coffee taste lingered, her ears falling back in disgust. Was it supposed to be like that? How had the deceptively nice scent covered that lack of sweetness up?

But she paid for it, so she should at least finish the drink, one way or another. Medea glared at the offending cup and prepared herself for Round 2.

Her eyes flitted about the room, seeing that more patrons had entered the coffee shop. Was it always this crowded? She was having a hard time remembering. Miyu frowned slightly, her brow furrowed, trying to think about the coffee shop. She stopped in here often... right? I mean, she hadn't picked it at random. It was close to the studio... wasn't it? Did she come here frequently?

How strange... Her thoughts about the place seemed jumbled and confused. She felt equally sure that she had been in this coffee shop before and equally sure that this was an entirely new experience. Reconciling these two sensations proved quite difficult. Maybe she was studying too hard.

Some of the newcomers seemed extra interesting! Miyu tried her best to stare-without-staring, wondering who they might be.

Ari Tansya/Sailor Bastet

As she waited, she looked all around the shop, taking in how everything was so different than "The Cat Nip", but she liked the atmosphere, even with the barista that she had a feeling didn't want to be there. She noticed another patron in the shop...her eyes paused as she was struck with awe. The girl was so beautiful...she gave off an air of grace and elegance like she had never seen before. She lacked the signifying cat ears of a Bastien but to Ari, she was like a goddess. A small blush tinged Ari's cheeks as she continued to stare.

She wondered if the girl was indeed a goddess who was gracing them with her presence... This shop certainly had a diverse amount of customers!



The barista gave her her drink and Ari sniffed delightfully at the wonderful smell of the catnip tea. The smell was already intoxicating to her and she gave it a small sip. It warmed her and made her feel calm and relaxed.

As she looked for a place to sit, she decided to settle in close to the...reptile? dragon? What was she? looking girl. She was too embarassed about her blatant staring at the goddess like girl to sit by her and to top it off this person was so different, her curisosity had certainly been piqued. She sat at table right next to hers and sipped at her warm drink, taking quick glances at the girl from time to time to get a better look at her.

As her dark brown eyes scanned the room, she briefly met a pair that were bright emerald green.

Oh!

Miyu glanced over to another patron a little bit too quickly, her pale skin now flush with embarrassment. Someone had caught her staring! Oh no, they must think she was so rude! She wrapped her hands around her partially full cup of warm chamomile tea, which currently felt much cooler than her burning cheeks. Miyu knew better than to stare at others, but the temptation at the time had been too great.

When the girl took a seat at a nearby table, Miyu tried to act relaxed, even though she didn't quite feel that way. Was she going to say something about the staring? The thought of being called out on her poor behaviour would be entirely appropriate... but also dreadful!

Entering into weird places seemed to be Arkynn's habit, he thought, entering the coffee shop, his gait a little bouncy as he looked around. People were sitting at tables, all alone on their own, some glancing at the other patrons there, others focused on their drinks.

Weird people.
Why weren't they talking to each other? Was it because you weren't supposed to do that here? Maybe it was everyone for themselves, no words allowed?

A bit confused, but agreeing to the untold rules, he walked to a table and swiftly pulled himself up on it, sitting with his legs crossed together. He rummaged through his bag and took out a kettle, tea leaves and a tea infuser. He then poured some water in the kettle. Sliding his hand under it, he started to warm the kettle more and more until it reached the perfect temperature before he made himself a cup of tea.

The seats left somewhat to be desired, but the ambiance wasn't that bad.

Miyu goggled at the boy who waltzed in and climbed up on the table, although she tried not to be caught staring as she had been only moments ago. He was now brewing tea while sitting there, on top of the table, like it absolutely made sense to be doing such a thing. She wondered if Stephanie noticed and thought this was strange. Or maybe the other girl who had taken a seat so near her.

Was that even... allowed? Definitely not a rule-breaker herself, Miyu couldn't imagine doing such a thing. Just the thought of one of the employees possibly tsk-tsking at her was enough to give her shivers. Would the employees here even care?

Ari Tansya/Sailor Bastet

Miyu wasn't the only one staring at the coffee shops newcomer as Ari found herself doing the same. When the boy whipped out his own tea set and began making his own tea...heating it with his hands??? Ari could not stop her curiosity (the effects of the catnip latte were kicking in as well, making her feel more relaxed).

"Um...what are you doing? They can just make tea for you over there." Ari pointed at the counter where the barista was.

"I'm cool with it," Enyalius remarked soundly, apparently able to hear the suggestion despite her back being to the customers and filing her nails. She leaned against the counter, her long brown hair pooling on the surface, and glanced up again at the clock that was moving painfully slowly, and sighed beneath her breath.

He didn't notice the looks up until a girl spoke to him. Abnormally blue eyes turned to fix her, unblinking, focused. He followed her finger to the counter, then a small grin appeared on his lips.

"She's cool with it."

He repeated with a sound of finally, regulating the temperature of his cup so he could start to drink from it. What passed for two strands of paler hair on his head twitched agreeably as the taste made him quietly hum with satisfaction.

"Greetings, I guess. 'm Eoghann Arkynn III, you can call me Kynn I guess. S'nice t' meet ya."

Even though he wasn't looking at any of them, finding more interesting to follow the waves in his cup.

It took the woman at the bar's voice to snap Medea out of her staring match with her coffee cup, and she blinked and looked up to see what was going on. Someone else had entered the shop, and the little boy sat directly on the table with what looked like a tea set, something she could actually identify. She listened to the exchange between them  as she scanned the rest of the shop, and her eyes fell on a girl that looked part...cat? 

She'd heard of a planet of people like cats, but the books were so old that they could be inaccurate. But... the girl was also drinking her drink with what seemed like no difficulty, and Medea wanted to know how. Should she ask? Or was that rude?

Medea bit her lip and looked back down at her table. This shouldn't be so hard, but she just couldn't figure it out.

Well. This was not the type of coffee shop Miyu was used to—that's for sure. She supposed that at least the fact that he wasn't currently breaking any rules could be her solace. The unenthusiastic barista clearly didn't mind, and there seemed to be no other employees to object to her claim. Still, it seemed odd to come all the way to a shop that prepared beverages just to prepare your own.

And then he announced his name, the young voice tinged with grand airs. Who was this odd young man?

Ari Tansya/Sailor Bastet

Ari paused for a moment then shrugged.

"Can't argue with that," she turned to face the boy, giving him her full attention. Her tail was twitching excitedly as her curiosity grew. She took another sip of her catnip before responding with her own name.

"I'm Ari. It's nice to meet you as well. Do you mind if I ask...and this has been bugging me quite a lot since I've arrived at this shop but...why don't you have ears?" She pointed at her own and then pointed at the other two patrons, "Or them for that matter? No one here has ears like me and it's got me curious to know...just what are you?"

Ari waited eagerly for an answer as her tail swished back and forth. She was normally shy but now the girl let her questions and observations fly loose. It was obvious these people weren't from Bastet, but as far as any historian on her planet knew there were never any other types of people that existed that did not have ears like hers. They always did, as her people were creations of their goddess.

Ari pointed in Medea's direction, and her cheeks darkened at being noticed. She hadn't really thought too hard about fitting in, as she did know there were worlds beyond her own, but now she felt a little awkward.

"U-uh..." she said, trying to explain herself. "I'm from Draconis, so I guess I'm Draconian? Is that odd?" she asked Ari, very self conscious now. The magic that kept her in a humanoid form wasn't strong enough to do much else beyond this.

"Why do ya have a tail?"

He asked back with amusement, the feathers on his head twitching again. He looked back at her, with a same kind of curiosity, even if it wasn't as obvious. He looked at her tail, then ears, chuckling with his voice that sounded like a child but with a laughter that sounded more mature than he looked. He put his cup down.

"I have feathers. Ya people call them birds in some place. But we don't. Birds are weird."

He jumped, his wings carrying him smoothly and slowly to the strange cat-like girl, landing without a noise on her table, crouching and curiously staring at her moving tail. He giggled again.

"So is draconian yer name then?" He asked, amused, turning to face Medea, not moving from the spot he had landed on.

"Ah, no wait, I didn't mean that!" she said, flustered. "My name is Medea of Ladon, but I'd prefer just Medea..." She'd never seen someone with feathers before, and he could fly! For a moment, she wanted to pull her wings out too, but in this small cafe, that seemed like a bad idea.

"It's a pleasure to meet you both." Medea composed herself enough to smile, just enough for her canine teeth to show. "Um... is it not normal to have tails?" she asked. How else would you balance when you were moving fast?

Homura Higurashi

Homura sighed, opening the door to the shop and stepped in. She was late to meet some friends from school, whose names she could not remember.

"Afternoon." Was all Homura said walking to an empty table in the corner and ordered a coffee, her brown hair flowing by as she walked and her teal eyes lightening up as she spoke in a soft and innocent voice.

Ohhhhhhkay, how had she not noticed any of this? Tails? Feathers? And other things! Until they started talking about it, somehow to Miyu it had all blended together into a "nope, that's normal, move along" status that didn't catch her attention. But now she saw it clearly. She wasn't even thinking about being accidentally rude to Stephanie as she stood up, leaving the partially-drank tea behind, and took a few soft steps closer. The dancer barely noticed another person entering the cafe—she was too distracted with what she just had to investigate.

Tails! Feathers! Other things!

She had only seen these details on ballet costumes. What was going on here? Miyu crept closer and closer to those assembled and talking, torn between her curiosity and desire not to be impolite... but curiosity was definitely winning right now.

Ari Tansya/Sailor Bastet

The blue skinned girl actually spoke up and she had been so quiet. It seemed she and her had a bit in common with the shy thing and all. A Draconian...huh? Ari kept her eyes on her for a moment as she asked if that was weird. She hadn't meant to embarrass the poor girl. Ari quickly rectified herself.

"Oh no! Not weird at all! I didn't mean to imply that...it's just...I've never seen anyone that didn't look like...well...me. But you all must have hears as you heard me...but they aren't on top of your head." Ari mused to herself when the blonde boy asked why she had a tail. Why did she have a tail...? Well that was obvious!

"Everyone has a tail! Well..at least where I'm from. They say it is because my people are descended from the gods."

Ari picked up her catnip to take another sip. She sniffed and mumbled, "Birds aren't weird. They're rather tasy in fact..."

But the boy had moved on to asking what the blue skinned girl's name was. Medea of Ladon? What's a Ladon? She assumed it had to be the place of her birth or something? No one had really used naming conventions similar to that in maybe a hundred or more years. Though, there are a few old fashioned elite families that did. When Medea asked if it was normal to have tails Ari almost let out a laugh.

"Of course it's normal to have tails!" Ari turned her focus on the girl once again, realizing now she hadn't gotten a full view of her entire body, "Do you have a tail?"

Another girl entered and she took notice of her. No ears or tail yet again... Strange! Though the more she thought on it the more and more as if something was trying to tell her it really wasn't all that strange, that in fact, this coffee shop was completely normal and she should befriend these people who had no ears or tail. With all that was going on, she hadn't noticed the particularly angelic girl she had stared at earlier was inching closer and closer to the group.

Anya/Kyan

Clutching onto an unusual metallic box-like apparatus in one arm and a thick blue folder in the other, Anya Katayeva had absolutely no clue what she would be getting herself into when she forced her way into the coffee shop, nearly shattering the glass door with her rough push. As the slam rattled the vases on the tables nearest to the entrance, she cringed a little in embarrassment.

“...Oops,” Anya uttered below her breath, her eyebrow twitching in slight irritation as one of the more unfortunate vases tipped over and rolled to its demise. Stupid planet. Stupid gravity. She hadn't meant to cause such a commotion! With a single sweep, Anya nonchalantly kicked the mess beneath a table, leaving behind a noticeable streak of glass, water, and petals, before quickly continuing over to the counter as if nothing ever happened.

When Anya greeted the woman at the counter, she did so in a much more saccharine tone. However, her frown—although subtle—remained unmoved. The young woman had hoped there wouldn't be anybody in the coffee shop at such an hour, so that she could peacefully sip away at a cup of freshly steeped black tea before returning to her colleagues at the Academy for yet another meeting. Unfortunately, it seemed like her envisioned peaceful afternoon was not about to happen anytime soon, not with all of these noisy people around anyway...

“Good afternoon,” Anya leaned forward and inspected the woman's name tag Enyalius: “Enyalius hun. Would you be be a dear and fetch me a cup of the most luxurious kind of black tea you have? Ceylon-blend preferred.” She then shifted her gaze to the glass display case full of desserts. “Oh and may I also have one of those cookies, dear?...How about that star-shaped one right there. Thank you.”

Descended from the gods? Her own people were somewhat spiritual, but they never really stopped to think about why the way they were. Draconians had tails because they always did. It just made sense.

"I-I do, but...I don't like keeping it out in small spaces..." Medea said. "It'd be terrible if I knocked something over, so I tend to keep it hidden." It had taken a lot of time to get used to walking around as a senshi without banging into objects. As if on cue, a vase crashed to the floor, and Medea turned to see a woman walking towards the counter, as if something hadn't just shattered. Strange...

Homura Higurashi/Sailor Chibi Uranus

Homura looked up at the door when she heard the door slammed and the vase broke from one girl. She then shook her head and got out her power stick, she merely stared at it curious to what it was.

"Ugh, what does this dumb stick stick thing do?" She wondered out loud.