The Hidden Door-A Role Play (AKA The Most Dangerous Coffee Shop II)

[RoostersAreAwesome]

Nat was overjoyed at getting a reception and completely forgot about her pursuit of Blue for the moment.
"THNEED IT IS."
I promise she was really trying to say indeed, but now that her mind started traveling down that track...
She whipped off 'her' coat and sauntered over to Juliana with fur in hand, looking for all the world like a used car saleswoman ready to sell or make you feel shame for consuming the free cocoa she made the mistake of wasting on a miser like you.
"Everybody needs a thneed."

Juliana gave her a quizzical look before sticking out her hand assuming Thneed was her name. "Then you'll have to be mine. I'm Juliana, and you're my official Thneed."

Charlie un-invisiblied himself and stumbled over to the two, Hana’s katana swinging dangerously from one hand. “EVERYboDy NeeDS a THNeEeEd!” He sang, his whole sentence a horrifyingly purposeful voice crack. To any onlooker he might’ve appeared like he had three too many mugs of ale. However, there were several other possibilities. 1. He was incredibly sleep-deprived. 2. He had drank too much ale. 3. He was just being his not-so-normal weird self. Or, 4- a combination of the above.
To be honest, it was most likely a combination of the above.

I know the feeling, thought Cam.
Kyle returned with Alex, Emma, and Kylan’s brother. One was occupied with stroking Rylie’s head.
“I have the kids, do you have the food?” He asked, as if they were in some terrible rush.
He’s probably never ordered food at a restaurant before, Cam realized. “No, it’s been less than five minutes,” she said.
But this tavern had faster service than your usual restaurant, and trays were soon on the table.
“Do you want something for dinner?” Cam asked the kids gently, but she was thinking This isn’t a question and it isn’t optional. Be compliant and eat so I can go to bed.

“MmmmMm” Alex grunted, unhappy that the mean little man on his cat had woken him up from his pleasant nap on the floor. He rubbed his eyes and pet at the tip of Rylie’s enormously fluffy tail.

 

[Amer]

Charlie un-invisiblied himself and stumbled over to the two, Hana’s katana swinging dangerously from one hand. “EVERYboDy NeeDS a THNeEeEd!” He sang, his whole sentence a horrifyingly purposeful voice crack. To any onlooker he might’ve appeared like he had three too many mugs of ale. However, there were several other possibilities. 1. He was incredibly sleep-deprived. 2. He had drank too much ale. 3. He was just being his not-so-normal weird self. Or, 4- a combination of the above.
To be honest, it was most likely a combination of the above.

“MmmmMm” Alex grunted, unhappy that the mean little man on his cat had woken him up from his pleasant nap on the floor. He rubbed his eyes and pet at the tip of Rylie’s enormously fluffy tail.

(I laughed out loud when I read this.)
Korim watched as Charlie staggered across the room with a weapon. The fact that the weapon was sheathed did barely anything to assuage his fears. Another fear: What exactly was a thneed?
He had to remind himself that the definition of a thneed was void while a loopy Charlie swung around an otherworldly weapon. Which could very well be the aforementioned thneed.
“You don’t need a thneed!” he said, grabbing the katana’s hilt.
~
Rylie purred.
“Eat please,” Cam said, cleverly concealing her exasperation. “Then you can go back to sleep.” She didn’t know why she was trying to force him. If he didn’t want to eat, that wasn’t supposed to be her problem.
But his brother seemed... preoccupied.

Noah got his own plate and reached for the bread first. Cam deftly snatched it and took a bite out of it, after all, he had eaten hers. “Eat your vegetables,” she said.

 

[Rose Quartz]

Cam sucked on her teeth. “Yeah, we should probably round them up.” She imagined Kyle riding Rylie around, herding the children to bed like a cowboy herding cattle, and then she imagined a drunk Kyle. It was not a pleasant image. Given his spastic instability, he’d be completely unpredictable. And even a little was too much for him.
But even if he did drink, he’d probably be pretty harmless, she realized. It was hard to imagine him instigating a bar brawl.
“Korim, can you order more food for the kids?” Cam asked.
He was all too happy to oblige. He seemed to like any excuse to bring the blonde closer to him, even though he’d come to the conclusion she was lightyears out of his league. He must have been a little affected though because Cam swore she saw him flex at her.
She giggled.
Love turns people’s brains into mush.

Kyle conveniently emerged from the kitchen atop Rylie -to avoid poorly coordinated footsteps- who had his tail in the air and was licking his lips.
A busboy was clearing abandoned glasses, several instruments were left on the ground, and the few remaining occupants in the room looked less than healthy.
It could just be the regular post-party cleaning, or it could be the clearing of the spoils of an epic barfight.
Wow, they really do need me, Kyle thought.
“What’d I miss?” he asked.

Immediately after the threat, Korim’s eyes grew wide. Oh no. She’s back. What does she want with me now? But where could he hide without looking like an absolute coward?
He got instant regrets for giving her permission to hunt him down... er... rejoin the party.
“I never assumed such a thing,” he said, feigning calm.

Thela nudged Vies with her elbow as she took their order into the kitchen giving her a grin and a wink. Vies attempted to remain oblivious to what she was implying. But she'd been indirectly flirting with Korim all evening. Brushing past him a little too close and smiling like they had some kind of inside joke between them. The rest of the new comers barely seemed to notice her at all, so his attention seemed to shine extra brightly.
"Can you do this order up quickly?" She asked the cook hanging the written order up for him to see, and reading aloud what was on it. The chef squinted his eyes at her, as though he was trying to read her mood.

"Thela says you've found yerself a man. Should I do up somethin' special for 'im? Or is this someone else?" Vies tried to keep from blushing, but pretended it was indignation that was causing it when she failed.

"Oh, you know Thela! Always matching me up with every new boy that wanders in." She said putting her fists on her hips. "This is for the kids with him, so make it quick." She turned away with a quick twirl of her skirt before he saw the grin that spread across her face. Going back to the job of cleaning up so the main room could be set up for sleeping in.

 

[Rose Quartz]

Charlie un-invisiblied himself and stumbled over to the two, Hana’s katana swinging dangerously from one hand. “EVERYboDy NeeDS a THNeEeEd!” He sang, his whole sentence a horrifyingly purposeful voice crack. To any onlooker he might’ve appeared like he had three too many mugs of ale. However, there were several other possibilities. 1. He was incredibly sleep-deprived. 2. He had drank too much ale. 3. He was just being his not-so-normal weird self. Or, 4- a combination of the above.
To be honest, it was most likely a combination of the above.

“MmmmMm” Alex grunted, unhappy that the mean little man on his cat had woken him up from his pleasant nap on the floor. He rubbed his eyes and pet at the tip of Rylie’s enormously fluffy tail.

(I laughed out loud when I read this.)
Korim watched as Charlie staggered across the room with a weapon. The fact that the weapon was sheathed did barely anything to assuage his fears. Another fear: What exactly was a thneed?
He had to remind himself that the definition of a thneed was void while a loopy Charlie swung around an otherworldly weapon. Which could very well be the aforementioned thneed.
“You don’t need a thneed!” he said, grabbing the katana’s hilt.
~
Rylie purred.
“Eat please,” Cam said, cleverly concealing her exasperation. “Then you can go back to sleep.” She didn’t know why she was trying to force him. If he didn’t want to eat, that wasn’t supposed to be her problem.
But his brother seemed... preoccupied.

Noah got his own plate and reached for the bread first. Cam deftly snatched it and took a bite out of it, after all, he had eaten hers. “Eat your vegetables,” she said.

The momentary apprehension at a boy suddenly appearing quickly faded, as he was barely able to stand, even if he was holding a weapon he didn't seem to be much of a threat.
"Well, get your own. She's mine." Juliana said pulling Nat toward her by the fur jacket she had draped over her arm. Korim interrupted rather quickly insisting Charlie didn't need one and tried to take the katana away. "See, you can't have her. Cause he says so."

 

[Amer]

Thela nudged Vies with her elbow as she took their order into the kitchen giving her a grin and a wink. Vies attempted to remain oblivious to what she was implying. But she'd been indirectly flirting with Korim all evening. Brushing past him a little too close and smiling like they had some kind of inside joke between them. The rest of the new comers barely seemed to notice her at all, so his attention seemed to shine extra brightly.
"Can you do this order up quickly?" She asked the cook hanging the written order up for him to see, and reading aloud what was on it. The chef squinted his eyes at her, as though he was trying to read her mood.

"Thela says you've found yerself a man. Should I do up somethin' special for 'im? Or is this someone else?" Vies tried to keep from blushing, but pretended it was indignation that was causing it when she failed.

"Oh, you know Thela! Always matching me up with every new boy that wanders in." She said putting her fists on her hips. "This is for the kids with him, so make it quick." She turned away with a quick twirl of her skirt before he saw the grin that spread across her face. Going back to the job of cleaning up so the main room could be set up for sleeping in.

(Gosh, what have I done?
I should have seen this coming.
Korim isn’t ready for commitment, it was just a flirtation Thela, stop freaking out! Lol)
When Vies reentered the main room, Korim was holding the hilt of Charlie’s thneed. “Never mind, you can have your thneed back,” he muttered, putting the hilt back in Charlie’s hands and carefully wrapping Charlie’s shaking fingers around it.
He didn’t care what Vies thought of the sword in Charlie’s hands, because they weren’t in his hands. He wasn’t supposed to be playing babysitter, but it seemed in Kyle’s absence he always had to.
“Need any help?” He asked, rolling up his sleeves so it would flatter his impressive muscles.

 

[RoostersAreAwesome]

(I laughed out loud when I read this.)
Korim watched as Charlie staggered across the room with a weapon. The fact that the weapon was sheathed did barely anything to assuage his fears. Another fear: What exactly was a thneed?
He had to remind himself that the definition of a thneed was void while a loopy Charlie swung around an otherworldly weapon. Which could very well be the aforementioned thneed.
“You don’t need a thneed!” he said, grabbing the katana’s hilt.
~
Rylie purred.
“Eat please,” Cam said, cleverly concealing her exasperation. “Then you can go back to sleep.” She didn’t know why she was trying to force him. If he didn’t want to eat, that wasn’t supposed to be her problem.
But his brother seemed... preoccupied.

Noah got his own plate and reached for the bread first. Cam deftly snatched it and took a bite out of it, after all, he had eaten hers. “Eat your vegetables,” she said.

Alex was about to let loose a drowsy protest, but then he saw Noah reach for the food. With that one gesture, the ancient instinct of children was ignited inside him like a phoenix bursting out of ash.
Competition.
Alex’s hand shot out, not as quick as lightning, but perhaps as quick as a well-fed snake. His fist shot up victoriously as he grasped his prize: bread.

The momentary apprehension at a boy suddenly appearing quickly faded, as he was barely able to stand, even if he was holding a weapon he didn't seem to be much of a threat.
"Well, get your own. She's mine." Juliana said pulling Nat toward her by the fur jacket she had draped over her arm. Korim interrupted rather quickly insisting Charlie didn't need one and tried to take the katana away. "See, you can't have her. Cause he says so."

(Gosh, what have I done?
I should have seen this coming.
Korim isn’t ready for commitment, it was just a flirtation Thela, stop freaking out! Lol)
When Vies reentered the main room, Korim was holding the hilt of Charlie’s thneed. “Never mind, you can have your thneed back,” he muttered, putting the hilt back in Charlie’s hands and carefully wrapping Charlie’s shaking fingers around it.
He didn’t care what Vies thought of the sword in Charlie’s hands, because they weren’t in his hands. He wasn’t supposed to be playing babysitter, but it seemed in Kyle’s absence he always had to.
“Need any help?” He asked, rolling up his sleeves so it would flatter his impressive muscles.

Charlie looked between Juliana and Korim. All he knew was that everyone was trying to take his thneed. However, at this point he had lost his train of thought and forgotten what a thneed even was or why everyone kept saying it. His memory of what he had just said about thneeds had been wiped away as he tried to figure out why he was being stared at.
When Korim got distracted, Charlie slowly moved a finger towards his nose, determined to poke it. Then, he was released and instantly became absorbed with the katana- the thneed? -again.

 

[Rose Quartz]

Colby emerged on command, looking like an absolute wreck. He slid into the open seat most local to Kipp and all but sank into it. "I don't know her," he muttered furiously, his horribly understocked two paws multitasking between folding his ears down and covering his eyes. Seeing his best friend drunk had done quite a number on him. "This can't be happening."

Kipp smiled at Colby's anxiety over his friends caziness. "Don't worry, it's not that bad. At least she hasn't spotted you yet." He whispered, giving him a pat on the shoulder.

“MmmmMm” Alex grunted, unhappy that the mean little man on his cat had woken him up from his pleasant nap on the floor. He rubbed his eyes and pet at the tip of Rylie’s enormously fluffy tail.

Rylie purred.
“Eat please,” Cam said, cleverly concealing her exasperation. “Then you can go back to sleep.” She didn’t know why she was trying to force him. If he didn’t want to eat, that wasn’t supposed to be her problem.
But his brother seemed... preoccupied.

Noah got his own plate and reached for the bread first. Cam deftly snatched it and took a bite out of it, after all, he had eaten hers. “Eat your vegetables,” she said.

Kyle somehow managed to herd all the stray kids on his own to the table. Which was truely and utterly amazing. Kipp had been told before that getting kids to do anything you wanted was like herding cats. Maybe it was that Kyle had practice with that so it was easy for him.

He helped Torin up onto a seat and put a random plate of food in front of him, assuming he'd feed himself despite the dopey exhausted look on his face. (I actually don't know which kids belong to who. Torin belongs to River right? Whose is who?) Kipp looked to the table in the corner where Siena, Grafe, and the two Borelean kids had been hiding all evening. The tiny half deer girl was alseep on Siena's lap. And there were half eaten plates of food on the table they sat at. They'd apparently taken care of themselves earlier. Were there other kids that needed food? Fred (@Butterscotchbitesfinger ) was the only one left who would even sort of qualify as a kid. Kipp wondered if he'd be annoyed that he thought of him like that. He didn't exactly, but he was still quite a bit younger than him, and for all he knew had gotten himself into the alcohol and had passed out somewhere.

 

[FrankieDoodle]

Kevin eyed Aria as she staggered away, a frown pulling down the edges of his lips. He knew he should stop her, tell her to sit down and drink some water.
Yet instead of being the responsible adult, he let her walk away, leaving her to become someone else’s problem for once.
He turned away, staring into his empty mug. The sounds of dancing feet and loud music started to fade, and before he knew it, it was just him, the other people from Earth, and a few Borealians.
He sat up straighter, stretching as he looked around the tavern. Everyone seemed to be having fun, and deciding he didn’t want to be left out, he stood up and moved closer.

 

[Rose Quartz]

Kevin eyed Aria as she staggered away, a frown pulling down the edges of his lips. He knew he should stop her, tell her to sit down and drink some water.
Yet instead of being the responsible adult, he let her walk away, leaving her to become someone else’s problem for once.
He turned away, staring into his empty mug. The sounds of dancing feet and loud music started to fade, and before he knew it, it was just him, the other people from Earth, and a few Borealians.
He sat up straighter, stretching as he looked around the tavern. Everyone seemed to be having fun, and deciding he didn’t want to be left out, he stood up and moved closer.

"OH! Kevin! Hi." Kipp said, smiling at his sudden appearance. He had spotted Alex grabbing the food Noah had been reaching for, and since Cam had also just done that, he was expecting some kind of fight to break out and was attempting to put himself between the two boys before that happened. "Uhh, which one of these kids is yours? Do you have a kid?" He asked, randomly grabbing a handful of what looked like sweet potato french fries and dumping them on to Noah's plate.

 

[Rose Quartz]

(Gosh, what have I done?
I should have seen this coming.
Korim isn’t ready for commitment, it was just a flirtation Thela, stop freaking out! Lol)
When Vies reentered the main room, Korim was holding the hilt of Charlie’s thneed. “Never mind, you can have your thneed back,” he muttered, putting the hilt back in Charlie’s hands and carefully wrapping Charlie’s shaking fingers around it.
He didn’t care what Vies thought of the sword in Charlie’s hands, because they weren’t in his hands. He wasn’t supposed to be playing babysitter, but it seemed in Kyle’s absence he always had to.
“Need any help?” He asked, rolling up his sleeves so it would flatter his impressive muscles.

( IKR XD they can just exist right? We don't need to keep it going. )

Vies would have instantly accepted, except rules being as they were she wasn't supposed to let customers help. She looked Charlie up and down as she tried to decide just how much Thela would care if she broke that rule. Probably not much at all.

She tried not to laugh at how hard he was trying to impress her, and nodded with a suppressed smile that showed her dimples.
"I need to move that table." She said pointing at one of the heavy round wooden tables in the middle of the floor.