He nods understanding of your complaints, tries not to smile when you order a plain ordinary everyday coffee (although part of that might be the look you get from the catgirl, who could put Parisian waiters to shame with her expression), and chuckles when you ask the other question.<br/><br/><strong>"Oh, so you <em>do</em> want me to get philosophical? Or at least existential.  Can't help you, I'm afraid.  See, being more worldly than Dame Ingress is hardly an achievement.  Poor woman was pretty well cloistered by her folks even before she was kidnapped and afterwards...well, I'm not about to begrudge her any remaining attempts to stay as innocent as she can."</strong><br/><br/>For just a moment, you see something dark in his eyes.<br/><br/><strong>"What happened to her..."</strong><br/><br/>But it clears and he glances to one side, apparently hoping to recover a bit of composure before continuing.<br/><br/><strong>"It's an eternal city.  Every city and none.  You go wandering down lost alleyways around here, you never know where you'll end up.  Like I told you, it's a pocket dimension or something.  Personally, I prefer either '<em>kelipot</em>' or '<em>regio arcana</em>' but that's Mom's influence.  She was a bit of a wanna be archaeologist and it sort of rubbed off."</strong>His voice softens a bit.<strong>"Not that you want to hear about her.  Now, most folks who live here are pretty normal as far as that goes.  They might look a bit funny, but they're otherwise just like everybody else.  They want to get by, maybe get a little ahead, find someone to love, and go through life as best they can.  Normal.  Others...Alice.  Dame Ingress.  The Dragon.  <em>You</em>.  Something's touched you.  Something's changed you.  Made you something else.  Something powerful."</strong><br/><br/>He pauses as the catgirl comes back with your coffee, sets it in front of you, and seems on the verge of saying something when he turns his mismatched gaze on her.<br/><br/><strong>"Thanks.  That'll do."</strong><br/><br/>Something in his tone seems to scare her off, judging by how her tail puffs out. She beats a hasty retreat.  You feel it, too, and it's a jolt straight to your core.  Primal.  Powerful.<br/><br/><strong>"Where was I?  Right.  You know the 'what'.  It's the 'why' that you want.  And there I can't give you more than guesswork."</strong>