"We have time," she countered, flashing the man a dazzling smile. "You should tell me more."

Vincent cocked his head. "About Tex-Mex?"

Snorting a laugh, she replied, "I meant Earth. But I guess that covers Tex-Mex as well." Rayleigh planted her elbows atop the table, and balanced her chin on her hands, gazing back at the boy with a sort of childish wonder. "Story time."

The boy stared back at her for a moment, his big eyes the color of the cloudless sky. Then, raking long fingers through his blonde hair, Vincent spoke. "Why do you always want to know about Earth?"

The surprise cooled some of the wonder from Ray's expression. She did not frown, but a shallow line creased across her freckled forehead as her brows knit together. "What do you mean?"

"I dunno." He regretted saying anything at all. "You're just always asking. I don't mind it, but I also don't get it. It's just Earth."

"And this is just Althanas." She used one hand to motion to their surroundings. Her voice was bereft of venom, as the day was too nice for such things. It was confusion, more than anything else, that plagued her. "We have dragons, and demons, and everything else you mentioned. But you could travel across across Earth in a day? That's incredible. That's magic."

He opened his mouth to argue, then thought better of it. There was no magic on Earth, but to someone fascinated by technology already hundreds of years old in America, perhaps that was close enough. Just as he thought that he could use some alcohol, a waiter appeared with their drinks.

"Ale," he announced, plopping the drink before Vincent. "And for the lady, the lemon lime and mango passion power mojito." With a flourish, the tanned waiter slid the frosty glass toward Rayleigh. It was a vibrant pink color, and a fruit skewer floated among the sugar-coated ice cubes. A paper umbrella the colors of the morning sky finished off the ensemble.

Only after the man had walked away did Vincent narrow his eyes across the table. "Don't say anything," he hissed, reaching over and pulling his drink closer.

Rayleigh bit down hard on the inside of her cheek to keep from laughing, retrieving her own glass. "I won't," she assured him, though her green eyes danced with it. And when Vince pulled a small, plastic sword from a strawberry, and waggled it at her, she lost the battle. Her rich laugh mingled with the trumpets and guitars.

"Well," the brunette began when her giggling finally tapered off. "If you won't tell me abut Earth, will you at least tell me more about this mission?"