Waffle House Waffle Squarf Victory Party, Friday

[heroic_jawline]

Steve hadn't felt right about stealing anything as a way of fighting back, so he'd spent his time trying to convince the TV people to ask for higher wages and dental benefits. His first sign that something had changed was TV people disappearing, then the smoke coming from the forest, and the coffee shops popping back out of existence.

The cobblestones on the streets and sidewalks returned, and with a final groan, the steps came back around town just as Tino trundled up the street with a Walmart shopping cart and an enormous big screen TV.

Steve gave him a disappointed shake of his head as Tino struggled to get his ill-gotten wares up the stairs, then blinked as he noticed that the Waffle House was still, improbably, jammed into a corner. It wasn't without its damage from reality reasserting itself--the sign now read WAFFLE SQUARF--but it had been a very long week and while Steve was inexplicably craving shawarma, pecan pancakes would do just as well.

He gave the staff a polite smile as he entered and sat down at what he'd noticed last time was the least sticky booth and started scrolling his phone, deleting spam ads with extreme prejudice today.

A story about a group who went into breakfast places like this and tipped $100 from each diner caught his eye. He'd do the same thing for however many people joined him: he could more than afford to, and it was probably just good sense to keep the Waffle House people appeased, right?

[OOC: Tino modded with permission, post-burninating party up for Raiden-mun who has been felled by a headache! Waffle House will disappear at midnight tonight, only to reappear post-BDEs and whenever your character is either roaringly drunk or stupidly hungover. Spirit Halloween will relocate to the burned-out hulk of Walmart tomorrow and disappear--along with said hulk-- on Tuesday!]

Comments

[seriesofbaddecisions]

Sabine, regretting at least one decision, parked her shopping cart off to the side and plopped into a seat. "So what's good here?"

[heroic_jawline]

"Everything," Steve said with a grin. "Do you like breakfast?"

[seriesofbaddecisions]

"It's normally fine but sounds like the best idea right now," Sabine admitted.

[heroic_jawline]

"The hashbrowns have a lot of choices," Steve admitted. "I just get them all the way."

[imafuturist]

"Well, that was a thing," Tony said slowly, watching the carts of stuff from the window.

[heroic_jawline]

"Still kind of a thing," Steve said. "Welcome to the Waffle Squarf. Did the coffee kiosk disappear too?"

[imafuturist]

Tony sighed. "I'll miss the Starbucks in our building."

[heroic_jawline]

"Well, there's nothing stopping you from putting one back," Steve said.

[deathsmajesty]

"Tony, darling, I didn't see you at the Walmart, did I?" She knew the answer, but it was an important setup for the next thing she was going to say.

[imafuturist]

"Oh no, I was sticking with Steve who was working very hard on trying to unionize the, ah, guests?" It didn't work at all, but Tony was being a supportive husband here.

[deathsmajesty]

Liliana had no idea what a union even was, really.

"Well, I know where I'm hoping to see you," she said. "Considering I just survived two months of construction work to make sure I had a ballroom ready to host a Halloween party in."

[carbsliftthespirit]

Raiden had ditched his cart and Gray's after dragging them as far as he reasonably could with the stairs back, with plans to go back for them later once Gray was conscious to deal with his own cute thing addiction.

Now, he stepped into the Waffle Squarf with Gray draped over his shoulder, earning a side eye from one of the waitresses. "He has a condition," he explained, and she shrugged and went back to what she was doing.

(Thank yooooouuuuuuu.)

[heroic_jawline]

Steve waved. "Hi! Was storming the Walmart exhausting?"

[carbsliftthespirit]

"Ah, you know Gray," Raiden said as he laid Gray down in a booth. The nearest server looked like they might say something about the wisdom of doing that, but then thought better of it and continued minding their own business. "If it's not naptime now, it's gonna be, sooner or later. He'll be up soon." He'd better be. All those Squishmallows weren't gonna carry themselves to the dorms.

[heroic_jawline]

"Gonna order for him, then?" Steve asked.

[sword_chocobro]

Prompto threw himself into a booth with a happy, tired sigh, getting himself comfortable as Gladio and Ignis joined him in a much more reserved fashion. He whipped out his phone to quickly update Liz on what had happened and let her know he'd be back that evening. Gladio, who would be updating Nell eventually as well, gave the place a look around, shaking his head a little, but he had to grin at a certain familiar feeling that crashing at a diner after a big fight gave him.

"Well," he said, "it's not exactly a Crow's Nest, but I guess it'll do."

"Awww, man!" said Prompto, with a small laugh, but it was a small one. "That did kinda feel a little like the old days, right? Coming in after a hunt, splurging...well, as much as Iggy would allow, anyway, with our spoils on some some fries and a Kenny's classic! I bet Noct would have loved something like that..."

"Can you imagine," Gladio snorted, "him just warping all over that place, one side to the other?"

Prompto giggled a little. "Having to hang from the rafters over the underwear section because he ran out of stamina. Again."

"Well," Ignis noted primly; how had he already gotten a cup of coffee? It was a mystery, but he was sipping at it pointedly, "at least we didn't have to worry about running through our supply of curatives too quickly..."

There was another faint chuckle, but then a quiet settled over them, as their reminiscing managed to push just a little bit too far into sadness.

"Hey," said Prompto, because, well, he was the one to step in when things got a bit maudlin, and he flashed them a grin, "you think they got anything with beans? We can order that in his honor."

"Or fish," Gladio pointed out.

"No fish," said Ignis, who was quite certain that if they did have anything like that on the menu, Long John Silver's would actually be a better choice in that regard. "Or else I'm quite positive no amount of curatives will be able to save you then."

"Kinda got the feeling," Gladio countered, "that's going to be the case here regardless of what you're getting."

"A salad should be fine, though, right, guys?" asked Prompto. ".....guys?"

Gladio was just going to reach over and give his poor little shoulder a pat.

[deathsmajesty]

Liliana wasn't sure how she'd gotten here, entirely. She'd just kinda followed the crowd, sat in a rickshaw in relief, and then suddenly they were...here. Had it been a Waffle Squarf before? She didn't think so, but then, she and Stark hadn't really been paying too much attention what they'd ducked into.

From the glare she was getting from behind the counter, she was remembered.

She wasn't particularly fussed about that right now, mostly she just wanted carbs. All the carbs. Every carb and then some. Carbs and--

"By Gaea, I could really go for a drink right now." Not wine, no. She was oddly in the mood for really terrible cocktails.

Go figure.

[heroic_jawline]

Steve gave her a friendly wave. "Hi."

[deathsmajesty]

By habit, Liliana pushed herself a little more upright, returning Steve's wave. "I don't remember seeing you earlier in the day," she noted with a smile.

[seriesofbaddecisions]

"Cool fire," Sabine said, because of course she'd focus on that.

[deathsmajesty]

"Thank you," Liliana said, offering Sabine a smile. "Fire isn't my usual forte but I will admit it was delightful getting to let go like that. You know how it is. Some days, you want to meticulously finesse everything all very 'look upon my works, ye mighty, and despair' and other days, you just want to point a fancy stick at something and see how big you can make the explosion."

She extended a hand. "Liliana Vess, I don't think we've met...?"

[carbsliftthespirit]

"Oh, no, sorry, Waffle House doesn't serve alcohol," Raiden called, apologetic, from his booth. "They feed drunk people." They didn't need them getting more drunk.

[deathsmajesty]

Oh noes. Tragedy. First you feed her Papa Johns and now you deny her alcohol. Raiden, was there no end to the hurt you would inflict upon Liliana?

"Is this one of those establishments that allows you to bring in your own?" she asked hopefully.

[chef_chocobro]

The boys may have been having a bit of moment earlier, but eventually, Prompto was headed back to New Jersey and Gladio had called Nell to update her, and that eventually lead to its natural conclusion, which just left...

At this point, Ignis could pick Liliana out of a crowd without much trouble, but he couldn't say the same for many other people here, so sorry if there was anyone already sitting in the seat across from her, because Ignis would be slipping into it.

"So I've heard," he said, "that someone might be the lady of the hour."

[deathsmajesty]

"Have you now?" Liliana asked with wide eyes that weren't even the least bit believable. "Do tell me who, my darling, don't leave me in suspense."