Come and Get it!

[Kida]

"PICK UP!"



"Ah!" Kida ran to the back counter and grabbed the plates full of food as soon as she was able. The only problem was the instantly burned her hands. "GAH!!!" She tried to set them back down as quickly and yet as carefully as she could while biting down on her bottom lip so she didn't swear loudly.

She hadn't been working here long, but so far, Kida thought this job sucked. Why did she always apply for serving jobs? She was a horrible waitress! She snapped at rude people, had a hard time remembering the weird things people wanted done to their food and kept burning herself. "God..." she groaned under her breath.

Kida selected the Cattlemen's handy-dandy don't-burn-your-hand-off plate holders and picked up the plates once more. Zipping around other waitresses, people getting up to go to the bathroom and out of control children Kida placed the plates on the correct table (she had to double check because the numbers were sort of jumbled) and pasted a big, fat, fake smile on her face. "There you go, folks. Have a nice dinner and be careful...the plates are hot."

Rubbing her aching hands together, Kida made her way to the next table with a new customer who hadn't gotten to order yet. She slipped the pad and pen from her apron pocket and got them at the ready. "Hello, welcome to Cattlemens Steak Hosue. Are you ready for me to take your order or do you need a few minutes more?"

{Open}

[Saphira]

Saphira sat at a table in Cattlemens Steak House and was watching straight forward without focusing her eyes one anything, while playing with her hair, as she was curling some strands around her index finger.

She didn't expect the prairies to be such a hard land to travel. She actually thought it would be quite nice since it has no hilly areas. But who should have known that it takes THAT long to travel from one place to another. At times like this she really thought back at the days where she could fly to all the places in no time. But she made a promise to herself that she won`t ever transform again.

Next to that she also had to suffer from the disadvantages of a dragon in her human form. On one hand her feet hurt like hell, since they aren`t used to take long walks and on the other hand, her stomach was growling like mad! Even though she looked like a human, that won`t change her abilities and most of all, the amount of energy she needs. Especially after such a long travel.

Her thoughts were interrupted as a clumsy waitress almost dropped the plates with fresh food and yelled in pain. The smell of the food was reaching up to Saphiras nose and it was driving her crazy. "Gah..Can`t she just finally come over.. ?" She muttered as she continued to watch the waitress, while holding her stomache.

Then finally the waitress approached Saphiras table and asked her for her wishes. Saphira made an inner jump and then let out her order.

"Hello, I... want to have the steak of the day, max-sized, three times please. Next to that four rare steaks, bloody. Plus three salad bowls, the big ones. And last but not least, three liters of fruit juice....please."

She added the last please with a smile and tried to keep a serious face. She was aware of the fact that this surely will draw some attention on her, but what other choice did she have ? She was starving after all.

[Kida]

Pad and pen at the ready, Kida started scribbling as soon as the woman started her order. That was, until the woman ordered enough for half an army. It took Kida's brain a second to register this and then she slowly stopped writing and stared at the customer. In the back of her mind, she was completely aware how rude that might be but she just couldn't help it. That was...(Kida quickly counted in her head) five steaks! And that wasn't even all! This food can't be all for her.... That's when the light went on. Maybe the girl was part of a group of people that had yet to arrive, merely ordering ahead of time so the food was waiting for them when they got here.

"Oh....Okay. Anything to drink for you?" she asked after clearing her throat. "It's currently ladies night at our bar, so drinks are only two dollars a piece." Normally the alcoholic beverages were very expensive here, so two bucks was an incredible steal. "And of course we also have the usual selection of sodas..." Kida could feel her energy fading fast. That big, fake smile of hers was already gone, but she had been able to keep a mildly interested expression still. It was incredible that she could force herself to be so docile when her palms were throbbing so.

In truth, being a waitress wouldn't be half bad if a few things differed. Firstly, that the customers didn't insist on being whiny assholes that sparked her temper. Second, that her boss wasn't a lazy jerk. And finally, that people wouldn't try to rush her. Of course not all three had been a factor of every job she'd taken. So far she'd only had to deal with two here: The customers whining (no assholes yet) and the cook rushing her as if the whole planet would die of hunger if she didn't pick up the plates a few seconds faster. No wonder she had burnt hands, damn it.

"Also the steak of the day comes with a free dessert of your choice. Those desserts are either a slice of fruit pie or a small molten lava cake." Considering the steaks came with two large helpings of sides not many people were helping themselves to the free dessert. Cattlemen's was the king of large helpings. "You don't have to tell me now, but when you're ready for dessert let me know."

[Saphira]

Saphira listened to the friendly waitress telling her about the daily offers but then repeated awkwardly. "Uh... I stick to the.. three liters of fruit juice, thanks." She already managed to say it once with a serious face, but saying it a second time it really seemed strange in her own ears. She really was thirsty, and alcohol never works to get rid of that feeling. Not that she tried it that often before though.

But the information about about the dessert was drawing her attention again. "Oh, really?" She smiled at her. "I want the fruit pie please... one for... every steak, please." Saphira had a hard time speaking out the last words, since she thought that it sure was impossible to hide anymore that something is not right.

Also the waitress started to look not that friendly anymore like she did just some minutes before. 'I hope thats not turning out ugly..' Saphira thought worriedly.

Then she noticed the reddened palms of the waitress. 'Oh.. that must have happened when she almost dropped the plates..' Saphira remembered. Surprisingly, that small thought of concern was already enough to forget about her incredible hunger for a second.

"Umm, are you hands okay?" She asked slowly, not sure if it was okay to ask the waitress something like that, since they didn`t even know each other.

[Kida]

"Alright, so that's--huh?" Kida paused mid-scribble to blink at the girl. "My hands?" It was unusual for anyone to really take such an interest in her as their waitress. "Oh...Yeah, they're okay, I guess. I didn't burn them very badly, so it should go away soon." Kida didn't want to tell her customer that her hands were throbbing because somehow that seemed inappropriate. Not to mention she didn't want her customer thinking that she wouldn't be a good server. "But thanks for asking." she said with a genuine smile.

Such a small question really touched Kida at that moment. It seemed rather obvious that she hadn't been having a good night and her energy to be perky and sugary sweet to people was waning. That someone had offered some concern, if even so minor was a nice pick-me-up. "Would you like everything to come to the table as it's ready or do you want me to bring it all out at once?" Kida got the feeling that this girl wasn't ordering for other people so she thought it best to ask. Now the fake mask had fallen completely from Kida, but instead of being irritated or bland, she was herself. And friendly to a normal degree.

"Oh and with the pies you have an option of cherry or blueberry."

[Saphira]

"Ah, okay." Saphira replied and took another look at the girls hands. To her it didn`t look like a minor injury at all. To Saphira it looked really serious, but maybe she only thinks that way because shes always too careful when it comes to wounds that have been caused by fire, since shes very susceptible towards those.

Before she could ask if she should treat her wound though the waitress already continued doing her job and asked how the customer wants to have her dishes served. "Uh, please bring anything when its ready." She said with a slight painful face expression, because she suddenly got reminded again on how bad her stomach hurt. Her hunger made it hard for her to focus on anything else besides her food again.

Also the waitress words seemed to be much more friendlier now than a few seconds before. "I choose cherry then." Saphira replied, trying to keep a friendly smile, which was hard with the throbbing pain caused by her stomach.

'Please, just bring it already..' She almost begged in her thoughts.

[Kida]

Kida made the necessary notes on her pad of paper to make sure everything was done as the girl wanted it. "Alright then, and if you--" She blinked as she noticed the look of pain that came over the girl's face. Kida might have asked if she was alright, but then she heard the all too familiar sound of a hungry stomach. Ah.

"I'll get that out to you right away." Kida hurried back behind the bar where a quick-pick up window was to drop off the tab and shouted to the cook. "I need a rush, Manny!" To which, the cook answered with a great deal of unnecessary swears. Kida was sure the only reason he was such a grouch was because the new cook that worked alternate days was out doing him. "Ri's a helluva lot nicer too." she muttered under her breath.

Moving quick, Kida ignored her hands and grabbed the right number of salad bowls and threw them together as fast and efficiently as she was able. It sounded like the new girl at her table was really starving and couldn't wait much longer. Kida thought her other tables could wait a few minutes for their unneeded refills. "One....two....aaaaaand three." she said as she finished the salads. Carefully she picked two up and balanced the third on her arm. She wasn't very good at this move, but if she concentrated she could get there without dropping the bowl.

"Here we go. Three salad bowls, rushed for you." Sliding the bowls onto the table she made a mental note to rush back with her juice when she was doing a round of drinks.

[Saphira]

"Thank you." Saphira said and supported a smile as the waitress left the table to take care of her food. Saphira was grateful that she met such a friendly waitress, because she knew from experience that most of them don`t really like Saphiras habit to order such amounts of food.

Her eyes were following the girl who was making the salad bowls that Saphira ordered. At least it seems that she won`t have to wait that long anymore. It was just salad but its better than nothing at all, and if she is busy with the salads, then the flesh will come in no time.

"Much appreciated!" Saphira replied thankful and picked up the cutlery. Normally at a time like this she wasn`t really caring about etiquette, but the masses of food that were about to come will already draw enough attention to her table. Thats why she thought its best if she behaves like a human at least. She maneuvers the salad gracefully into her mouth with the fork and closed her eyes in satisfaction as the juices spread all over her tongue. It was just the start of her feast, but she was enjoying every drop of it.

Now that her head became a little clearer again she remembered again. 'I definitely have to treat her wounds later on, I can`t forget that.' Then she continued to dig the fork into her green ambrosia again.

She sure had been ordering the big bowls, but still she was already finished with the first one and longed for the second.

[Kida]

"HEY! Can we get our check please?!"

Kida's eyebrow twitched and she pushed another fake happy tone into her voice. "I'll get that to you in just a second!" It would have helped if you'd actually asked for the damn thing before. What was she supposed to do, read minds? She grabbed a tray and loaded it up with all the refills she knew she was going to have to pass out, as well as her new customers juice. A couple checks in her apron's pocket and a few extra straws just in case. Now for the hard part...

It was then that Kida was thankful for her years of martial arts training. Sure they were mostly good for defense and kicking ass, but they provided a good sense of balance that was coming in handy as she maneuvered around people and objects. Making sure the drinks didn't fall and make a huge mess was part of her job, after all.

On Kida's short lived breaks she had been sipping away at an energy drink to help her keep up. She didn't know if it was working at full capacity, but it was keeping her eyes open as she slid a few drinks to customers. The juice her newest customer had ordered was delivered while Kida's feet were still moving. Kida gave the girl an apologetic look as she went by because she couldn't stop.

"There's your check." she said to the rude guy as she gave him his check and went on her way.

[Saphira]

Even though Saphira was busy with deeply enjoying the salad in front of her, how could she overhear such an arrogant idiot that just called out for his check. Sure, its the waitress job to serve the people, but why shouldn`t the regular rules of behavior being valid in this restaurant too?

Saphira was half finished with the second bowl when the waitress brought her the fruit juice and hurried off again. But Saphira could at least give her a comforting smile and some words of appreciation to lighten up her stressed mood. "Thank you very much."

You could say that it was quite fitting the situation that the waitress was rushing off again, because right after Saphira expressed her thanks, some of the salad dressing was making its way out of the corner of her mouth. The guy that called out for his check seemed to find that rather interesting and watched her with relish.

Noticing that she was being watched, she turned away irritated and reached for a table napkin to clean her mouth. Sure she was used to it, that now and then some brainless men were staring at her, but that does not change the fact that its annoying.

Then Saphira sipped on the first glass of fruit juice and turned to the salad bowl again. It sure was a weird sight already to have three big bowls of salad on her table and a few glasses which made three liters of fruit juice in total.

[Kida]

Due to the fact that Kida's newest customer had ordered her steaks rare ('bloody' she'd said) it didn't take long at all for her to hear that familiar ring of Manny smacking his hand against the bell and yelling 'pick up'.

"I SAID PICK UP!!!"

"Ri's food is better~~." Kida said in a sing-song voice when she arrived to pick up the plates. She relished the way the fat man's vein pulsed in his forehead due to her insult and carted the plates off. Thankfully these plates were not the same skillet-style like most of the others had been, so she didn't need to worry about scorching off her fingers. "Bloody, rare steak, here for you." She slid the plates carefully onto the table. However she had a pause when she noticed the girl was already finishing the third salad bowl.

There was just no way to deny that all the food was for her now. Obviously she wasn't a human. Or at least not a regular human to be able to consume that amount of food in one sitting. "Um....Do you need steak sauce? More juice?" Kida took it upon herself to gather the two empty salad bowls without asking if she was done with them. They were, in fact, empty after all.

[Saphira]

Saphira just finished the last salad bowl when the waitress brought the rare steaks to her table. Glancing at the bloody pieces of flesh, she was piercing them with her eyes and unable to wait any longer. "Thank you a lot!" She let out before she started to cut off a rather huge piece with the cutlery and shoved it into her mouth. "God! thats good.." She almost groaned due to the overwhelming taste that was satisfying her.

Even though she was pretty much busy with eating, she still noticed how the guy who just got his check was still focusing his eyes on her. Probably even more now after the groaning like sound. So Saphira paid even more attention if she was using the cutlery appropriate enough. So that at least her table behavior was drawing less attention towards her.

Shoving another piece into her mouth, Saphira was chewing the steak and raised her head and then replied with a half full mouth. "Currysauce wouldbe awesome!" Continuing eating while the waitress picked up the empty salad bowls, Saphira was pondering if there was anything else missing.

Then she remembered her order though. "Umm, did you note down the max-sized steak of the day?" She asked carefully not wanting to make her upset or anything else. But it could be that she forgot about them because she only noted down the rare steaks. Who would blame her? Probably not much people would order such an amount of food all at once.

[Kida]

"Oh, yeah. It's just that it comes with a giant baked potato and that takes longer to cook. It should be out pretty quick though." Kida answered as she adjusted the bowls in her arm. "Curry sauce, some more juice, maybe?" But the girl kept glancing away to the same spot. Kida turned to see what she was looking at and saw the jerk who couldn't wait for his check. The guy was staring at the girl with a look that was all too familiar to Kida. Fucking perv.

Instead of making it into a confrontation Kida decided to pick up the left over plates at the guy's table before doing anything else. Maybe he would get the hint. "I assumed you would want the pies last. Is that okay or do you want them before the last steak?" She had ordered how many pies...? Four, one for each steak. Kida would be amazed if this girl ended up eating every single bite. If Kida hadn't felt it too rude she would have asked how the girl could eat so much.

"Oh and my name's Kida, by the way." she said, tapping her name tag. "Feel free to call me over if you need something else later."

[Saphira]

Saphira nodded at the friendly girl, who explained her that the big steaks still need there time, as she cut of another piece of steak. "I see, thank you." She answered and shove the pierced piece of meat into her mouth. At least she managed this time to chew and clear her mouth before replying again. "And the juice is enough for now, thanks." By now Saphira was wondering how many of the steaks might be left when the waitress comes around next time to bring the curry sauce.

Between sipping the juice and shoving another mouthful of meat into her mouth, though she was still paying attention to look graceful after all and not like some kind of wild animal, she tried to remember when she ordered the pies. 'Oh right, the comes with the steak of the day..' It was no wonder that Saphira almost forgot about it again, after all she was just starting to eat so why would she think about the dessert already?

"Yes, please serve them later on." She replied, almost slipping with her sentence into 'please serve all of them', but she managed to put the simple plural just in time. It was sure not easy to to order so much food and let it appear like its nothing at all.

"Thank you very much Kida." Saphira said with her head bowing slightly. Normally she would extend her hand for a greeting like that, but since she was eating and Kida had to serve meals she was sure that it wouldn`t fit the situation. So she just added "And my name is Saphira."

[Kida]

"Saphira?" Pretty name. Kida would have no problem remembering that one. Normally it took Kida a few tries and a few fumbles to remember a new person's name. "Nice. I'll--" That familiar ring from the direction of the kitchen cut her off. "That would be your other steak. I'll grab that and the curry sauce for you." Kida carried her things back and dumped them in a tub along with the rest of the floor's dirty dishes.

Remembering her last incident with a skillet plate, Kida grabbed a handle mitt and hefted the heavy amount of food into her arms, snagging a bottle of curry sauce as she went. "I'm begging you not to touch the skillet....It's really hot." she said to Saphira when she got back to her table. "It's hot I got these." she added, holding up her red hands that were burned.

"Just a word of warning." she smirked. Kida blinked and looked at all the extra utensils Saphira had because of the amount of food she'd ordered. "I'll take some of those too, if you want. Oh and how's the steak? If it's not cooked enough, or...well, too cooked, I can get him to fix it."