Howls Castle 6

[18:54]	<[huh]Alexi>	Last time, salad and touching friendship.
[18:55]	<[Tet]Flonne>	[d'awww]
[18:55]	* [Gtz]Andel	is touched
[18:57]	* [Atai][14^3]Factorial_over_6	and how~
[18:59]	<[huh]Alexi>	It's now dinnertime, and it's up to Flonne to gather everyone.
[19:03]	* [Tet]Flonne	leaves Felicia to set the table while she embarks on a similarly vital mission. No sense in holding a meal with nobody to eat it, right?
[19:04]	<[Tet]Flonne>	I wonder if...
[19:04]	* [Tet]Flonne	's pace almost grinds to a halt, but reboots at the last second.
[19:05]	<[Tet]Flonne>	Nah, she'll be fine.
[19:06]	* [Tet]Flonne	makes her way down to the servant's quarters. Rouse the fencepost, first.
[19:06]	<[Tet]Flonne>	*bam bam bam* Yo, Andel! Chow!
[19:06]	* [Tet]Flonne	is knocking on his door, that is. Bear with me, I'm kinda spaced.
[19:07]	<[Tet]Flonne>	...
[19:08]	<[Tet]Flonne>	*bam bam bam* Hey! You in there?
[19:09]	* [Tet]Flonne	takes a minute to realize the foolishness of waiting for a verbal response.
[19:10]	<[Tet]Flonne>	Well, whatever.
[19:12]	* [Tet]Flonne	continues down the hall to the number lady.
[19:12]	<[Tet]Flonne>	*bam bam bam* Hey, you awake or whatever?
[19:17]	* [Atai][14^3]Factorial_over_6	walks up behind Flonne.
[19:17]	<[Atai][14^3]Factorial_over_6>	...Yes?
[19:17]	* [Atai][14^3]Factorial_over_6	is toweling off her hair, and remembered to wear one around her middle this time.
[19:17]	* [Tet]Flonne	continues addressing the door, apparently oblivious.
[19:18]	* [Atai][14^3]Factorial_over_6	taps Flonne's shoulder.
[19:18]	<[Tet]Flonne>	Food's ready when you are.
[19:18]	* [Gtz]Andel	opens the door. My, this is awkward.
[19:18]	<[Atai][14^3]Factorial_over_6>	Oh. Thank you.
[19:18]	* [Gtz]Andel	nods.
[19:18]	* [Tet]Flonne	blinks at Andel. Did she get the doors backwards?
[19:18]	* [Atai][14^3]Factorial_over_6	looks up.
[19:19]	<[Tet]Flonne>	Oh, okay. Well, you get to eat, too, so cool.
[19:20]	* [Tet]Flonne	turns around to leave, but only makes it a single step before impacting into and rebounding off of Fourteen's midsection.
[19:20]	<[Tet]Flonne>	Gah!
[19:20]	<[Atai][14^3]Factorial_over_6>	Hello once more again.
[19:20]	* [Gtz]Andel	has a dose of deja vu
[19:20]	* [Tet]Flonne	straightens up.
[19:21]	<[Tet]Flonne>	Howdy. Food, ye ken.
[19:21]	<[Atai][14^3]Factorial_over_6>	Forsooth?
[19:21]	<[Tet]Flonne>	Yeppers. Soon as you're dressed.
[19:22]	<[Atai][14^3]Factorial_over_6>	Thank you.
[19:22]	* [Tet]Flonne	turns around to look at Andel's face peeking out from the door, then back at Fourteen. Two empty black boxes receive inked check marks.
[19:23]	* [Gtz]Andel	is still wondering what could have possibly happened to his bloomers
[19:24]	<[Tet]Flonne>	Okie dokie, now for the hard part...
[19:24]	* [Tet]Flonne	sets her tiny shoulders and strides down the hallway, in search of... the master.
[19:24]	* [Atai][14^3]Factorial_over_6	nods, and goes into Andel's room, waiting until she's heard Flonne go around the corner.
[19:25]	* [Gtz]Andel	sets his tiny shoulders and strides down the hallway, in search of... his bloomers. Or simply wasting time until dinner.
[19:30]	* [Tet]Flonne	climbs stairs. Lots of 'em.
[19:31]	* [Tet]Flonne	eventually runs out of stairs, running up against the ceiling. A hatch is there, she opens it.
[19:33]	* [Tet]Flonne	trades stairs for a short ladder, rungs set directly into the wall, climbing up through the hatch... and out.
[19:34]	* [Tet]Flonne	stands on the flat top of a tall watchtower, high above the castle proper. The desert winds howl around her, but she pays them no mind.
[19:34]	* [Atai][14^3]Factorial_over_6	goes back to her own room once Flonne is gone. Hopefully, she can play that off as a mistake.
[19:36]	* [Tet]Flonne	clasps her hands in front of her, closing her eyes and concentrating. Concentrating all her thoughts on a single man, lost somewhere out in the storm...
[19:36]	* [Atai][14^3]Factorial_over_6	then gets dressed, in search of-- wait, are a pair of her panties missing?
[19:37]	* [Tet]Flonne	opens her eyes and turns her moist, emotional gaze to the sky, hands clenching together tightly.
[19:37]	<[Tet]Flonne>	ALEXIIIIIIII!!
[19:41]	<[huh]Alexi>	There's a muffled thump and a yell about two feet to your left and down.
[19:42]	* [Tet]Flonne	cautiously approaches the sound.
[19:47]	<[huh]Alexi>	Alexi is hanging onto a small outcropping a bit under the level of the tower's walls
[19:48]	<[Tet]Flonne>	You okay?
[19:49]	<[Tet]Flonne>	Need a hand or anything?
[19:52]	<[huh]Alexi>	Nah, I'm-
[19:52]	* [huh]Alexi	loses his grip at this point, and is only hanging on by a couple fingers.
[19:53]	<[Tet]Flonne>	Yow!
[19:54]	* [Tet]Flonne	tosses down a chain of metal links in lieu of rope. Just never mind the razor-sharp sickle on the end, it's really not important to the scene.
[19:59]	* [huh]Alexi	manages to grab on!
[20:01]	* [Tet]Flonne	knows better than to try and pull Alexi up herself, but manages to brace her legs against the raised lip that runs along the tower, acting as a human piton for his ascent.
[20:04]	* [huh]Alexi	manages to pull himself up, with Flonne's help.
[20:04]	<[huh]Alexi>	"Did you call?"
[20:06]	<[Tet]Flonne>	Yep. Dinner.
[20:06]	<[Tet]Flonne>	Felicity's been setting things up, she's probably done by now.
[20:08]	<[huh]Alexi>	"Oh, sweet!"
[20:08]	<[Tet]Flonne>	Wormsteaks and salad!
[20:12]	<[huh]Alexi>	"Awesomeness!"
[20:12]	* [huh]Alexi	jumps down the hatch without another word, rushing off to dinner.
[20:14]	* [Tet]Flonne	makes sure to close the hatch tight after herself before dashing after the master.
[20:15]	* [huh]Alexi	skids into the dining room, coming to a stop just next to his seat.
[20:16]	* [Atai][14^3]Factorial_over_6	has since finished getting dressed and wandered down to the mess (Or, wait. It'd be "galley," wouldn't it?)
[20:16]	<[huh]Alexi>	Three minutes, twenty-eight seconds, three more seconds than last time... I'm getting soft.
[20:20]	* [Gtz]Andel	found his bloomers (and some weird math-engineering underwear) and takes his place at the table. Ah, everything feels so new and refreshing! Andel didn't even notice the new nurse girl he saw before, if she is indeed present at this point in time.
[20:24]	* [huh]Felicia	is sitting silently to the right of Flonne's chair, incidentally.
[20:25]	* [Tet]Flonne	diverts her path from Alexi's just enough to end up in the serving kitchen next to the galley. Felicity isn't there, it turns out, but even so, someone's got to bring in the slop.
[20:34]	* [Gtz]Andel	sits quietly and smiles happily. I bet even worm fat will taste good today! Andel convinces himself that it must be the taste of victory. Sort of like the smell of napalm, except for eating.
[20:43]	* [Tet]Flonne	arranges bowls of salad on a tray, checks on the steaks (still bubbling!), and piles the whole thing onto a tray.
[20:45]	* [Tet]Flonne	pushes the trolley (not a tray) in front of her, opening the swinging doors into the dining area where everyone else is seated and waiting.
[20:45]	<[Tet]Flonne>	Soup's on!
[20:46]	* [Atai][14^3]Factorial_over_6	has long since seated herself next to Andel, looking forward to the meal.
[20:47]	* [Tet]Flonne	first sets the big metal dome thingy that the steaks are under in the middle of the table, leaving it there for the moment until the salads have been properly dispensed.
[20:47]	<[Tet]Flonne>	'Course, it's not really soup, but you know what I mean.
[20:48]	* [Gtz]Andel	nods sagely.
[20:49]	* [huh]Alexi	looks psyched.
[20:51]	* [Tet]Flonne	produces bottles of dressing in various varieties from the trolley's lower compartments, and some ordinary oven mitts. The former are set around the table, the latter slipped over her hands, duh.
[20:51]	* [Atai][14^3]Factorial_over_6	appears composed. But a hungry sort of composed.
[20:52]	* [Gtz]Andel	bows his head, and silently thanks God the Father for his excellent fortune with Fourteen. It's the first time he's been thankful for anything but dice rolls. Haha, father...
[20:53]	* [Tet]Flonne	starts running through possible theatrics, but decides she'd rather just eat, so she lifts the dome thingy. Four thick, brownish lumps of fatty flesh, and one of the same except a very noticeable red, sizzling slightly and smelling really good.
[20:53]	* [Tet]Flonne	picks the odd one out first and sets it in front of Alexi.
[20:54]	<[Tet]Flonne>	There ya go, boss, hotter than an August afternoon, just the way you like it.
[20:55]	* [Tet]Flonne	distributes the remainder amongst the remainder: Andy, Fackie, Felicity, herself. The tray goes back on the trolley, which is in turn kicked into a corner before she takes her seat.
[20:56]	<[huh]Alexi>	Alright!
[20:57]	<[huh]Alexi>	Now, I'd like for us to take a moment to say grace...
[20:57]	* [huh]Alexi	pauses for a moment.
[20:57]	<[huh]Alexi>	Grace!
[20:58]	* [huh]Alexi	begins eating,
[20:58]	* [Tet]Flonne	grins. That's a classic.
[20:58]	<[huh]Alexi>	This meat... It's too hot! I almost can't taste anything!
[20:58]	<[huh]Alexi>	It's perfect!
[20:59]	* [Tet]Flonne	picks up her utensils and sets about carving off a slice of meat.
[20:59]	* [huh]Felicia	, compared to Alexi's enthusiasm, is eating in a distinctly refined and conserved manner.
[21:00]	* [Gtz]Andel	sits on that word for a minute while carving up his... "steak". Well, I'm sure it's good steak, but come on, man, it's from a big, face-eating worm. But anyway, back to the inner-monologue thingy: He never knew his father. He attributes his girlish features to being raised by a woman as well as finding it convenient more often than not. Usually. Andel wonders what it would like to be a father, chewing on a hunk of worm.
[21:00]	* [Atai][14^3]Factorial_over_6	eats neither enthusiastically, nor plainly, nor contemplatively, but efficiently.
[21:03]	* [Mry]Something	dawns on Andel.
[21:03]	* [Gtz]Andel	chokes
[21:03]	* [Tet]Flonne	moves through her steak like she's attacking a village, or something. That kinda made more sense when I hadn't said it. Anyway, she eats every slice she cuts off whole and as-is, so that sometimes she's chewing on one for a minute or more. A village? Where the hell'd that come from?
[21:05]	* [huh]Alexi	eats his steak like someone who really enjoys his goddamn steak. See? I can do terrible metaphors as well.
[21:06]	* [Tet]Flonne	is still eating when Andel makes a noise like the opposite of swallowing.
[21:06]	<[Tet]Flonne>	Mmmfrghff?
[21:06]	* [Atai][14^3]Factorial_over_6	's eyes flick over to Andel. Thunking her fork down into her wormsteak, she gets up, reaches over and swiftly administers the Heimlich.
[21:06]	* [Tet]Flonne	grimaces and grabs a glass of water to try again. This still might take a while...
[21:13]	* [Gtz]Andel	hocks up a hunk of worm, probably some indigestible bit like its spleen or something. It splats, bounces, hits, and thunks the toaster, knocking the proud son of a bitch over. The victory is short-lived, however. Andel has a new problem on his mind, and it's right behind him.
[21:14]	* [Atai][14^3]Factorial_over_6	's grip relaxes a bit, and she peers down at him.
[21:14]	<[Atai][14^3]Factorial_over_6>	Was that all the entirety?
[21:15]	* [Gtz]Andel	clears his throat and downs a glass of water. He appears anxious about something, but what in particular, no one can say. He can't, in the very least.
[21:15]	* [huh]Alexi	looks up for the first time.
[21:15]	<[huh]Alexi>	Oh, Andel, is something wrong?
[21:16]	* [Tet]Flonne	is still alternating between furious chewing and drinking of water.
[21:16]	* [Atai][14^3]Factorial_over_6	waits a moment longer, and nods to herself slightly. That seems to have been it, then.
[21:17]	* [Gtz]Andel	tugs on Fourteen's shirt, making sure he has her attention. He makes a pulling motion from an open mouth while moving his lips, then points to the minute hand on his watch, moving his finger fifteen minutes ahead.
[21:18]	* [Atai][14^3]Factorial_over_6	pauses, and looks down at him.
[21:21]	* [Gtz]Andel	makes a drawing motion with a finger on his palm, just in case she doesn't get it
[21:24]	* [Atai][14^3]Factorial_over_6	blinks, and her eyes widen momentarily before she nods silently in acknowledgement.
[21:27]	* [Gtz]Andel	nods as well, before taking a deep breath and sitting down. What may have been heaven an hour ago may soon be the worst decision you've ever made...
[21:32]	* [Gtz]Andel	pushes the steak around and forgets all about salad and soup.
[21:33]	* [Tet]Flonne	gets her throat clear, finds that the reason she had to speak has resolved itself without her help, and thus returns to her meal with untempered gusto.
[21:43]	* [Atai][14^3]Factorial_over_6	lets go of Andel, and returns to eating. Efficiently.