Peaceful Meal

[casey]

--open

The Bar and Grill had always looked tempting. What with the rich aromas that drifted from it, and the people who wandered out, patting their stomachs and chatting amiably. It even had a great location: the downtown of small Masonville.

Until now, however, Casey hadn't managed to come there. Sure, he worked at the Academy nearby, and he even managed to make enough money to afford to come to a bar and grill. But things kept getting more and more hectic, and Casey rarely found the opportunity to go out somewhere to eat.

Lately, however, he had no choice.

Thanks to his Gift, Casey couldn't look scruffy. He simply had to slightly shift his appearance, and his two day growth vanished, along with bags under his eyes. Even with all the changes, there was something about the way the man carried himself that spoke of exhaustion.

The Agent wandered into the grill, managing to find a seat on his own. He plunked there, propping his elbows on the table and rubbing his face. Thanks to Scythe and other duties, though mostly Scythe, Casey couldn't eat peacefully at the Academy anymore. In fact, it seemed like the dragon had decided to stalk Casey whenever Casey happened to be in the Academy. It was awfully hard to enjoy a peaceful meal when someone stared at you, and muttered things about ketchup and crunchiness.

So Casey now sat at a grill, head in his hands, hoping that he could at least get five minutes of peaceful eating.

[The Bellamortès]

^{Anyone else is still free to jump in, I just couldn't leave poor Casey all alone.}

Rois did not enjoy working in the restaurant. It was extremely déclassé, dirty, hands-on stuff, forcing one to associate with the public in a friendly manner, and was just generally beneath her. However, one of her parents' more favoured employees had called in sick, and instead of firing her, they had asked Rois to cover her shift. And of course, Rois did whatever her parents asked of her, especially when it was something her younger brother and rival could not. Like, for instance, being a waitress.

So it was with great determination that she approached Casey's table, wearing a smile that looked only barely forced, quite the accomplishment if you knew anything about the girl. This was one of the employees of the Academy, she'd been informed, and so there was even more pressure on her to assure things went well. The last thing the family wanted was to give the Academy a reason to poke its nose where it didn't belong.

"How can I help you today, sir?" she said sweetly. Anyone who knew her would likely have burst out laughing upon hearing words of such a tone coming from her mouth, but then again, anyone who knew her would be smarter than to rouse her temper thusly.

"Would you care for something to drink, maybe?"

[casey]

Casey smiled at the waitress, grateful that she wasn't a maneating dragon who wanted to tear his face off and use it as a coaster. "Yes, I'd like a water?"

He looked around a bit to see if could find a menu, but either he was missing it or one wasn't readily present. Casey folded his hands in front of him, and looked up at Rois.

"I don't suppose you have a menu? Or maybe a daily special?" he asked. His relief at making it this far without being accosted or beeped was evident in his voice, which made the already pleasant Casey sound even more delightful. Almost cheery, really.

"Or recommendations," he added, "in case there's anything I really should try."

[The Bellamortès]

"One water," Rois confirmed, not bothering to write it down.

Simple enough.

She had just started to begin to turn and leave before Casey spoke up again. Unsurprisingly, this smallest of hitches pissed her off. Surprisingly, she contained the feeling completely, and simply smiled even brighter at the customer.

"I'm sorry, sir; our regular waitress is sick today and I hadn't realized no one had put menus at her tables. I'll have one brought right over!" She failed to mention that had he waited to be seated by the staff, he would've ended up at a table with a menu already there. It seemed like it probably wasn't the sort of thing you told the customer.

Before leaving to procure a menu and a water, she indulged Casey further by reciting to him the daily special and her personal recommendation. "Today's special is the gourmet pastas, and my personal favourite is," Rois didn't like pasta. Unlike the rest of her Italian family, she didn't see much special about it. It was one of many differences between her and her family, though, and as with the others, she tried to ignore it. "the Fettucine Alfredo."

She wanted to leave, she really did, but half-a**ing things was not her style. "Or if you want something lighter, you could try one of our club sandwiches. We just received the order from our grocer, so our lettuce is at it's freshest."

Service with a smile, Rois. Keep those lips curled up.

It was a damn good thing she was such a spectacular actress.