9903/Coffee. Do you need another reason

Coffee. Do you need another reason
Date of Scene:	30 January 2022
Location:	Harold's House of Oddities and Coffee House
Synopsis:	Roy, Mike, and Julia come in for coffee. The guys leave knowing more about pineapple than they ever wanted to know.
Cast of Characters:	Michael Hannigan, Roy Harper, Julia Pennyworth

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Michael Hannigan has posed:
Light is an amazing thing. With its presence, things that seem forboding become welcoming instead. What one may not dare trek into suddenly becomes the most ideal place to be. Located in Amusement Mile, Harold's House of Oddities and Coffee House is currently experiencing the benefits of the morning sun. The creepy shadows of the abandoned amusement park nearby are gone. To add to this, there appears to be a bit of activity in said park as it appears a film crew has set up.

But that's the outside of Harold's. Inside, despite it being morning and despite the availability of coffee, the shop is rather quiet. Seated towards the front sitting area, Mike is relaxed, enjoying a cup of coffee and slowly turning through a table book featuring pictures of Amusement Mile during its heyday. He's a bit far away from home. But considering the issues there and what's going on across the street in the old amusement park, he's got his reasons.

Roy Harper has posed:
Having just finished his night patrol as Arsenal but dressed now in his civilian clothes, Roy wanted to stop and get coffee before returning home to sleep. Yes, that seems like a contradiction but there is probably no chemical that can keep him awake after that rough patrol. Almost no chemical. But vowed to give those up. Looks like things were rough last night. Roy has a very mild limp in one leg and a nice shiner forming on one eye.

He orders himself a cinnamon and vanilla latte and asks for a bag of ice. He looks just down-on-his-luck enough that they give him the ice. He smiles, thanks the lady, and leaves her a good tip in the tip jar.

Now, does he walk home or sit and enjoy the latte? He goes for the latter, limping over to a table and sitting down. He sees someone who previously sat there left a newspaper. Dope. He flips to the sports page and starts reading about the NFL playoffs as he holds the ice to his face.

Julia Pennyworth has posed:
The nightowl that had stepped in before her was hardly the only one that had been up all night. Julia, bedecked in civilian clothes with just enough Military garb (boots, and jacket) to mark her as just that steps in behind him. Groggy, and squinting at the coffee area, she just takes a deep breath.

"Coffee, black, but add some sugar in there. Could use the pep," Julia requests of the woman while sliding out a card to pay. She still had to get some money converted over to US currency again after her time abroad. For now a bit of plastic did exactly what she needed. "Oh, and one of those biscotti." With her sugary and caffienated gains taken she moves to flop down in a seat next to Roy and Michael.

"You look a right mess," she states flatly to Roy while reaching for a stirrer to mix up her drink. "Some cunt kick you outa the pub?"

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Hearing the creak of the floorboards as another enters the shop, Mike feels compelled to glance up. Recognizing the new patron as a former student of Happy Harbor, the eyes rest upon him for a few more moments before turning back to the table book, sipping his drink.

As Roy sits down, Mike's pale eyes shift over to him. "Rough night?" Is the simple inquiry. A nod of greeting is soonafter given to Julia whose simplistic drink choice allows for her to sit down almost immediately after the black-eyed Roy.

Roy Harper has posed:
With one of those stressed exhalations, Roy looks up when Julia says her comment within the same immediate chronological vicinity as Mike's comment. "Yeah, thanks for pointing out that I have a black frickin' eyes. I just wanna read my paper..." Speaking collectively to Julia and Mike, he says 'my' paper, apparently having already assumed ownership of the abandoned tabloid. When you grow up dirt poor, you learn to appropriate things at the drop of a hat. "...and then go get some..."

He blinks. He recognizes Mike Hannigan. He was some sort of authority figure back at Happy Harbor. Was he a teacher? A guidance counselor? Five concussions ago, Roy would probably have been able to produce that information. But not this morning. "Mr......Hannigan?" he says, the uptick in his voice indicating surprise. Hey, he remembered the name! That will likely be gone in two or three more concussions.

Julia Pennyworth has posed:
Julia Pennyworth crunches down on a bite of biscotti before dunking the rest into her coffee to use THAT to stir it up. She's taken up a rather improper posture by planting her arms on the table. One hand around her coffee mug as if protecting it, the other with her arm lifted up to take bites of that biscotti. Elbows on the table and all. In spite of the retort, she doesn't seem offended by it. Instead she merely shrugs.

"If you were wanting to go to sleep you wouldn't be drinking that," she points out with a gesture toward his own drink. "But suit yourself. Just trying to stay awake myself."

The apparent recognition of the two causes her to pause, and really look between the pair trying to see if there's something she could suss out. Michael DID look familiar but not in that 'I should arrest him' sort of way.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Mike tilts his head as Roy recalls his name. A slight smirk forming as the timing was honestly quite funny to him. "Got it in one. Hey Roy." He greets back, confirming Roy's guess, "Try Pineapple, Citrus, Strawberries, or Blueberries for the-." He makes a gesture towards the part of his fae that mirrors the location of Roy's shiner.

He glances over towards Julia, "Maybe the coffee is just enough energy for him to stumble home after whatever misadventures he had last night."

Roy Harper has posed:
Roy's gaze shifts to Julia's dunked biscotti. Damn. That looks good. Shoulda got one of those. "Just got into a fight, no big deal. You should see the other guy." Actually, you should see the other ten guys, some of whom won't be walking normally again for another six to eight months of rehab. But they all survived. There was a past Roy who might not have left them all alive.

Then as an afterthought he says, "Yeah trust me, this coffee is /not/ gonna keep me from sleeping." Now that there is social imbalance in this scenario, Roy decides to even things out more. How unlike him. "I'm Roy," he says to Julia. "Roy Harper. And this is Mr. Hannigan, my old something-or-other from high school." He peers at Mike. "Were you a guidance counselor or something?"

Julia Pennyworth has posed:
"Oi." Julia offers by way of greeting to the more proper introductions. Her coffee is hefted up in a means of salute. Not quite a beer but it wasn't the time for that. Coffee was the best option right now. "Julia Pennyworth, Royal British Army. Retired. Here visiting family and the like." A quick sip of the scalding coffee is gulped down before she adds, "And jet lagged as hell so I'm pulling a full twenty-four to reset my clock. Good to meet ya both."

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Hearing how Roy introduces him, Mike is already shaking his head in response. "You're out of school, it's safe to call me Mike." The musician offers as a form of acknowledgement to Roy's advancement out of the school. "And if I was a guidance counselor I'd probably have been lecturing a bit more when I first saw you instead of sharing what I eat more of to help get rid of bruises."

He takes a moment to nod to Julia, "Michael Hannigan. Entertainment Industry." He looks to Roy the next part answering his question a bit more, "And a Liaison to Happy Harbor to help facilitate work study programs and field trips that revolve around that."

Roy Harper has posed:
As Mike is correcting Roy's badly botched introduction, Roy limps over to the counter. That biscotti looked really good so he orders himself one...beeeeeeter make it two just to be safe. Nope. Three. He comes back to the table with three biscotti.

"Yeah, alright. Mike it is," Roy agrees. He dunks one of the biscotti into his latte and eats half of it in one big bite. "Oh my go' thi' i' tho good," he says, speaking with his mouth very full as he chews.

Once he has full use of his mouth back, he looks inquisitively at Julia. "You're retired from the army?" he asks curiously. "You barely look older than me."

Julia Pennyworth has posed:
"See? Best way to eat these. They're dry as bricks otherwise," Julia points out as she indulges in another nibble of her own coffee soaked biscotti. "I'd opt for the pineapple, by the way. It improves the flavor of other things as well as gets rid of bruises." It's said offhanded, and she doesn't pay much mind to any reaction. It's the question that has her pause.

Lifting her coffee again she glances down at it a moment with a thoughtful harumph beneath her breath. "Think you Yanks would call it 'honorably discharged', yeah?"

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Mike looks over to Julia quietly for a few moments to the addendum to the merits of pineapple. He blinks before looking to Roy, "Ok added approach. Get the frozen berries. Instant ice pack. Then when you're done with that, toss in a blender and then you have a bruisie smoothie without having to add the ice."

There's another creak upon the floor of the shop as a woman in a jacket and holding a clipboard steps in. Pausing at the doorway, she glances around. Pale eyes shift to the doorway for a moment before he looks down to the coffee table book he had been looking at earlier. A free hand reaches over to close it.

Roy Harper has posed:
It's not like you can say to two strangers 'Oh don't worry, my friend is a magical healer and she'll take care of this eye and leg in about 11 seconds.' So instead he holds the ice pack to his bruised eyes and accepts all of the well-intentioned advice.

"Okay as I understand it I'm supposed to get a frozen pineapple and some berries..." He blinks. "No, a barrel of sardines and a bucket of mango...wait are the peaches supposed to be frozen." He's being a goof.

Once he's done playfully mocking the other two, he polishes off another biscotti in no time flat.

Julia Pennyworth has posed:
"Suit yourself, but whoever you're dating will appreciate the pineapple. Trust me on that one," Julia points out as she takes another sip of her coffee. Mike's apparent hesitance at her remark earns a teasing smirk from her. "Eh, relax. Spend enough time with the units you get a weird sense of humor. Nothing personal." Reaching out she claps Mike on the shoulder lightly before inquiring, "Chippy at the door someone you know? You're ignoring her really hard otherwise."

Michael Hannigan has posed:
The performer's shoulder shifts with the tap in the slightest, eyes take Julia into their line of sight once more. "I'm not ignoring her." Mike responds, "I'm just getting every second I can out of this." He holds up his cup for a moment before taking a lingering sip.

Nearing the end of the scan of the shop, the clipboard weilder soon locks on to the trio in the sitting area. With quick steps, she cuts over, giving a polite smile to Julia and a momentarily...judgemental one towards Roy. One guess to what she's staring at. She shuffles past, stopping beside Mike's seat. Both hands clasping the keyboard she tilts her head slightly to look to the coffee drinker. "Mr. Drago, we're ready for you."

Roy Harper has posed:
Roy neither watches TV nor pays much attention to the Internet, which puts him in rarified company with other 19-year-olds who avoid those two things. Now if a football or baseball game is on, he'll turn on the TV. That's pretty much all it's good for in his opinion.

He gives a derisive smirk to the lady who looked at him all judgey. If she wasn't an associate of Mike's, he likely would have flipped her off. "Who the fuck is Mr. Drago?" Roy asks Mike. He looks over to Julia oddly, then back to Mike.

Julia Pennyworth has posed:
Julia Pennyworth hmms quietly in a way that said she hardly believed that. Still it wasn't any of her business. When the woman comes over and speaks to 'Mr Drago' she blurts out with, "And that's when I said 'well pull down your drawers and I'll show you how to stuff a box, y'stupid cunt!' You shoulda seen the look on his face, bright red and he nearly choked on his beer."

The lady is then given a look and she states, "Don't you know it's rude to interrupt someone's conversation? Eesh." Of course, she's messing with the woman. She might as well have a bit of fun after all. The name rings a bit of a bell causing her to look at Mike again studiously. "Ah. That's why you looked so familiar."

Michael Hannigan has posed:
The woman with the clipboard is close enough to overhear Roy's question. While it is obvious that the question was not directed to her, she starts to point towards Mike but then ends up looking over to Julia, seeming shocked. The pen lowers.

Mike, who was a bit startled by Julia's random statement is momentarily wide eyed. Upon the followup about interrupting conversations, he has to bite his lip for a moment. His head tilts down, shoulders shaking. He brings his head up, lips tight as he gives a quiet nod to Julia's comment regarding familiarity. "Well Roy, A lot of entertainers tend to have stage names." He gives a sigh, starting to get up. "Mine happens to be Nick Drago." His head tilts to the one with the clipboard, "And it looks like It's time to head to work."

Roy Harper has posed:
That is exactly his sense of humor. While attempting to chew some coffee-soaked biscotti, Roy snorts out a laugh at Julia's lewd, non-sequitur outburst. He holds out a fist to her for a celebratory fist bump. His cheeks are ruddy from the combination of laughing and trying to keep biscotti from spraying out of his mouth.

"Well that's pretty dope," he says. "Sorry for not recognizing you. I don't have a lot of time for a lot of TV or Internet." He stands up and tosses out his trash. "In fact, I'm off to bed. Mike, it was nice seeing you again. Julia..." He waggles a finger in her direction. "You're trouble and I love it." Then with an icepack held to his face and a slight limp in his walk, he heads off to bed.