The Breakfast Club: Non-Hijacked Edition
Eating... breakfast
Featuring Joshua, Razathiel, Snype, Callimer, Alizai and Kaveri
Joshua stared, dumbfounded, looking outside of the hut in an almost fearful manner. He had wanted to meet with Guardia afterwards, but she had apparently left. Then that Golduck came and... truthfully, Joshua was afraid of him.
The Swadloon poked his head outside of the doorway to the hut. "I-is that madman gone yet?"
"Yes, he is." Razathiel confirmed. "And good riddance."
Joshua sighed in relief. "Good. I don't know if I can take this. It hasn't even been an hour and already I fear for my life." He shivered once, adjusting his coat and glancing around. "Did Guardia leave, somewhere?"
"Kehe, actually yeah she's looking for different Gold Tribe members to talk with. Its likely she'll be chatting with Penance later too. I was confronted for keeping a couple of secrets from her but we've worked it out. Kehe. Had to leak a bit of info about the thieves but hey, whatever helps the group out right?" Snype explained.
"Remind me again why he's even here," Joshua started, before shaking his head. "Actually, nevermind. I don't want to know."
"Believe me, I wish I knew. Paradox got knocked out cold when we confronted that Greninja. All he had to do was poke him in the head and boom. Knocked out cold. Funny enough, Paradox hasn't been around... which is a good thing. He'd only cause more trouble. I'm guessing you're going to talk to Guardia about that huh? Keheh... if I wasn't so focused on the conversation, I'd have done it myself..." Snype replied.
"That might have come up, yes..." Joshua started. He was about to head off to search for the Zangoose, when his stomach growled. Loudly. He had forgotten to eat before the meeting. "... so, do they have a place for us to eat, here?"
Snype thought about food for a moment. While his appetite was filled by the ice cream he had earlier, some proper breakfast wouldn't hurt... "Hmmm... shouldn't be too hard to spot a good place to eat. Its a pretty small village and all. Kehe... breakfast sounds pretty darn good about now." Snype said, rubbing his belly a little.
"Breakfast sounds fairly good- er, evil- er... reasonable, to me." Raz agreed after some deliberation.
Snype looked around for anywhere to eat...There seemed to be a small cafe not too far off for both breakfast and other edible desires. Snype took a whiff of the food being cooked inside and started to make his way over.
A low rumbling seemed to fill the air enough to actually make smaller pokémon feel it instead of just hearing it spread through the air. When all eyes turned to Cal his face darkened to the point where red almost overtook the green and he looked down bashfully, muttering "Sonuva..."
Joshua looked up at the Dragonite, the green dragon towering over his small form. Joshua grinned just slightly, noticing that Snype had walked off towards a nearby cafe. "Heh, well, I guess that's our cue, then."
Inside the cafe, Zai sat at a table, sipping a cup of tea and nibbling on a pastry. She glanced up from her classy little snack just as Snype entered the establishment. She didn't speak up at first, weighing the pros and cons of speaking to the small imp. He was a thief, but so was her best friend, so that wasn't an issue. He was sane compared to individuals such as Penance, and he wasn't nearly as annoying as the little dread fairy, Razberryal. She would most likely be traveling with the Sableye during this expedition, so she figured she may as well start speaking to him now.
"In search of food, Snype?" she asked casually as he walked by. She noticed a few more pokémon were in tow behind him.
Snype's ears perked up a bit as he heard the nearby voice. "Keheh, Yep. Turns out the ice cream wasn't enough to fill up my stomach. Keheh. I guess I have more of an appetite for gems but I doubt those are being sold here... kehe. Maybe I'll go search for some kinda cave later tonight. I take you're here for the same thing... uh..." Snype paused. "Heh...Sorry, I don't think I caught your name back at our last conversation about our backsides... what's your name?" Snype asked
Zai set down her cup. "Alizai Arashi. I'm known as Skuld within the Gold Tribe, but Zai is just as well."
"I think I'll stick with Zai. Keheh. Short and to the point! Just like Snype! I think you and I will get along just fine in that regard." Snype said with a grin as he sat at the table with her. "Sooo what kinda food do they got here anyways? I'm up for anything at this rate."
"Assorted pastries, sweets and beverages. Apparently they make some great pancakes, or so I've been told," Zai responded. "As you guessed, there's a stunning lack of gemstones or precious metals here, sadly. I don't think this fort is known for its glamour and riches."
Snype sighed. "Keheh.. yeah I noticed, unfortunately. Getting a good meal like that takes some sneaky antics. Keheh. I think I'll test out my taste buds with some good old pancakes." Snype said.
Zai nodded. "Good idea. Who's with you, by the way?" she asked, glancing back at the pokémon that had followed Snype in.
"Well of course we got Raz here, but a few others oughta be popping in. Cal and Joshua should be joining us very soon." He replied.
Zai's eyes narrowed a bit at the mention of Raz. She wasn't yet acquainted with Cal or Joshua, but she didn't think she really wanted to get any more acquainted with the Ralts.
Joshua wandered in slowly behind the others into the small cafe. It wasn't very busy, which suited the Swadloon just fine. There appeared to be only three 'mon working at this time; a Quilava, a Numel, and a Fletchinder. The three 'mon were taking turns with baking, cleaning, and taking the scant amount of orders that were coming through.
"Hmm, two breakfasts." Razathiel pondered, hopping his way into the cafe. "I suppose I probably deserve a treat, what with all the evil I've been suppressing." The Ralts opened his Magic Room and stored away his staff before shuffling toward Snype's table. He didn't feel particularly hungry, but he could certainly eat more. The ice cream, wondrous as it was, had left him satisfied but also open to the possibility of ingesting more. He jumped up onto his seat - adjustable, a pleasant surprise - spared a quick puzzled glance at Alizai, then snatched a menu and began perusing.
As soon as Cal stepped into the place yet another hungry groan issued forth from his body and all the workers looked towards the door for a moment before the Quilava shouted "I hear a customer!" And all three of them got a little more active in their preparations. Cal looked down nervously again, embarrassed by just how noisy his stomach was.
Raz closed his menu. "Bloody hell, Groudon is awakening, we must- oh, never mind." After spotting Cal, he returned to his browsing.
"Wow... It's been a long time since I went this long without eating... I think I might start a much more active eating schedule just to make sure this doesn't happen again..." Cal muttered to himself while he walked over to a random table and grabbed a menu to see what they had.
Ooooooh so many sweets, if nobody stops me I might get chubby in here.
Joshua took a seat opposite Cal. He wasn't sure about that Raz fellow, and while Snype seemed like good company... well, he was a thief. The King of Thieves, no less. The Swadloon felt more comfortable with a fellow Gold Tribesman, even though the Dragonite was easily several times his size. He read over the menu intently, muttering each meal to himself. "...Oran muffins... Mago pancakes... so many choices..."
"They've even got vanilla and razz berry cupcakes with cheri berries on top." Cal muttered to himself in perfect sync with Joshua. "So many decisions...I might empty my wallet today." The thought of all the wonderful things on the menu and the smell from the kitchen set off another loud growl from his stomach, making the chairs and table vibrate slightly.
The door swung open not even a second later and Kaveri poked her head in, glancing about. "I'm pretty sure I heard- Oh, yup, there he is." Sidling on over to the table the group was sitting at, the Floatzel squeezed in next to her brother on the side opposite Joshua. "Ya know, I sometimes think your stomach might be louder than your roar," she said, teasingly prodding Cal's belly.
Cal pushed his face further into his menu, despite how little of his big head it could cover. "Well, I couldn't find
you last night when it was about time for dinner because you were running off for your 'date'. And then I was tired and just fell asleep..."
Joshua glanced from his menu towards the Floatzel that entered. He smirked slightly at her comment, but it faded quickly, seeing as Cal was looking somewhat irritated at the jab. "I take it you two know each other?"
"What, you can't tell? He's my little bro!" Kaveri patted the top of Cal's head, careful to avoid the spike, as she picked up a menu with her other paw and flipped it open.
"Heh, little. Coming from a shrimp like you that always sounds wrong even though I know it's true." Cal continued with a chuckle.
Snype looked over to the group that had just entered and waved. "Hey guys! We're over here! Kehe. We're gonna ask a waiter for what we need. There's plenty of seats for everyone! At least, for those who can fit in a seat. Kehe." Snype said.
Joshua chuckled at Kaveri and Callimer's exchange. "Must be nice to have someone with you to depend on in the Gold Tribe." He looked over towards Snype, who was waving them down to join their table, then back towards Kaveri and Callimer. "Well... I guess we should move, huh?"
Cal shrugged and got up from the chair, when an idea occurred to him. He grabbed Kaveri and hefted her over his shoulder, carrying her over to the other table and setting her in a chair next to Raz. With his rather minuscule bit of revenge out of the way he pulled a larger chair over to the table and sat down, patting the empty seat next to him for Joshua. Joshua nodded, hopping up next to the Dragonite and once again reading the menu.
Kaveri had let out a squeak of surprise when she was lifted up, but otherwise went along with Cal carrying her contentedly enough. It just meant she could keep reading the menu as she was moved. When she noticed whom Cal had put her next to though, she smirked slightly and reached out to ruffle the Ralts' hair. "The ice cream not enough for your tiny stomach, Tiny?" Razathiel sighed angrily, closing his eyes and slowly shutting his menu. In an instant, he whirled on Jetstream, one hand pointed firmly at the Floatzel's snout.
"Listen here, you oversized Rattata! Care to explain to me what you find
so f*cking mystifying about my size!? YES. I am SMALL. I am AWARE. With that in mind, perhaps you should leave your idiotic, uninspired, pathetically redundant excuses for jokes at the door and actually leave me be for once, you irritating vermin! Do I make myself clear?"
Zai laughed from the other side of the table. "Perhaps if you didn't let it visibly irritate you, people wouldn't find it so compelling to make 'redundant excuses for jokes' at your expense."
"Don't even get me started on you! Ugh. I thought you Gold Tribe bastards actually cared for being virtuous. Clearly I was mistaken."
Zai took a sip of her tea. "Virtuous? Yes. That doesn't mean we won't make a few jokes, especially when aimed at someone who claims to be 'evil' and apparently likes to kill people for a pastime."
Raz pouted and folded his arms. "At least when I kill people they f*cking deserve it."
"I'm sure they do," Zai said, setting her tea back down.
Kaveri cocked her head, putting a finger to her chin in thought. "But if you only kill people who deserve to be killed, doesn't that make you less evil?"
"Pfft,
no," The Ralts waved her away. "You aren't even evil, I wouldn't expect you to understand."
"But what if I am evil? What if I'm just pretending not to be evil so that when I reveal how evil I am I can mess with everyone who thought I wasn't evil?" Kaveri rattled out. She was barely even paying attention to Raz anymore, her gaze browsing the menu once again.
"And there we go again." The Dreadmage said. "Deception isn't evil, it's annoying. Subtle differences."
"Oh, so that's why you're so annoying," Zai chirped.
"I'm not annoying, you're annoying!"
Kaveri glanced over at Raz with a raised brow. "Are you sure you're an adult?"
"Yes I'm sure!" The Ralts cried, then turned away from them. "Waiter! I demand a SANDWICH!"
"An adult, just immature," Zai said, glancing at Kaveri.
Snype snickered during the conversation. "Keheh, well this certainly escalated quickly. Hey Waiter, I wanna try one of those Mago pancakes. Kehe." Snype said before turning back to the group. He was tempted to vouch his own definition of evil, but wasn't really sure how comfortable most Gold Tribe members would feel if he started talking about his experiences in the Silver Tribe.
Cal shook his head and kept looking at his menu. "You gals aren't exactly making a case for us being any more mature than he is. 'The brave warriors of the gold tribe, taunting smaller pokemon for their size while toting equality and peace.' Aren't we the valiant protectors? Oooooooh pecha pie." He banged his fist on the table as softly as he could so it wouldn't flip. "Waiter! I'll have one of everything!"
"Oran and Persim sandwich. And a Kasib smoothie." Raz ordered - from the menu, not in his usual sense.
"Yeah, but we gotta have a little fun sometimes. And maybe we're just bad at our jobs." Zai giggled. Glancing at the food around her, she decided to order some pancakes as well.
"Keheh, this is the kind of conversation I'd expect from thieves! Maybe I'm starting to rub off the Gold Tribe or something? Kehe. My charm strikes again!" Snype said with a big grin.
"I suppose, considering my best friend is a thief," Zai responded.
"I guess I can't really blame Wildfire for my personality considering she barely even knew what a joke was...," Kaveri chuckled, scratching the back of her head then waving the waiter over. "Hmm, think I'll go with the Mago pancakes as well."
"Kehe, we all have a bit of a thief inside of us It seems! Guess we're all craving some pancakes. Heheh."
"Not me," Joshua said plainly. When the waiter came to him, he ordered a simple Pecha muffin with some assorted fruit. "I don't think I'd even
want to be a thief, even if I did have the skills..." he looked at Snype, realizing what he just said. "Erm... no offense."
"Keheh, none taken. The thief business isn't for everyone. I'd say its normally for those who really have nothing else to go back to honestly. Ask any of the thieves. Their reasoning will probably be along those lines." Snype explained.
"I don't have any thief in me." Cal casually weighed-in.
"You say your best friend is a thief, Zai? I might know em." Kehe." Snype replied
"Her name's Tebra, an Umbreon. Her mate, a Persian named Kesley, is also a thief." Zai said in answer to Snype.
"Really? Kehe. Funny you should mention but I actually ran into her back in Gold City. She helped save the third network point from that Greninja. Kept him in place for a good while. Pretty darn handy I gotta say. Keheh. I'll tell her ya said hi when we bump into eachother again." Snype said.
Zai nodded, impressed but not entirely surprised. "Thanks."
"I knew a thief once." Raz said.
"What'd you do, kill 'em?" Kaveri questioned casually.
"Yes, they tried to steal my staff." He paused. "I just realised that was a rather unsavoury thought. Oh well."
"So was this something recent and he succeeded and hid it before ya killed him or something? Cause I don't see your staff around anywhere," Kaveri said, eyeing Raz out of the corner of her eye. "Well, unless you lost it yourself."
Razathiel laughed. "Oh, no, that was a while ago. And my staff is safely stored away; Magic Room is a wonderful thing, especially when travelling."
"Is that so?" Kaveri smiled. "Nice to know."
"So then..." Joshua spoke up, seeking a change in the subject. As he was about to speak, the Quilava waiter came by with a large tray of their orders. As the plates were placed down in front of the proper 'mon, he continued. "... It looks like we're going to Tollen first."
When the Quilava set Cal's first two plates in front of him last, he nodded at him and made sure to assuage any concerns he might have. "I'm sure you can tell
your entire order at once wouldn't fit unless you wanted to go eat by yourself, so just let us know as you finish each one and we'll bring more...as long as you
can, in fact, pay for it all." Cal just nodded before digging into the Pecha Pie in front of him.
"You- you actually ordered everything on the menu?" Raz looked up at the dragon in surprise. "Well... good luck." The Dreadmage allowed himself the 'good', considering the sarcastic manner in which it was delivered.
"Oh, believe me, he doesn't need luck," Kaveri huffed, giving Cal's belly another prod. "It would be better to hope it's enough to fill him! Believe, I know, I have to cook for the damned behemoth."
Snype quickly started to munch on the pancakes that had been delivered, giving a smile to show that he was very pleased with the taste. "Keheh... so much food~ This oughta be fun to watch." Snype said, looking over to Cal before turning his head back to Joshua. "Yeah, I was actually considering Karn myself but something about Tollen is interesting... guess the mystery kinda appealed to me! Kehe." Snype said.
Cal finished his pecha pie quickly enough, somehow managing not to make a mess or any obscene noises, and wiped his mouth off. As soon as his first plate was clean he tapped the table with his hand again and shouted, "Next one up!" before starting on his razz berry bagels with cream cheese, while the workers in the kitchen hustled to keep up with his jaws and stomach. "Personally," he started between bites. "I'd prefer Tollen myself as well. I love mysteries, they're the majority of the books littered around our place. But we're racing against the clock, the dark, ominous, eldritch clock. Our allies, as well as our brothers and sisters are still fighting back home, dying even. My vote went to Karn because I felt it would be the fastest to deal with. Maybe we could even get it over with quickly and send them to Gold City so we'd have more time for the rest of our destinations."
"We don't know that'd it'd be easy, Cal. Don't forget their emperor gave Guardia a scar, and she's not some weakling." Kaveri paused for a moment to take a bite of pancake and swallow before continuing, "Besides, if Tollen doesn't know about Darkrai returning yet, any delay in alerting them could result in the entire nation being lost."
"Well it's like that Mareep said." Cal answered between bites. "Each option had plenty of pros and cons, what matters is that we decided and we know what we're doing now."
Snype nodded before taking another good chomp out of a chunk of his pancakes. "Yeah. I've never even been to Tollen, nor heard of it. To be frank, we're all at a disadvantage as soon as we get there. Well, besides the seekers, but hopefully we can learn something useful once we arrive," Snype said. If there was anything useful then perhaps it'd be good to expand the thieves. More ground to cover was never a bad thing.
Zai took a bite of her own pancakes, and then had to pause a moment to savor the taste before she could speak. They really were delicious. "I was entertaining the idea of going to either Tollen or Karn, but the air of mystery surrounding Tollen just seemed too intriguing to pass up." She took another bite and then glanced at Raz. "By the way, I'm not exactly well versed in the anatomy of Ralts, but I'm pretty sure they're supposed to have horns. And I'm pretty sure those horns are important."
Razathiel chuckled, swallowing his bite of sandwich. "Pah, they're not that important. Emotion sensors. Basically means I'm more your sort of level, as opposed to being an overemotional semi-moron."
"Don't forget more evil, because all those petty feelings don't get in your way." Cal added lightheartedly.
The Dreadmage waved a hand dismissively. "The horns have almost nothing to do with that. I'm just that evil naturally."
"Then again..." Cal kept on as if Raz hadn't answered. "Maybe you'd be even more evil with their greatest fears and insecurities."
"Well, the horns wouldn't actually allow him to see their worst fears, although I suppose he would be able to sense when they're most afraid, so with some trial and error, sure," Zai supplied.
Raz shrugged. "Well, I don't have them. Not much use toying with the possibility. Unless, perhaps, I'll get them back if I ever evol-" He stopped himself. "Hmph, doubt that's ever going to happen..."
Zai's ears perked up at Raz's sudden avoidance of the subject of evolution. "Oh? What, are you staying in your current form just to avoid growing a skirt? You know Kirlia can rip holes in dimensions and do a bunch of divination things, right?"
The Ralts laughed aloud at the mention of the skirt. "Heh, I think I could tolerate the skirt, if I were given the chance. More power isn't something I pass up lightly - especially seeing as I'm at least on-par with Gardevoirs my age. In fact, I think if I were to evolve now, I'd probably skip the 'skirt stage' altogether."
Zai tilted her head slightly, looking the Ralts up and down. "Even if you've built up the power, I'm not entirely sure it's possible to skip an evolutionary stage. I can't be sure, though, as no one in my family or any of my friends have more than one evolution. Still, I don't think I've heard of it being done. Besides, if you skipped to a Gardevoir, you'd just have a huge gown rather than a skirt."
Raz tutted the Absol. "Robe, please. At least let Gardevoirs have the privilege of denial."
Zai chuckled at that. "Deny it all you wish. Personally I like the gown, but I believe many Kirlia opt to wait to become a Gallade because of it."
"Keheh, a Gallade would be a good fit for you! If anything you could just get your own robe and still have something sharp to poke people with!" Snype added.
"Egh, I'm too invested in the psychic and magical arts," The Ralts shook his head. "Going physical wouldn't be worth it for getting rid of the gown- *aghem*, uh,
robe. Even with the addition of sharp, pokey things."
"Keheh, suit yourself. I think having some big blades hidden inside some robes would be cool but I'll save the idea for myself. Kehe." Snype replied.
"Yeah, because nobody would ever look at a Gallade and think they were any sort of threat as long as they cover up. Sabeleye are so harmless too. Maybe I should buy a cloak so they'll let me right into Anatellia's greatest libraries and I can overthrow Penance?" Cal chuckled. "I don't really think there's much point concealing anything on yourself unless you can conceal your whole self; after all, everymon can be a living weapon."
"Hey I never said it would be useful. I just thought it'd look neat! Keheh" Snype said with a laugh. "Like if you were suddenly wielding some kinda sword Cal! It may not be effective in battle but hey, it'd look kinda cool! I guess if you made friends with an Aegislash then it'd actually be helpful... kehe."
Cal's eyes widened near the end of Snype's vocalized thoughts. "Or imagine if I could get two...one to be a sword and one to be a shield...I WOULD BE SO STRONG!" He half stood up when he raised his voice, then looked around at the rest of the table and sat back down bashfully. He stuffed his face with the last of his oran berry pancakes before he could say anything else stupid. Just as he finished the pancakes the Quilava came back around with two more large plates on a cart, taking Cal's empty plates and replacing them with a Figy-berry omelette and an Emboar bacon sandwich.
Joshua listened to the others, not really adding much himself as he was content to sit back and observe. "Heh, I already have a cloak. Maybe I could hide some kind of... weapon, or something." When the waiter came back to bring more food for Cal, he looked at the Dragonite with an expression of shock, having only eaten about half of his own small muffin. "Are you sure you can afford this, Cal?"
"He'd better, cause I'm sure as heck not helping him pay!" Kaveri said, syrup all over her muzzle. She eyed one of Cal's plates speculatively for a moment, specifically the one with the Emboar bacon sandwich, then reach over, lifted the bread off and plucked the bacon out. "I take that back, I'll help pay for that one."
The gluttonous Dragonite just kept eating without showing any signs of noticing the food-snatching; he could still taste the bacon juice on the sandwich and that was good enough for him. "Don't worry, I can handle it, I never really buy anything besides food and books."
Snype finished up his breakfast, giving his belly a pat. "Keheh, well I'm sure not paying for it! So I should probably head out before anyone starts pointing fingers at me... kehe." Snype said, implying that Cal would end up paying for the entire bill. Saved him some cash anyways! The Sableye scooted off from his chair. "I gotta look around for someone anyways. Kehe. I'll catch you all later." Snype said as he began to make his way out the door.
"Wait, what are you-" Joshua started, but Snype had already left. In hindsight, he really shouldn't have been surprised that someone with
The King of Thieves as his moniker would walk away without paying. He grumbled silently to himself, slapping a handful of coins on the table to cover both his and the Sableye's tab.
Zai laughed a bit at that. "Well, breakfast seems to be winding down for all but Cal here. Good luck with all that food, big guy." She added her own coins to the mix as the finished the last bite of her pancakes, and then left the cafe.
Cal kept eating throughout the last bits of conversation, finishing the last dish, a mixed berry parfait, and leaning back in his seat to sigh contentedly.
Raz's eyes suddenly narrowed in suspicion. "Wait just an Arceus-damned second..." The Ralts backflipped from his chair onto the headrest, then called out to the Sableye attempting to leave the building. "Hey! Minion! Get your arse back over here NOW!"
Snype's ears twitched and looked back to Raz. "What? If you were at all evil you'd be joining me. Kehe." Snype said with a smirk.
"Don't lecture me about evil, fool! I'm evil, not a dickhead! Now pay for your own f*cking meal, because I sure as hell aren't! Just because I'm your master, doesn't mean I'm feeding you! Giratina's wings, I need to teach you one or two things about evil..."
Snype sighed and crossed his arms. "Geez. Keheh. You have no idea." Snype instead threw a couple coins on the counter as a tip to the waiter. "I'm pretty sure I have a good grasp of being evil." Snype said with a more stern expression.
The Dreadmage sniffed. "Please, I'm the master of evil! I was evil before I was born! If there were universities in evil, I'd have
at least a Ph.D in evil." The Ralts paced along his headrest. "I once met someone who thought they were as evil as me; turns out they weren't, because I was more evil. I'm so evil, in fact, that sometimes people look at me and say 'Arceus, that Ralts is evil!' because they know that I'm just that evi-" Raz started for a moment, looking down and blinking in surprise. "Bloody hell, did you seriously finish that entire order?"
The Dragonite covered his mouth with a napkin to stifle a burp. "Of course I did, I was hungry. Can't let perfectly good food go to waste, not like we'll be carrying around a bunch of to-go boxes when we finally start the mission."
Joshua almost laughed at the Ralts' reaction, just looking at Cal in slight disbelief. He supposed it made sense for a large Dragonite like himself to eat so much, but it didn't make it any less appalling. "I suppose so, though you might want to consider reducing your intake..." With his meal finished and paid for, the Swadloon hopped off the seat, turning to the others. "Well, it was...
interesting dining with you all. If you'll excuse me, I should probably get going." With that, Joshua turned and left, shuffling past the waiters as he made his way outside.
Kaveri licked up the syrup and crumbs that stained the fur around her mouth, smacking her lips in satisfaction as she dropped a few coins of her own on the table. "Watchman's right, if you don't watch it, you'll get even fatter!" she snickered, prodding Cal's belly with a little more force than was really necessary.
"That could be a tactical advantage, actually," Raz mused. "Squishing enemies can be surprisingly effective. Just, erm... if we ration food, I'll keep an eye on you."
"I'm not fat..." Cal muttered. "And I don't eat this much all the time, I'm not a Snorlax. Plus after this...er, splurge I actually won't need to eat for a while. And if I keep eating like a regular 'mon with all this power stored up it can be like a backup battery when I fight! Sort of, anyway. Don't worry Raz, I won't sit on you, I wouldn't want to be thrown off. And if I DID smoosh you then I would feel bad because I'm not evil, I'm supposed to do the opposite of squishing my allies." He stood up and reached into his coin pouch to pay for his food, when he heard voices coming from the kitchen.
Shortly the Quilava who'd been consistently hustling between the kitchen and the tables thanks to Cal's appetite ran back to the table and looked at Cal expectantly. "Just wondering sir, but might you be the one who walloped that cooky duck earlier?"
"Well done on that, by the way." Raz noted.
Cal blinked curiously, not sure why that was relevant. "Yes... I was. Why do you ask?"
"Ha, I knew it! Well me and the boys back in the kitchen were-"
"I'm a girl!" The Numel shouted.
"As I was saying, the boys and I were trying to decide if it was you or not. He was quite the menace when he thought he'd been left out of whatever's going on. In fact, Cole - he's the Fletchinder - was one of the 'mon glued to that whole mess. Anyway, we appreciate you giving him a knock for that mess, so the food's-"
"Free?!?" Cal exclaimed with his eyes practically sparkling.
"No! What are you, crazy? Do you
know how much food you just ate? We can't afford to give all that away, but I was going to say half off."
"Oh, well that's nice too.' Cal rubbed the back of his head and fished out the necessary amount, leaving it on the table and thanking the Quilava. His shoulders drooped a bit and he did his best not to let it show. "Well I better get going too, I've got... something I need to take care of. Kav, I'll see you later, have fun with whatever for a bit, I'll find you when I'm done." As soon as he finished he pushed his chair back under the table, forgetting it wasn't originally from the table anyways, and lumbered towards the door.
Kaveri watched Cal leave quietly, a small frown replacing her usual smile. She wasn't stupid, and she knew her brother well enough to know he was down about something. But whatever it was, it didn't look like he wanted to talk about it right now; she could bug him later. "Righto, I'll be off as well. Nice chit-chatting with you all!" She waved to the group before following Cal's lead and leaving.
"Keh, guess I'll be following suit. I need to find Penance and chat with the guy about some stuff. I'll be around if you all need me." Snype said as he left the restaurant.
"Hmm." Raz murmured in agreement as he opened his Magic Room and begun to scour it for loose change. He'd probably have some kind of business to attend to, as well... though it'd probably be more evil.