Chapter 3: Experimental Potatoes

"Are you a nerd or something?" Midnight pours the half cup of coffee and places a glass of milk on the table.

Tri blinks twice. "Why?"

The waitress sighs, "You've got a lightsword or whatever on your belt."

Nodding, Tri smiles a little, "Oh, my lightsaber. Eh... yeah. Let's say it's just a model."

Topher snorts. "Okay, I'll say that next time you threaten someone with it." She kicks him under the table. "Ow."

Midnight puts his glass of water on the table. "Are you ready to order?" Although the question could be polite by the wording, her tone of voice makes it sound quite condescending.

Tri glances quickly down at her menu, and decides to test something. "Do you have a suggestion?"

The waitress groans quietly. "Whatever is most expensive. I rarely actually eat here, so your guess is as good as mine."

Topher points to a place on his menu, "Could I have the smoked salmon french toast please?"

"And I would like anything with bacon in it." Tri hands her menu to Midnight, who raises her eyebrows, but writes down the orders.

Alan glances at the order, then does a double take. "Quote, anything with bacon in it, un-quote?" He shakes his head, "This should be interesting..."

Weed looks up from where he's slicing tomatoes. "How about a bacon lattice sandwich?"
The sous chef looks at him for a moment, then shakes his head. "Weed, seriously?"

"What? It would be good." He grabs another tomato.

Alan sighs, "I’ve been wanting to try making that sweet potato and pork belly hash I made for my mom when I first got back from culinary school again."

Weed chuckles, "The one where you forgot the recipe?"

Raising his eyebrows, Alan turns away and starts to prepare the dish.

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Tri takes a small bite off the plate in front of her. "This is really good." She chuckles at Topher, who is trying to figure out how to eat his french toast, her eyes flashing violet. "You should use a fork and knife, genius."

"Oh." The cat puts down his toast and picks up the silverware. "I don’t eat much fancy food."

She looks down at her plate, "Well, this is one experiment that was worth it. Unlike my last time at a French restaurant."

Topher flinches, "I said I was sorry. I didn’t know you were allergic to chocolate."

Tri rolls her eyes, "But making me chocolate bacon soup was weird. I mean, really?"

He raises an eyebrow, "It was Thalia. What did you expect?"

She sighs and takes another bite. "In a place where it's normal for animals to do any job a human can and vice versa, I was expecting something without chocolate in it. You know, 'cause chocolate is poisonous to most animals?"

"I guess that's fair..." He slices off a small bite of the bread and puts it in his mouth. After swallowing, he comments, "You should come and buy me breakfast more often."

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Alan steps into the makeshift break room in the back of the restaurant. He sits down on a crate and leans back against the wall. His five minute break is something he looks forward to all day.

"Hello there." Tri is sitting beside him suddenly on another crate. The sous chef yelps and leaps into the air, landing on his feet awkwardly.

He puts his left paw over his heart and breathes dramatically for a few moments. "You certainly know how to scare people, don't you?"

She nods, "I've been credited with that before."

Straightening his coat and hat, he raises an eyebrow at her. "So, why are you back here?"

Tri softens her expression to the closest she ever gets to a smile around people she's not familiar with, "The waitress wouldn't pass on my message today, so I figured I'd come back here and wait for you."

He backs away slightly, but his curiosity overcomes his fear. "What was the message?"

"I wanted to thank you for my wonderful breakfast, and I'm sorry if my request caused you any problems in the kitchen." She stands up and leaves.

Alan stares after her for a few moments. "How long was she there?"

Weed walks up beside him, "The crazy thing is, man, she just appeared next to you when you sat down."

The taller cat looks down incrediously, "Sure, Weed." He gives up on the rest of his break and walks inside the kitchen.

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