Luke's Diner, Saturday

[what_the_shock]

It was a hot day out today. Did Miguel care? Not one bit. He was still drinking his coffee. And when that was done, he made the specials board.

The cook gave him a side-eye.

"What? It's not like it can be that much hotter back there."

Today's Specials:
Chicken flambe with Irish whiskey
Strawberry crepes flambe
Baked Alaska

Hey, so sue him, he missed Beaker!

Luke's was open!

Comments

[hasaknightjob]

Steven had said the place was good so sure, Marc would check it out. Had to get lunch from somewhere, right?

Marc went up to the counter. "This where I can get a burger?"

[what_the_shock]

"If you want a real one and not that crap Mooby's says is one," Miguel said, grinning. "What can I get for you?"

[hasaknightjob]

"Real sounds great," Marc said noticing how in some universes this guy sounded exactly like him. "Can I get a regular burger. Medium, lettuce, tomato, fries. Oh - and no cheese."

[what_the_shock]

"Got it." Miguel jotted that down and sent it back. "Something to drink?"

[hasaknightjob]

"Water's fine." Marc looked Miguel over. Since he and Steven were more open about their knowledge these days, he was able to say, "You're not Duke."

[what_the_shock]

"Not last I checked." He held out his hand. "Miguel O'Hara."

[hasaknightjob]

"Marc Spector," Marc replied, fine for the shake. Then, filled with people skills as always, he asked, "So what's your deal?"

[what_the_shock]

Miguel side-eyed him as he got the water. "My deal?"

[hasaknightjob]

"Yeah," Marc said. "Everybody here's got a deal, right? Something that makes an island of vampires and talking squirrels look like a great place to call home."

[what_the_shock]

Miguel shrugged and set the water down. "Joined a dimension-hopping group of heroes trying to fix timelines, got traumatized a few too many times, decided to settle down. You?"

Hey, he'd asked.

[hasaknightjob]

"Avatar of the Egyptian god of the moon and night sky," Marc replied. Hey, he never said he wasn't going to lay his cards down in kind.

[what_the_shock]

"Sure you should be out before dark?" quipped the man in dark glasses with red eyes and fangs.

[hasaknightjob]

"Rarely sure I should be around people at all," Marc replied, in what passed for him making a quip. "But that's got nothing to do with Konshu."

[what_the_shock]

"There's dozens of us that shouldn't be around anyone," Miguel said, grinning. "We've got a good company of antisocials." Yes, he thought he was funny. "Konshu, is that his name? Her name? Their name?"

[hasaknightjob]

"I'd ask where the meetings are but I'm guessing they don't advertise," Marc said. Hey, he could make jokes sometimes. "Yeah, Konshu's a he."

[what_the_shock]

"Drunk and Bored club, Saturdays on the beach, weather permitting," Miguel said. "It's been a while; we should start up again now it's warmer. You drink?"

[hasaknightjob]

All right, Marc was starting to appreciate Steven urging him to go out and meet people. "Very much so. So far only tried the Devil's Nest. Anywhere else good for people like us?"

[what_the_shock]

"Caritas, Wednesday nights," Miguel said. "Summer makes jello shots. They're alcoholic and great. Kitty's on Tuesdays there, too; she's apparently good if you're into the 'talking to the bartender' thing. The house band are zombies, though, if that's a problem."

He shrugged. "Other than that, grab a six pack or something and hang out in public, you'll get people joining in."

[hasaknightjob]

"That's the karaoke place, right?" Marc asked. Steven had made note of it so he knew too. Marc looked skeptical. "Seems like that'd mean a lot of people."

[what_the_shock]

"Eh, I've never done karaoke," Miguel said. "Not a lot of people do. Whether it's busy or not depends on the night. And on what's been going on the week before."

Sometimes people needed to drink more than others.

[hasaknightjob]

"All right. Wednesdays. I'll keep it in mind." Marc still wasn't wholly convinced but Steven had wanted to check the place out so he could always do that on behalf of both of them. "Guess the right bartender makes the difference."

[what_the_shock]

"Apart from Summer and Kitty, Annie at the Devil's Nest is good." Miguel shrugged. "Those are the only ones I've met. And of course there's the mainland," he pointed out, "though the people here will get it when you talk about the crazy, where the mainlanders won't."

[hasaknightjob]

"Eric at Devil's Nest wasn't so bad either," Marc said. He smirked. "And no matter where I am, nobody gets my crazy."

Well Steven did but by definition that didn't count.

[what_the_shock]

"Oh, right. Mr. Leather pants. He's okay," Miguel agreed. "And hey, you'd be surprised. We get all kinds of crazy around here. Regular types and multiversal weirdness types. Maybe no two exactly the same, but enough we can understand each other."

The burger and fries came up, and Miguel set them down in front of Marc.

[hasaknightjob]

"We'll see." Marc added ketchup to his fries. "Plan is I stick around for a while so people will get a taste eventually. Personally not laying any money on whether they want more or a petition starts to get me into a loony bin."