Day 49: Noon - Tasty Burger

[thatdamnedninja.livejournal.com]

Once she'd found she wasn't in any danger whatsoever of hopping aboard the Pukemobile, Yuffie had gotten kinda peckish. She'd ditched the bagged breakfast ages ago, way back on the bus, and, haha, like hell was she trekking back over that way to get it. Too much to see in a town without a lot in it.

So, here she was. Sitting at a plastic table in a plastic chair, in the almost completely plastic 'Tasty Burger', with fries, chicken strips, and a banana shake to wash it down with. Yuffie wrinkled her nose, more put off by the Eastern-style 'meal' than the reproachful stares of the staff and patrons. The latter she was way, way more than used to. Came with the job description. All of the job descriptions.

"Should've gone to the Twin Pine," Yuffie muttered around the (plastic!) straw, slumping forward onto her damp, denim-clad elbows. Taking a long pull of vaguely banana-flavored gloop, she cast a deft, if bored, eye around the establishment. As always, she'd gone for the most strategic seat; one that let her see as much as possible, without cutting off her access to at least one viable escape route. Not that she wanted to look at the place. Eurgh.

It was still hard to reconcile how this place should have looked with how it did look. Quick repair jobs were one thing, but something about the set-up rubbed Yuffie the wrong way. It was the same the whole town over. Chips, here and there, cracks in windows and doodles on walls. But no scorch marks, no sign that there'd been a no-holds-barred battle tearing up the place from top to bottom. The residents were pissy and suspicious, but not in that way—not in a way that'd suggest they remembered what they'd done, what they'd turned into, and what the patients had done in return.

[Cloud and Nanaki~.]

Comments

[revolutionise]

As they had done on the previous Doyleton trip, Utena had decided to let Himemiya have some time to herself. Especially after the semi-awkward promise she had made to girl, Utena thought they could use space for at least a short while. Besides, they had reasoned, splitting up would maybe increase their chances of finding the man from the night before. 

For a little while, Utena walked Main Street alone, unsure of where to start looking for clues. The vandalism was somewhat sparse, but evenly spread, not indicating any particular direction. "Where would I hide if I were on the run in a town like this?" she wondered softly to herself. Probably someplace where there weren't so many people. The center of town was crawling with patients and sour-faced townsfolk. Where would there be fewer people, I wonder?

Before she could go off in any divergent directions, however, Utena was stopped by a nurse and told that it would be best to get inside before the rain really started pouring. Utena insisted that she liked the rain, but no, the nurse didn't want "Yomi" catching cold, especially not when she was still recovering. Despite her protests, she was herded into the nearby fast food place, Tasty Burger, to dry off. 

The place wasn't busy yet, but it was getting close to lunchtime, so Utena was willing to bet it would be soon. She wasn't going to stay here longer than she needed to; hopefully, the eagle-eyed nurse would turn her attention elsewhere once the lunch rush got underway. Pulling out her coupons, she tore off the one for the free meal and got herself a place in line. This definitely wasn't her preferred kind of lunch, and it showed on her face as she looked up at the menu board. "Eugh, don't we get enough burgers and tacos and stuff at the Institute?" she said to herself with a short sigh, putting a hand on her hip.

[For Senna. Limit: 3]

[windstwilight.livejournal.com]

[ooc: after separating from Hana...]

The girl would have bugged Hanatarou all day if she could. But when the rain started, she was herded inside quickly, the excuse of her sling and bandages being too flail to get really wet. Yeah, yeah. Well. Shoulda, coulda, woulda, man. They could always re-bandage, the lazy gits. Ah.

So Senna found herself in a burger joint, which any other day would have been heaven. As she was only getting her appetite back... Not so much. Though maybe eating would make her hungry? She would see! Senna wandered up to the line, eyes on the menu above the registers, not noticing the person directly in front of her until she spoke. She giggled a laugh, and responded automatically, "You can never get too much."

Anything secondary was cut off as Senna actually saw the girl in front of her. The Shinigami's eyes widened, mouth opening a little in joy. Was that for real? "...Your hair is freaking amazing."

[notthistrain.livejournal.com]

"Here we are..." Cloud opened the door to the restaurant, well - fast food place, and helped Nanaki in. Thinking optimistically, that hadn't been as bad as it could have been. The smells that greeted him when he walked in weren't really helping with the faint traces of nausea he still felt, but then at the same time he knew he was going to be hungry soon.

He ended up pulling out his coupon. He'd get a drink and a salad, then whatever else came along with it that he didn't want he could give to someone else. Nanaki, maybe. "Let's just hop in line while it's still short, okay?" Most of the others must have been waiting before coming here, especially given that they'd just had breakfast.

A familiar figure already sitting in the place drew his attention, and he gave Yuffie a small wave. At least he knew where they'd be sitting once they had their food.

[flamingfurball.livejournal.com]

Nanaki sniffed the air and pulled a face. He wasn't a fan of these city foods. Fast food? That was it. But, of course, he'd been fed far worse and at least he didn't have to worry about catching it now.

He thought of the cubs and felt himself tremble. He held a little tighter to Cloud and leaned against him, head on his shoulder. He wasn't alone. Yuffie was here too. He watched Cloud wave and tlted his head. It had been a little humiliating when Yuffie had tried to teach him tricks in his usual body. He decided not to wave, but he looked to her in a form of acknowledgment.

"If we have to pick, I'd like whatever has the most meat."

[toxicspiderman]

When the heavens opened up, S.T. was three-quarters of the way from coffee to hunting for news -- any news (an exposé on local apple pie recipes would be better than the complete media blackout). He hadn't made it to the bookstore last time. Possibly not this time, either, since he didn't feel like getting soaked.

He staked out a square of dry asphalt under the corrugated metal awning outside the burger joint and ignored the scent of fry oil better suited to tree-hugger biodiesel conversions than direct human consumption.

[for Wally West]

[scarletspeedstr.livejournal.com]

With Zack's coupon in hand as well as his own, Wally wasted no time in heading straight to the burger place after the brunch they'd had at Twin Pines. Sure, he'd eaten twice this morning already, but considering they didn't have access to the buffet style meals today, the few small meals he had gotten hadn't had much of an impact on his appetite.

After queuing up to collect both meals, he headed back outside only to find that the rain had gotten a lot more serious in the last few minutes. "Man, maybe I should have stayed inside after all," he commented, mostly to himself. There was someone else close by though, and Wally flashed an easy smile at him. "You after a burger too?"

[jouer-sans-voir.livejournal.com]

The storm seemed only determined to get worse, and Nunnally had to wonder why they'd bothered sending the residents of the Insitute on this 'field trip' on such a poor day. Couldn't it have been postponed or even cancelled? Was there really such an urgent need to have everyone go wandering about in the rain without an umbrella? And her poor brother was stuck pushing her about in the chair through the wet, though at least it meant they were moving faster than they would have if she were walking herself. There were always positives and negatives to everything.

Fortunately the restaurant wasn't too far away from where they'd been last, and once in the door Nunnally removed her hat (careful not to muss her hair as she did) and draped it over the arm of her chair to let it drip onto the floor rather than the back of her neck, then glanced around curiously. It seemed that they weren't the only ones who'd decided that this place looked like good shelter -- or perhaps it was far enough from the breakfast on the bus that they were simply hungry. "There's Yuffie," she observed, though it was likely Lelouch had already seen her, and gave the older girl a smile and wave.

[kingside]

Lelouch brushed some rain off his jacket and glanced over at the girl indicated, one eyebrow faintly raised. He had seen her, but for Nunnally to point her out like that was especially telling. Perhaps... but Yuffie still had other commitments. He couldn't rely on her to consistently keep an eye on his sister, and as such, there was no sense in dwelling on that. He had to keep looking for potential protectors instead.

In an effort to appear as though he wasn't completely dismissing her, though, he smiled faintly and glanced down at Nunnally. "Are you looking forward to learning more about origami from her?" he asked, pushing her chair further into the restaurant. Rather than waiting in line with her, he'd decided to find a table she could wait at while he ordered, and it wasn't a second or two more before he'd completed the first half of his mission and adjusted his course. "Just make sure you don't pick up any of her habits. I don't think I could stand two people calling me 'Kitty King.'"

[fuzzy-diablo.livejournal.com]

Wet. Agh, it was wet.

Even if Kurt couldn't feel any fur on him, it still felt like he was getting unpleasantly soaked through. And once the watch stopped working its magic, Kurt would be just as furry as he once was and damp. Water had a tendency to cling to fur and not let go.

The mutant made a break for the nearest place he could get something to eat at. The breakfast had been just a little too light for him, and he was in need of a cheeseburger. Hungry mutants fighting bad guys in creepy mental institutions had to eat, right?

Kurt pulled off his sweater and hung it over the back of a chair while he went to use his voucher for a meal. He had a feeling the rain wasn't going to let up, and having something to drape over him would probably be great later. He didn't want to spend the rest of the day soaking wet, after all.

He brought back a tray and sat down, looking forlornly out the window at the gray sky. Even if this place had been a warzone last week, it had been a nice day at least. And the person who got him his meal hadn't looked too thrilled to see him standing in line. He didn't know why, honestly. They'd been perfectly nice last week...

[For Logan! ♥]

[noifsandsorbubs.livejournal.com]

It was pure coincidence that led Logan to the place: one minute he'd been trudging through the streets, thinking about how he still wanted a beer and where he could look to get some god-damned information, and the next he'd looked up at the sign and rearranged his priorities.

Inside, he took a look around while he waited for his food: nobody he recognized. Still no Kurt, still no Cap, still no Tony. His instinct was to grab an empty seat in the corner and keep to himself, but you couldn't get intel out of a wall.

And there, as if to answer his thoughts, was a kid sitting alone. It was hard to tell if he was local or not, but either way, kids tended to answer questions. Logan took the seat across from him and slung his arm over the back. "You mind?" he asked, although he didn't really care and wasn't planning to move.

[runner-up-robot.livejournal.com]

Once the rain picked up, Forte also decided to heed the nurses' suggestions, putting the hood up on his jacket (more complicated than he'd expected, with his massive hair), and head back into town. A number of people were heading into the building that seemed to serve food, so he followed them in

Forte, meanwhile, walked toward the counter, but stopped before getting there, to simply stare at the brightly colored menu above the human employees. He had a vague idea of how buying and selling worked, but like many human activities, he'd never payed attention to the specifics.

Planning to watch someone else order, his mind soon drifted. He was feeling much better than before, but for some reason he kept thinking back to Sheena (okay, maybe not such a mysterious reason). He'd been scared to talk to her after the 'Frank incident'. He couldn't just keep running away, obviously. He did want to see her again... he wanted to talk to her, at least, or train or... he didn't even know. But he still didn't know what he could say, or what to do, all the advice he'd gotten wasn't any help with that.

[for Sheena]

[mizuhomaiden.livejournal.com]

As if his thoughts had summoned her, Sheena walked into the restaurant, flipping through her coupon book to find the right one. There was a softness, something one daring might call happiness, in the way she moved, in her expression. She stopped in line behind Forte as she still flipped through her coupons, not realizing it was him until she'd torn hers free and looked up to see what was taking so long.

She gave a bit of a giggle and proceeded to push Forte to the counter. "We'll take two of these," she said to the person behind the counter, handing over her coupon while giving Forte a teasing grin. "You need to give the lady your coupon, Forte."

[stringless-doll.livejournal.com]

After sleeping through the bus ride, Nataku had spent the morning in the park on the far side of town. There were a lot of reasons. Chief among them, he just needed the time to himself to think about last night or nothing at all. It was too difficult to focus on what they were being offered when Hanatarou was in danger, but now he thought he understood.

There were people outside of the institute, and supposedly they were trying to help. The possibility of escape might even be a tangible thing. He should be excited. He should go looking for the man who'd promised to hide here before sunrise. But the truth was, Nataku wasn't even sure he wanted to escape. Where would he go? And, more importantly, who would he leave behind?

Then again, there were other kinds of information the man could offer them too. Every now and again he glanced down from his perch and found the park disappointingly empty. Where are you Jason?

He was wondering the streets again by the time the rain started in earnest, but he let the nurses push him inside - and immediately regretted it. Even if he could ignore the weird smell of the place and the ugliness of everything inside, there were people here. The cow-spotted raincoat (with matching ears) was ok when he didn't have any company but if Homura and Kenren were here...

Nataku tried to back out. He'd take his chances with the rain.

[For Homura~]

[screwthegods]

Nataku might have been better off had he just tried to duck into the crowd. Lost in his own thoughts, Homura didn't notice the small figure backing up until the two bumped into each other. Glancing down, he managed a small smile for his friend, aided by the fact that Nataku had apparently been on the receiving end of worse clothing than Homura himself. "Well. Don't you look adorable today, Nataku?"

He'd been looking for Okita when he arrived, but a second glance around told Homura he wasn't there. He considered heading toward the other restaurant, yet the nurses seemed particularly unwilling to let anyone leave at the moment. Besides, he hadn't talked to Nataku in several days. Hoping that time would favor him, Homura motioned toward the counter. "We might as well eat since we're here, yes? And since I've already seen you, there's no point in running away."

[zack-fair.livejournal.com]

To make matters worse, Zack entered the building and saw both Yuffie and Cloud seated at a table with some stranger. He wondered if he should wave, but with Tifa not in the best state right now, maybe it was better if they didn't attract attention to themselves. At least Cloud looked like he was doing a little better after the bus ride.

"Look who it is," he said under his breath, glancing back to the girl and trying to act casual. It seemed like the only one missing was Aerith, and Zack couldn't help wondering about where the flower girl had gotten off to. Knowing her, she was out in the park even though it was raining. He sighed and shook his head at the thought.

"If you give me your coupon, I can get us our meals while you find us a place to sit," he suggested to the girl. Well, Tifa wasn't really a girl at this point (that much was obvious), but some habits were hard to kick. He wanted to get to know Tifa as she was now, but he was still working on it. He put out his hand in anticipation of the coupon.

[36-24-35.livejournal.com]

Tifa was thankful Zack hadn't acknowledged it. He probably knew what she was doing, but without words exchanged, she wanted to assume it hadn't really happened. After a few deep breaths, the young fighter was ready to press on, having shoved these torrential feelings into appropriate boxes that got shelved elsewhere in her mind for a time better than this to sort through them. She wanted to chalk the slight breakdown up to the weight of this new and oppressive lifestyle (Zack's appearance didn't help, nor did Nanaki's mutilation), but it was silly to fool herself. Hadn't she lived in oppression before this? The Slums weren't exactly a fine choice for starting a new life, as she and many others had been literally under the mantel of the ShinRa Company's power. Even still, despite the squalor and the disgusting disregard for basic human rights, she had had her own agency in Midgar and it had rippled strong enough to reach ShinRa's attention.

It was clear to her now that she should and would find an outlet to exert her power again, even if it came only from a bar in her room. That decision allowed the clouds to part and she felt better, still embarrassed, but better. The brunette pulled her face up and combed her dark hair behind her ears where it usually belonged. Her smile had returned, but her eyes were a bit red.

"Oh...!" The young woman quickly rifled through her hoodie pockets to find the right coupon, happy with the subject change. "Here. Gimme the greasiest thing they have..." Chocolate worked for some women, artery-clogging food worked for her nerves. Placing it in his hand, the woman accepted the responsibility to find them a seat. It was a bit crowded, probably because it was lunchtime any and it was a place to stave off the dreary rain until it blew over.

Inevitably, Tifa's searching eyes found the rest of the AVALANCHE gang and a sudden impulse to run over caught in her throat like a lump; however, she swallowed it back down with resignation. If she went over there, Tifa was certain Cloud would know something was wrong, and perhaps if that thing hadn't been Zack, she wouldn't have mind the concern. But he was a man close to Cloud's heart and it would be unfair to open up scars in a public setting. Promising to track him down later, Tifa found a table for four in the corner and hoped no one would give her dirty looks for squatting on two extra seats.

[quidproquo.livejournal.com]

While it was drizzling to the point where he'd be completely soaked had he not been wearing that thick coat, Axel couldn't say he was actually in a rush to get to their destination. Maybe it was because he was with good company, as Roxas's presence was something he knew he'd taken for granted before. What he could he say; the kid was his best friend, and a little bit of rain wasn't going to dampen their conversation.

It was kind of funny actually. With the Organization long gone he couldn't really bring himself to care about much else. Axel knew he was supposed to be dead, so anything besides that was a upgrade in his opinion. Being confined to a prison wasn't exactly a picnic in most cases, but he could manage with all the 'luxuries' provided for them.

The joint was already pretty crowded by the time they arrived, and there was a somewhat damp smell that filled the air. Catching sight of the register, Axel casually slipped in line, motioning for Roxas to do the same. It looked as if it was later than what he expected it to be, so maybe it'd be a good idea for them to grab a whole meal while they were at it.

"So what've you been up to these days?"

[rischiarare.livejournal.com]

Roxas was a little more hurried to get out of the rain, annoyed that stray locks of his bangs were sticking to his face and getting in his eyes. Once inside the warm blast of the restaurant, he took the brown hood off and shook what little water he could get out of his face. On his way to the register line, he tried to muss up his now-flat hair.

A raincoat would have really been preferable. Or an umbrella.

With Axel's question, the smaller Nobody perked up. It'd be nice to finally have a conversation with his friend that wasn't going to be interrupted by a random transportation and a fainting spell. "Uh... I saw Luxord last night. We were trying to find..." he hung off that sentence for a moment, realizing they didn't know what they were trying to find. "Someone, I guess. The radio had mentioned someone was out in the forest and we went to go look for him. I think someone else did, though, 'cause there were other people out there last night."

[sixth-attack.livejournal.com]

"STUPID RAIN!"

Like the week before, Sechs entered the Tasty Burger with the same delicacy and grace as an angry bull in a china shop. With the door loudly shut behind him, the Replica messily stomped a few steps inside before pausing to shake the rainwater off his entire body like a wet dog boisterously drying itself off in the most inconvenient place for its human owners. Throwing his hood back, Sechs gave his hair a final shake and then made his way towards the front counter, leaving an obnoxious puddle in his wake.

Ignoring the multitude of scowls pointing at him from nearly every direction, Sechs dug out a slightly damp coupon from his coat pocket and slapped (or more like squished) it upon the counter. "Gimme the usual!" Sechs barked, "And I want beer to drink this time! Not whatever crap you gave me last week!"

Ironically enough, the same clerk who dealt with Sechs before happened to be taking his demanding order once again; and by the sour look on her face, it was obvious she wasn't exactly joyful about this repeat encounter. Peeling the wet coupon off the counter, the clerk turned to punch in the order as she silently muttered every swear in the book under her breath. "All we have is root beer," she curtly replied after a moment of vulgar mumbling, shooting Sechs a particularly nasty case of the evil eye. For all she knew, the big spiky-haired brute standing before her could have been the one who vandalized the town...

Sechs on the other hand had too little time and too much hunger to give a damn about anyone's suspicions. "Fine! Give me that then!"

With his bag of greasy booty in his possession, Sechs left the scowling clerk behind and took little time to grab a seat and tear into his food. Dammit, he was starved! It only took a mere few seconds before the Replica had already woofed down half of his burger! The same frowns from the staff and townspeople in the restaurant weren't letting up either, and Sechs' beastly eating habits weren't exactly helping to ease their visible displeasure. Not that Sechs cared of course.

The burger was gone within moments, along with the worst of the android's hunger. Slowing down enough for more thinking than just mindless chewing, Sechs gazed about the unfriendly environment as he carelessly munched away at a handful of fries. Hey... Wasn't this where Sechs first ran into Kibitoshin last week? Now that he wasn't so busy eating, he could spot out the same table where he met the timid Kaioshin. The memory brought a tiny curl to the ends of Sechs' messy lips, but that ghost of a smile lived a short life as a frown came in to replace it. Even though a new friendship had grown between them since then, the fact that they were all still trapped in Landel's dangerous game hadn't changed one bit.

Stuffing another fry into his mouth, Sechs looked away from that fateful spot and went back to his usual brooding. He did pay a quick visit to the grocery store to leave a message for Kibitoshin and a few others he knew, so that should help in whatever future surprise Landel had for his prisoners. It was all Sechs could do for now while the day was still young.

[timedork]

The Doctor had found the morning most enjoyable, but he hadn't quite made up his mind what to do with the rest of the day. He wanted to find Donna at some point--not talk to her necessarily, lest he get an earful, but at least see where she was, make sure she was okay. If it looked like night would set before going back to the Institute, he definitely wanted to find her before anything might happen.

It was starting to rain--or rain more steadily, rather--by the time the Doctor was back out on the streets, and he didn't go far back down Main Street before he decided to duck inside, both to avoid the rain for a little while and to grab a bite to eat. He entered the Tasty Burger and went to the counter to order, looking for the coupon to the place. The woman at the counter didn't look particularly happy to see him, but the Doctor beamed at her regardless, ordering whatever the coupon would get him.

A moment later, a burger, chips, and soda in hand, the Doctor walked away from the counter, looking for a place to sit. There was a young man munching on chips nearby, and the Doctor approached his table.

"Mind if I sit here?"

[foolishmessiah.livejournal.com]

After splitting up with Leon, Minato walked down Main Street in the opposite way he had headed with the younger boy. It had to be approaching lunchtime now, and he quietly removed the coupons from the rain-stained paper bag. "Tasty Burger," he read aloud before looking further down the street. He could really go for the ambiance of a burger joint right about now; it would hopefully have a friendlier air than the congested cafeteria, at least.

The rain was falling harder now, and Minato tugged his hood closer over his head as he walked on the uncovered sidewalks. When was the last time it had rained like Iwatodai? The weather had generally been very nice, even into the evenings, no matter the season.

He passed along another crossroad or two before spotting the sign that shared the same logo as the coupon. Taking a moment to discard his lunch bag in a garbage can, Minato stepped inside and out of the rain. He was immediately immersed in the smells of oily french fries and cooking burgers and the sights of children and adults relaxing in cleaned booths.

Even if a good number of the customers were actually institute patients, the lack of smiley-faced "uniforms" helped him imagine a simpler time--just for a moment.

[For Yukari!]

[remedying.livejournal.com]

Catching up with Kaito had put Yukari in a better mood; the amiable teen was always in a seemingly good mood whenever she saw him, and the pleasant company managed to get her into better spirits. She was lucky to know someone like him around, especially with the circumstances they were in, but the morning had come and gone and they split ways to do other things. Yukari hadn't had much in mind to do while in Doyleton, aside from finding others she knew, but Kaito probably had more. Oh well; they'd keep in touch.

The breakfast they were given was small, so by the time the afternoon began cropping up, Yukari had to admit she was beginning to get hungry again, and the coming rain only encouraged her to scurry indoors somewhere. Thankfully, she didn't have to go very far before spotting the nearest fast food joint; 'Tasty Burger' sure sounded a lot more promising than the other burger place she was familiar with. Quickly, she entered before she got too soaked wandering outside.

The aroma of food sure smelled good, although that hadn't kept her distracted for long as she spotted a familiar head of blue close by. "Hey, Minato-kun!" Yukari called out, waving a hand to catch his attention.

[witchoftruth]

[ from here ]

A... fast food restaurant? This was where Battler wanted to have their important discussion? Erika almost took this as an insult, if it weren't for the fact that she was slowly realizing that things were not at all right. How Battler was acting now, indifferent and annoyed, was extremely similar, if not spot on, to how he was regarding her in the middle of the fifth game. Actually, he was more than happy to let her continue, which was what he was doing right now.

Were he the Game Master, he would have been more concerned about this turn of events... Unless, of course, he was not. Erika doubted he had the ability to completely overturn the gameboard, swap out a new one, and collect all of these new pieces. Such a thing could be a cheap imitation of how Beatrice used to run her board, but this was far too extreme, for one who claimed to "understand" the witch's gameboard.

Well, she would find out soon enough. Erika placed herself in front of Battler once more, intent on keeping him from ordering until he answered a question for her first. More like a statement.

"The fifth game hasn't finished for you, Battler-san." Indeed, it was a statement, one that could have been written in blue if this board allowed it. It didn't, but one could have assumed that's what she was trying to get across.

[dreadofthegrave]

Battler frowned at the statement, trying to make some sense out of it. That much was true, but the way it was stated, as though she was seeking some kind of confirmation or denial, made him a bit uneasy, not entirely sure where this was heading. He did neither, instead voicing the question that had bothering him since they'd met. "You said you were supposed to be starting the sixth, right?"

Which left an even more important one: what had happened, or what was happening. They were in the way, but Battler made not effort to move, keeping his eyes on Erika. The reaction would be important here; he still had no idea if she was telling the truth or if this all was some kind of cheap trick.

[anemptydecapo]

[Backthreading from here, what. >[]

While Venom did feel a tinge of guilt for trailing mud onto the tiles of the establishment, cold water dripping occasionally from the end of his braid and sleeves and making an even bigger mess, it was pushed back once the smell of grease hit him and he cringed.

Being an assassin meant being at top shape at all times. Aside from the constant training, it also usually meant strict diets and, understandably, junk food, fast food, and the like were never on said diet. When a person has been conditioned their entire life to eat certain things and not others, attempting to consume said items off the list regularly resulted in pain. As a result, the heavy, almost overwhelming scent of grease looming overhead and just as palpable as the storm clouds outside was not enjoyable to him.

At all.

There was also the fact that he despised pickles and he could very well smell them from here, but that was a more petty and less understandable story that he was still trying to forget.

Ignoring the repulsion crawling along his bones, Venom turned his attention back to Sora and Edward, quietly wringing the water from his hair in what may or may not have been an act of vengeance directed towards the owners. His eyes flicked from one to the other from behind the dark lenses covering his eyes before he finally settled on questioning the smaller boy's motivations. "Is there something you wanted?"

[lighthearted]

Sora had been expecting to have to fight a little harder than that to get the two into the restaurant, and the fact that he didn't have to was enough of a relief that his mood raised up a few points. Even though he was still annoyed about the way that the nurses had forced him and Riku to part ways, he could at least hope that his friend was out exploring and satisfying his curiosity.

When they finally made it inside, Sora let out a sigh and dropped his hood off of his head. He was dripping, but not nearly as bad as Venom. He eyed the puddle of water that was forming under the man and tried his best to hold back a smile. Venom didn't seem like the type of person who would take well to teasing.

Unlike Venom, Sora was not bothered by the amount of grease in the food. But even though he was hungry, he did not need two coupons! Any possible strategy for returning the slip of paper would have to wait, though, especially since Venom was quick to remind him of his earlier concerns.

"Did anyone tell you guys about what happened here last week?" he asked with a tilt of his head. He was pretty sure Venom hadn't been around a week ago, but even if he had -- better safe than sorry. He wanted to warn them.

[thecamellia.livejournal.com]

_{[from here (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/867809.html?thread=68482529#t68482529)]}

Tsubaki was momentarily distracted as they passed into the Tasty Burger, one hand up to hold the lip of her hood back from her eyes. She hadn’t failed to notice the yellow graffiti and not just one but two broken windows along the street. That hadn’t been there before. The lack of damage after every night continued to be a mystery, but given the Institute, a complete and utter clean-up was the norm. To have a bunch of vandalism after the zombie attack…

The line of thought was hard to follow with Honey beside her and the noise of the restaurant around them, but it niggled at the back of her mind even as she looked around and realized who else was present. "There’s Sora-san," she said aloud, waving to the boy in question. And Yukari, who got a slightly more animated wave. So Yukari was still around, after all! That was a relief, considering how many notes she’d failed to respond to. But both Sora and Yukari were with other friends, and Tsubaki looked back down at Honey, a consulting gesture. It didn’t seem fair to interrupt them, despite how happy Tsubaki would've been to see everybody and talk with them a while.

"Should we use our coupons?" she asked.

[host-club-honey.livejournal.com]

He held tightly to Tsubaki's hand and let her lead the way to the burger place. Though he'd been to fast food restaurants a few times with Haruhi, it was still a rare and often strange experience. He followed Tsubaki's gaze to some of their friends and added his own wave when she did, smiling brightly. Tsubaki's friends were surely wonderful too.

"Mm!" he nodded in reply and let go of her hand to search the pockets of his jacket for the coupon book. While he was sure it wasn't how the interaction worked in the real world, it was an interesting system that the institute had gotten this town to agree to.

"Chocolate or vanilla?" he mused, wishing they had strawberry, or even green tea. Clearly it was a troubling decision to be forced to make. "Do you think they can make twisty-cones? I can't pick!"