[prp] Unexpected Introductions (Gene/Andrew)

[phantompanther13]

Thins were finally starting to settle down back to normal. Well as normal as things could be when you were a grumpy flame demon who had been avoiding actual classes. Finally he had been actually doing things again, but only because he wasn't feeling as bad. (Though some creeple were weird, Edel. There was nothing he could do about that though.)

After a tough day of putting up with the usual pressures of class, Andrew had decided to reward himself and go see Xiu. Maybe he convince her to give him more cupcakes. So he stepped into the cafe, and looked around not seeing her.

carhop cavalier

 

[Carhop Cavalier]

The little bells that were attached to a red string tied around the cafe door chimed as the demon boil lumbered his way through, alerting Gene that a customer had finally come in. The entire morning had been a hazy rush of firing orders, pulling espresso shots, and making sure everyone was satisfied. By the end of the morning rush, they'd run out of nearly everything.

Xiu had gone out to buy more ingredients, and Gene was left to watch over the cafe during the slow hours between lunch and the post work hours coffee stampede. The doppelganger popped her head up from below the counter, smiling widely before even seeing who it was. "Welcome to Shifting Blossoms, what can I get for y-"

Ah! It was Andrew! Gene had only met him every so often, and mostly just in passing. She knew he was Danny's cousin, though, and he'd been in the cave on their recent little hiccup.

"Hi, Screechie. How was school?" She leaned across the counter, smiling sweetly at the boil. "Anything to eat or drink for ya?"

phantompanther13

 

[phantompanther13]

Was everyone in this shop nice? Too nice. Andrew vaguely remembered Gene now, he also remembered her smacking AJ during that cave event, but right now he seemed to be safe in the haze that was being a customer.

He didn't see Xiu.

Half of him wanted to abort right now and just escape back out door. His wings had lifted ready for the flight that was pretty much impossible indoors. She was being nice though calling him screechie was weird. It made him flush, he wasn't used to people being nice to him anymore.

Ok no she was trying to kill him. She offered him drinks, definitely trying to kill him. "Ahh...." he coiled his tail up closer to his body, as if that would help him and just hovered a few feet from the door.

Carhop Cavalier

 

[Carhop Cavalier]

...

"Andrew, dear, if you break my door on the way out... I'll make sure that your cousin hears about it." Gene clucked, stepping back from the counter to grab a rack of glasses and start polishing them with a rag. "I have drinks and food for everyone and everything, screech. Even bottled lava, if you're into that. I can char a burger really nice for you too, if you'd like."

He was so skittish, so unlike Danny. Still, she had to smile at him. He was a cute little guy, even if he were a Hob. She saw all the students as children - her children.

"I can get you some pastries too. Or, you can just hang out here if you need. Students are always welcome." She pointed to a table near the one of the windows, where the pumpkin sun was shining through. "And don't forget about your student discount."

phantompanther13

 

[phantompanther13]

Andrew didn't care if Danny heard about him braking things. In fact she probably would pay for it for him, and be like yes destruction. Because she was Danny. Either way he wasn't much afraid of her wrath.

"Who drinks bottled lava?" lava demons, that's who. Though she probably had some from of fire water, which was basically bottled flames.

Slowly though she was speaking his language. "Student discount means I get free food right?" his wings settled. Ok maybe she didn't intend to splash him. or worst. Though he didn't realize she thought he was cute and kiddish. He was short but not that short. (Ok he was a little short.)

"Where is Xiu? She told me to try her tea cakes." he would be honest he came to see Xiu. Still he acted a little weary as he walked in, keeping his tail to himself as he looked around. The shelves looked oddly empty.

Carhop Cavalier

 

[Carhop Cavalier]

Gene narrows her eyes and piqued a brow at the boil, sweet smile slowly deflating. Jack, this kid was a sassy one. "I dunno hon, plenty of creeple. And no, your discount gets you half-off food and drinks as long as you're enrolled in the academy..."

Gene sighed then, realizing what Andrew had probably been led to believe. Xiu, you had to stop giving away freebies to anyone and everyone. "We're thinking about loyalty cards, though. Every 10 coffee drinks or pastries earns you a free lunch." She flippantly waved a scaly hand towards the display case, vacant of all sandwiches but a few grossaints and the mentioned tea cakes.

"Xiu's out restocking us. We got hit pretty hard this morning, and Cystco doesn't bring our order until tomorrow." Andrew would be able to tell Gene was annoyed by that fact with the way her hands very briefly became claws, before settling back to their normal Reaper like appearance. "It's 5 seeds for 5 tea cakes, but I'll make it 2 for you."

phantompanther13x

 

[phantompanther13]

There it was. Andrew watched as her smile fell. There it was thank Jack. That was better. The usual dislike was in this one too. Perhaps she just now realized her earlier attempts to drive him off failed.

Or maybe she was talking about prices. Ok then... he wasn't sure how he felt about that. At least he now he knew that they weren't handing out free food to everyone, which made him wonder why Xiu ever did give him anything free. Other than as a taster, that made sense. Then again it seemed they heavily favored students.

"Oh good you do charge." oddly he felt relived about that. He was starting to wonder if Xiu just gave things away for free. It must have been because of Danny. But he frowned at the amount. "Does that even cover your overhead?" Not that he was complaining... for himself. But Xiu seemed to not understand money seeing as she had given him stuff for free already. And he wondered if Gene did either, offering a discount. Then again he didn't know how much the ingredients coast, but... he ran a quick calculation guesstimating from his baking time with Xiu a while ago. He had seen the price minus chips divided by three. No that didn't sound right.

And Gene sounded annoyed that they ran out. yeah her claws, they weren't waving at him, at least he thought not.

He glanced though the prices... yeah they were low. "No wonder you ran out. Your prices are too low." he would have to actually look at numbers didn't most people get drinks with their stuff? He honestly didn't have any idea at that kind of pricing, but he knew that in firelands they always charged high. That might be climate related though. But unless they were making all their money on drinks there just wasn't any way. Even as small as the tea cakes were, too much went into them.

Andrew suddenly wished he had a marker. "I mean... you shouldn't be giving discounts for less than overhead unless they are old. They aren't stale are they?" he bend down looking at the cakes and eyeing them. Oh right, he had come in for food. Why was he telling her her prices were too low?

Carhop Cavalier

 

[Carhop Cavalier]

Gene's brows quirked and her left hip popped at the boil's suggestions and bereavement of her business practices. She smiled sweetly, saccharine lips peeling back to show glistening whites. "Screechie, I know what I'm about."

She floated to the top of the counter, butt floating a few inches above the marble, arms crossed and silver eyes giving Andrew a not quite glare, but a stern gaze. "I've been management at Bloodbucks before, and trust me when I say I know how my numbers work out. Ever heard of Sappy Hours? Half priced drinks, food - it cranks up volume, covering the one or two seeds you scrape off the prices." The doppelganger lectured, gesturing with an open palm to cash register. "Also, no one makes money on food, dear. Drinks bring in the profits. A cup of coffee costs me not even a seed to make - but I can sell it for two seeds. That's 200% profits. I break even on the food, maybe a 5-15% margin on some items. See how that works? Draw the creeple in with yummy food that's relatively cheap, then make a killing of a battuccino or a blood latte. It's simple math."

She was over the counter now, a rag in hand, polishing a table. "Nothing goes stale here, and we ran out because, like I told you, Cystco doesn't come until tomorrow. We run out because our product is good, and our business is thriving."

She huffed a little, flicking a spec of dust in the general direction of Andrew. "So did you want those tea cakes, Mr. Businessboil?"

phantompanther13

 

[phantompanther13]

The good old bait and switch. Still... 15% profits. That just was betting too hard on the drinks. In firelands they would be broke by now. Drinks coast more but you sold a lot less of them. They weren't exactly popular in areas with higher consecration of flame demons and fire elementals.

He stuck out his tongue, not really caring how childish it seemed. "Well then you'll never make money off me. Yes I want them." He was pretty sure she wasn't actually making a thing with the student discount. Or what she was was so little it wasn't worth it. Maybe Andrew was simply a creature of why do more work for less. They had run out. He shoved the two seeds across the counter to her.

Carhop Cavalier

 

[Carhop Cavalier]

Gene leveled a long and silent glare, with a smile, as she took his seeds and popped them into the register. "Did you want those warmed up, screech?" Gene asked with cloying sweetness, glancing over her shoulder to the turbo oven. "And I won't bother asking you about drinks - Danny nearly screeches her little head off every time I even mention them."

There was a brief pause, then she added - "And just so you know, Xiu and I get plenty of non student customers. They don't get discounts, and they buy plenty of coffee."

Why was she defending her business to a teenager, even? Pride, mostly.

phantompanther13

 

[phantompanther13]

"Wow it took you this long to realize you shouldn't mention them to me?" the sarcasm practically dripped off his voice. It didn't surprise him one bit that Danny screeched over it. He avoided them like some creeple avoided spiders.

"I can warm them myself thanks. I am glad you actually do get paying customers. I was honestly starting to worry Xiu was digging herself a hole." was that a small amount of affection in his voice? Perhaps, he did like Xiu. He would admit to that, even to himself. Though he didn't realize he sucked at showing worry and concern.

Carhop Cavalier

 

[Carhop Cavalier]

"I said warm them up, not scorch them to a crisp." She'd seen the way Danny ate her food. It disgusted her, especially with all the love and care Xiu put into the pastries and Gene into the meals. But, it was a person's choice as to how they ate their meals. "But you're entitled to do whatever with them, since you paid." She grabbed a plate as she talked, piling the little teacakes onto them and garnishing the confections with a bit of powdered sugar and a triplet of booberries, handing the plate to Andrew when she was all finished.

"Yes, well... Xiu isn't the best with numbers. Or the concept of fiscal responsibility." Gene complained in a hushed whisper, crossing her arms over her chest. "But she's a damned screech-heart, and a hard worker. Couldn't ask for a better business partner."

phantompanther13

 

[phantompanther13]

Last time Andrew checked he was not Danny. Andrew didn't have boobs for one. He and Danny didn't even look that much alike other than vague they were the same species. And they sure as Jack didn't act anything alike. So why did Gene seem to keep making assumptions about him?

Andrew took one of the cakes and let his hand heat up without actually setting anything on fire. A little puff of steam rose off of it and he took a bite right there. "This one isn't bad."

"As long as you even each other out it shouldn't matter."

Carhop Cavalier

 

[Carhop Cavalier]

Strange, that Andrew didn't scorch the beautiful little cake Xiu had put her time and effort in to. Gene was more than a little relieved, maybe even giving the boil a small smile at the backhanded compliment. "They're not my favorite, but I've never been a huge fan of tea."

The doppelganger unfolded her arms and began working on buffing down the display case, polishing off the smudges from little scarelings and adults who just didn't know to not touch glass. "We do. It works incredibly well."

A breif pause, the squeaking of the towel on glass. "Where did you learn your business sense?"

phantompanther13

 

[phantompanther13]

"I have no idea what tea tastes like. This is as close as I'll ever come." probably. Unless he magically turned into something else.... which might not be that far out of reach around here.

He probably still wouldn't drink anything after a life time of water is bad.

"I was born with it." Andrew cracked a smile. "That or it was drilled into me from a young age, I can't remember which."

Carhop Cavalier