Des stared ahead, his expression aloof save for eyes that tried to recognize a face. Whatever he would have said was worded less eloquently by Tracy. "You guys know each other?" he asked, his gaze slowly dragging from Cynthia to Des and then back.<br/><br/>"Hm?" Des hummed absently before his senses came back and he looked at Tracy with only a faint hint that he'd registered that anything was said at all. "Oh! Yeah, I think we went to... high school? Or maybe it was junior high, but I definitely remember you." Avoiding Tracy's questioning glance, Des walked over to the display table, pillars of wax and wick and notes spread over the dark wood. "I can't say that candles are any consolation for busted bulbs if that's what you're getting at. And they definitely don't work as blinds, but maybe..." He plucked a dark green candle off of the table and held it horizontally in front of him, studying it intensely for a moment before putting it back down. "Nope, definitely won't work as blinds."<br/><br/>Tracy had to stifle a laugh at the sass, settling instead for a smirk. "So, do you use these to summon Satan in the back?"<br/><br/>Des nodded, a feigned look of deadpanned seriousness falling over his features. "Yeah man, I summoned like 12 Satans this morning, it was crazy." The two shared a look before laughing. "Nah, but honestly I don't know how much you believe in the supernatural, but the candles are more for boon than bane. The only reason you would use a candle to summon anything - which you shouldn't by the way, don't go picking out a Ouija board or anything - but you would use them more for protection than for actually summoning."<br/><br/>Tracy's smile faltered only slightly as he repressed the urge to cringe. Des seemed... nice. And catty, he liked that part, but the eighth grade called and they wanted their edgy Wiccan phase back. Tracy, being Tracy, had to ask the important questions though. "So... which Wal Mart candle represents protection?" he questioned, examining the candles in a sort of pseudoscientific study.<br/><br/>"Purple," Des answered immediately, jerking his chin to one particularly deep purple candle. "For most things, anyway. It's associated with the third eye and protects from most harms."<br/><br/>"I thought black candles were for protection," Tracy said, suddenly looking up. He was far more educated in maths than in faux religious bullshit, but he knew a little bit of this and that. "I thought burning a black candle was supposed to like-" He fumbled with the proper wording for a moment, gesturing with his hands helplessly. "Aren't they supposed to protect against evil shit?"<br/><br/>Des' eyebrows raised in a mild shock and he nodded. "Hey, you actually know some stuff, good on you," he quipped, though it sounded more like he was chastising Tracy for being a prick. Which, he was. "You're right. They<span style="font-style: italic">are</span>for protection against 'evil shit.' That's why I don't sell them. I don't want any association with that." He stopped and looked at Cynthia, hoping to drop the matter entirely. "If you're just looking for some ambient lighting, try blue."