A Coffee House, London, 1815, Saturday Afternoon

[vanillajello]

Like a good child of the information age, after asking Mitchell out for coffee Kate had run a Google search on coffee houses in Regency England. Satisfied with the knowledge that they'd been around and popular since the sixteen hundreds, she'd let it be after that.

Which meant she hadn't been aware that the coffee houses wouldn't open their doors to the general female public before another half a century had passed. She was aware of it now, though. It was hard not to be after having been turned away from a few of the more respectable establishments. But she was going to have a cup of coffee in olden times England, goddammit, so she'd decided on one more try at a slightly less respectable-looking locale, and she couldn't be talked out of it.

(Getting obsessed with getting coffee was just as fine a way of dealing with feeling a little on edge as any other thing, okay?)

Kate tugged on the cuffs of the same dress she'd worn for her London walk with Bod, yesterday, and looked annoyed. "Man, if we don't get coffee here, either, I'm going back to Fandom and dressing like a dude, I swear to God."

[ooc: NFB and for the Irish hipster I kinda sorta lovingly modded just there.]

Comments

[chosehumanity]

"There's always the Perk," Mitchell offered, for what had to be the fifth time that day. "I hear there's a special on those espresso mixes this week." He was slightly fidgety in clothes that were a little too obviously outdated for him, or maybe it was something else; whatever.

[vanillajello]

"Yeah, which they probably won't serve to me," Kate pointed out, squaring her shoulders before reaching for the door. Hopefully it didn't look like she was gearing up to throwing a bitchfit if anyone so much as looked at her funny upon her entrance. "I'm not giving up, Mitchell."

[chosehumanity]

Mitchell held up his gloved hands. "I can tell," he said. "Just... please don't tear this one down, yeah?"

[vanillajello]

Kate just rolled her eyes at him and pressed on, stepping into the crowded coffeehouse. there were a few curious glances at the opening door from the patrons, but no outright refusal. And, okay, it didn't seem like the most pleasant of places for someone used to Starbucks and the like of 2011, but at least no one seemed to be intent on coming up to them with a patronising 'ma'am, are you perhaps lost?'

"Promising," Kate decided. "Look, there are even other chicks here."

Yeah, those were totally prostitutes.

[chosehumanity]

Mitchell, being generally clever and sound of mind when he wasn't completely out of it, did not make any references to any cake-sitting anyone here might have done. "I'm... not sure those are normal patrons," he tried carefully, instead.

Christ, if he was still working up at the school, he'd probably have gotten fired for this. ...Unlike the killing spree, which had clearly been a-okay.

[vanillajello]

"... Yeah, I'm pretty sure those are hookers," even Kate deduced after a brief moment of watching them flirt at some men not quite subtly. But, she shook her head. "Whatever, at least no one's trying to throw me out because I should be at home in the kitchen or something."

[chosehumanity]

Yeah, Mitchell wasn't so sure he liked those knowing looks he was getting. He sighed. "Just one cup of coffee, Kate."

[vanillajello]

"Just one cup of coffee," Kate promised dutifully, then inclined her head towards the counter where such things were most likely purchased. "Which you should probably order because you're less exotic. I had enough questions about my accent yesterday."

[chosehumanity]

Mitchell shot her another vaguely uncomfortable look, but made his way down to the counter anyway to order some drinks. He came back a short while later with two cups and sank down in his seat, pushing one over towards her.

"I still think the Perk would've been a better idea," he said. "Even I think these people are old-fashioned."

[vanillajello]

"Yeah well, it's a century before your time, right?" Kate pointed out with the kind of ease that was sure to crumble once the setting would manage to wear through her obsession of obtaining coffee.

Or once she'd realize the coffee wasn't necessarily up to her standards, either. Whichever happened first. She picked up her cup, raising a brow. "I'd be worried if you didn't."

[chosehumanity]

"Yeah, but it's... weird," said the vampire. He took a sip of his coffee, and winced. "Just like I remember it. Except worse."

[vanillajello]

"Weird?" Kate questioned. "Really? You're gonna use that word?"

She felt so past calling anything weird anymore.

[chosehumanity]

"Hey, I'm over a hundred years old," he argued, pushing the coffee aside. "Anything 'weird' is a novelty."

[vanillajello]

"The novelty of novelty wears off, though," Kate argued in turn. She probably had something to add to that, too, except she took a sip of coffee and forgot about it in favor of making a face. "Okay, ew."

[chosehumanity]

"I told you we should have gone to the Perk," Mitchell said. Slightly less triumphantly than he would have had a month ago, but hey, it was still progress.

[vanillajello]

"Yeah well, excuse me for wanting to try something different," Kate replied, rolling her eyes. "I didn't know coffee used to be awful."

[chosehumanity]

"There are many things the 20th century has brought us that should be savoured," Mitchell muttered.

[vanillajello]

"21st," Kate corrected with a sigh, propping her elbow on the table and resting her chin in her hand. "Though I guess most of said things are from the 20th century."

[chosehumanity]

"Coffee got good in the 20th," Mitchell argued. Not very vehemently, but still. "The 21st century is just coasting along on that kind of thing."

[vanillajello]

"Yeah but we have the iPod." Not a very good argument, no. She wasn't trying to make it one, either. "And The Real Housewives."

[chosehumanity]

"Really? You're going with that program as your final answer?"

[vanillajello]

"Uh huh," Kate decided as she pushed her cup of coffee further away with her free hand, as if it might attack her if she let it linger too close. "Why wouldn't I? It's the very testament of the... state of Western society in modern times."

Or something. She wasn't serious.

[chosehumanity]

Mitchell pulled a face. "At least say it's... I don't know, one of those reality shows that actually teaches you something." Like the Real Hustle!

[vanillajello]

Nope. "For the last time, Mitchell," Kate replied with some half-fake exasperation, "the Real Hustle isn't any more educational than Real Housewives!"

[chosehumanity]

"Hey, it totally taught me how to avoid creditcard fraud!"

[vanillajello]

"You've been around for over a hundred years!" Kate pointed out, though thankfully not loud enough to draw attention. "Honestly, if you need a TV show to tell you how to avoid credit card fraud at that point, then you deserve to get conned."

[chosehumanity]

"Oh please, do you have any idea how sophisticated they get?" Mitchell asked. "Seriously."

[vanillajello]

"No, you're just gullible," Kate decided. "Why should anyone learn anything from TV, anyway?"

[chosehumanity]

"That is such a 21st century thing to say," Mitchell decided. "Back in the fifties and sixties when televisions were just getting sold, it was all educational programming. It's a broadcast medium, Kate."

Yeah, they were pretty much making no sense to anyone looking in.

[vanillajello]

"Yeah but we're not in the fifties or the sixties anymore." Not that they were in the 21st century, either. Poor eavesdroppers. "Things change, Mitchell. A lot of things have. It's more about entertainment now."

[chosehumanity]

"There's still a difference between good television and the bad kind. Like the Real Housewives."

Not that Mitchell hadn't been watching recently, but he spent a lot of time hanging in front of the TV feeling sorry for himself lately.

[vanillajello]

"But it's good because it's bad," Kate pointed out. "That's the whole point. I love it because it's trashy and doesn't require me to think. I do enough thinking without the TV."

[chosehumanity]

"But why?" Mitchell asked.

A beat. "...Fine, sometimes you want to veg out, I'll give you that."

[vanillajello]

"See?" Kate asked, glad he seemed to be figuring out her point. "I mean, look at my life lately – or whatever parts of it you have an idea about. Do you think I would wanna be educated when I turn on the TV, with all of that going on? Hell to the no. I like keeping serious stuff in reality --" Why reality was symbolized by her flashing him the new ring on her left middle finger, even she probably wouldn't be sure. "-- and TV as just total braincandy."

[chosehumanity]

The ring was going to get a bit of a raised eyebrow, yeah, but banter involved him mustering all the enthousiasm he could manage at the moment; sudden shocking changes in her life were going to have to take a back seat.

"But it's still not any good," he said, "Just excellent circumstances for couch-potatoing."

[[ sorry, the last two days have been insaaane. ]]

[vanillajello]

The eyebrow raise didn't even register, really. Truth be told Kate didn't feel like there were any sudden shocking changes that had happened, not any that involved the ring, anyway. It was more like some things were falling into place, finally.

And she was too caught up in talking about TV.

"Which is all that I need," she decided. "Except I don't really need good circumstances, 'cause I'm a master of doing the couch potato thing, and I can do that whenever."

[Aw, no problem. *pets your insanity*]

[chosehumanity]

"But," Mitchell said, "You'll at least admit that that is horrible television."

[[ I spent all day either entertaining guests or working on this essay that needed to be turned in tonight. Pity meee. ]]

[vanillajello]

"Of course." A beat. "But horrible is also the best kind!"

He wasn't getting much of a win out of her today, no.

[*pities*]

[chosehumanity]

"Keep it down," Mitchell said, because that was the only way he was going to get that win. "I think people are staring. Again."

[vanillajello]

"Yeah because we're fabulous," she replied without missing a beat, though at least at a lower volume. "I don't care if they stare, and besides, you're just trying to distract me from the argument."

[chosehumanity]

"The argument you can't actually support by facts?" Mitchell said. "I think the distraction is probably better."

[vanillajello]

"Oh, like you had some stellar facts to back your claims up." Well, they were probably better than hers. "Whatever, dude, I was clearly winning."

[chosehumanity]

"What, besides that my champions won awards? Or at least legitimately teach you something?" Mitchell nudged his cup of coffee away. "It doesn't really matter."

[vanillajello]

"You put too much stock in teaching," Kate decided. "It is becoming clear to me now how you ended up becoming a teacher."

[chosehumanity]

Mitchell snorted. He glanced towards the entrance.

"I miss that. Sometimes."

[vanillajello]

Kate shrugged a shoulder, lightly. "You're staying," she pointed out, and said nothing more. She didn't think it was out of the question for him to teach again.

But, what did she know? She glanced around, then made a slight face. "Think we should leave? I'm pretty sure there's a guy over there considering coming over to make propositions and I would hate to draw attention by bitchslapping anyone."

[chosehumanity]

"I thought we shouldn't have gone here in the first place," Mitchell pointed out, lightly. He glanced over to the guy in question, and pulled a face. "Yeah, let's go. I'll make you a cup of something back at the house."

[vanillajello]

"Something actually drinkable?" she asked already getting up and straightening her dress. "Yeah, I'd like that."