Fried Chicken Sucks

It was a rare day that Rosabelle had off. She wasn’t scheduled to go into The Red Cauldron and didn’t need to her shift at Harvest Moon until after six so she was taking the opportunity to run some errands. Things often fell through the cracks with the number of hours she needed to work but life was what it was at the moment. After dropping off some mail at the post office, Rosabelle was walking back through the town towards her apartment when she spotted Patrik sitting outside of Through The Looking Glass. A smile spread on her lips as she approached, quietly taking the seat across from him.

“I’d tell them to suck it up and deal with you. And that if they wanted to continue the business relationship, they’d adhere to the regular price. In fact, maybe you should insist on a discount for all the trouble they’re giving you.” she replied, reaching for his coffee and taking a sip without asking.

Despite his stress Patrik couldn’t help but smile at Rosa as she almost appeared out of nowhere.  He would’ve been far worse off if it wasn’t for her, the amount of times in the last few months he had taking them driving just so he could rant and rave about how he felt he was doing his father no justice and the island was slipping through his fingers.  She always let him get it out and then gave him something rational to think about.  

“Okay, and if they don’t?  What if they say take the new price or leave it?  The population is too large now to sustain everyone on just the crops and livestock some of the people grow,” he said with a groan, crossing his arms and flopping down onto the table.  He watched as she took his coffee, pouting at her slightly.  “You’re lucky that’s like my sixth and not my first or I might be mad.” 

“To find business elsewhere?” Farren responded with evident uncertainty in her own reply. Clearly, she wasn’t the best person to be asking all these questions to, not when she didn’t know the first thing about business and was trying to start one on her own. “What if…” the redhead began as she pressed her lips in a tight line, a quiet hum sounding as she finally came to take a seat across from Patrik. “We can practice?” After a moment of rummaging through her bag, Farren produced a small box of her homemade chocolates. Placed on the table directly in front of the other, the witch simply smiled. “I’ll pretend to be the business changing the price and you pretend this isn’t the fifth time I’m going to tell you to try the caramel infused one. I think I perfected it. Oh!” Farren reached back into the Mary Poppin’s bag she had brought with her to pull out a paper pad and purple inked pen. “Thoughts on chocolate gingerbread? It’s important research.” 

“Farren, uh, no,” he sighed.  At least she sounded uncertain as she said it, not that it necessarily helped him.  “I mean theoretically, but they could take the bluff and then I would have to find a whole new supplier of food for the isle.” Patrik desperately wanted his father back, even if it was only to ask him the question and get the best answer.  It was doubly frustrating that the guy knew he was Julien’s son and would probably be taking over one day anyway.  

“Practice?” he looked at her curiously as she rummaged through her bag, rolling his eyes when she pulled out a box of caramel chocolate.  “Fine, hit me with your price change.  I believe the initial was $5 a box.”  It would be something he guessed, even though it was easier to tell the girl to bugger off.  When she posed the next question though his brows rose.  “As in gingerbread flavoured chocolate, or chocolate flavoured gingerbread?”

Running a hand through his curls he let out a frustrated groan, trying to resist snapping his laptop in half.  “Okay so just you know, out of interest, if you had a business trying to change the sell price of goods to you because you weren’t, quote, ‘the usual guy we deal with’ what would you tell them?”

Shit, he was getting actual notes. Okay, alright. He pulled out a scrap piece of paper from his pocket and a stub of a pencil. “Alright, smartass. You talkin’ heigh or distance? Haven’t aimed at any buildings lately, so there’s got to be a plus there.” He grinned mischievously. “Gotta perfect it before I get the business license.”

Patrik actually let out a snort when the older man pulled out a piece of paper and pencil from his pocket.  “You actually carry that around with you?” he asked incredulously.   “Height... well both really.  If you go higher and get a bigger arc imagine what distance you could get?” 

Melody had been at Hell’s Kitchen since 6 am and hadn’t slept much the night before, so her body was just beginning to slow down when Patrik slid onto a stool at the bar in front of her. “I don’t know if i’ve ever heard the words ‘fancy’ and ‘nachos’ put together in a single sentence.” she replied with a chuckle. “Have you ever had any of the nacho options that we serve here?” she questioned, leaning forward and resting her hip against the bar. “But what sort of additions would you suggest?”

“Really?  Why can’t they be?  Connor had me try some at Monster Jam and you know they actually weren’t too bad... could do with some improvements though,” he started, shaking his head when she asked about having tried any of Hell’s Kitchen’s range.  “Okay, so I’m thinking either dried red peppers or sundried tomatoes and then capers and pine nuts.  What do you think?”

Rosabelle found herself looking forward to her regular drives with Patrik. It was more than just enjoying the luxurious car, she actually enjoyed his company in a way she had’t expected. A smile was on her face as she headed out of her apartment building and climbed into the passenger seat. “So where are we driving today?” she asked as she buckled herself in. 

“It’s a surprise for you today Rosa,” he replied, shifting the car into gear and peering in the rear view mirror before setting off.  Reaching for his phone he passed it to her.  “Feel free to choose the music, it’s already connected to the Bluetooth,” he urged, turning out of the street and heading in the general direction of the dealership.

“Not jewelry,”  the redhead was quick to correct. “I already know how to fake that to make it look real.” A confession she was sure Patrik would later come to know as it was by the doings of her father that the witch had learned such behavior. However, since then she had become rather rusty with her ability to fake things to perfection just long enough to fool someone into spending copious amounts of money on something that would fall apart in minutes.  Maybe she shouldn’t have been particularly proud of this ability nor flaunting it about the streets of Hollow Grove, but in some ways, it was nothing more than habit. “I have things I need you to look at and try and see if you can tell which is better quality than the other.” With a gesture towards the nearest table, Farren then folded her hands together, rocking the weight of her form back and forth. “So what do you say? Be my test subject? You get chocolate out of it.”  Among other things. 

Patrik paused for a second before shaking his head.  “You know what? I’m not even surprised,” he commented.  While he didn’t know much about Farren’s past it seemed there were things he had never experienced that she hadn’t either and if she didn’t have the same background as him then it was something else not usual.  Plus, there had been so many surprises since he had arrived in Hollow Grove that nothing should shock him anymore.  When she went on to explaining his brows knitted together.  “Sure?” he agreed, his only hesitation coming from confusion as to exactly what she was asking him to do.  “Is it good chocolate though?  None of the American shit.”

Mako let out a laugh as Patrik called out, his fists pumped in the air touchdown style. He was getting good at this; too bad he couldn’t find anyone else who would be down for a good toss. Joslyn maybe? He’d be terrified to mess her up, though. “Nice!” A dash forward and he skidded to a halt just shy of the younger man. “Scale of one to ten, how was the experience? Any feedback you want to give?”

Patrik wasn’t even sure how it had come about that he had gone from one surprise toss to being Mako’s test dummy.  Hell, he wasn’t even sure what Mako was actually trying to achieve by turning him into a human discus.  It was a good thing he was a werewolf though or serious damage would be done.  “I’d call that one a four out of ten, which is an improvement,” he said, rubbing at his leg.  “You need to work on your projection.” 

With his head down, hands buried deep in his pockets, Ethan walked along the sidewalk letting his wolf eyes guide him through the pitch black. It seemed like the right time to come to town, new moon and all. New moon, new leaf. At least that was what he hoped. A new leaf and sanctuary from his father’s deranged pack. But before he could fall too deep into his own thoughts, a bright light blinded him. Turning to face it, Ethan pulled the hood from his head, squinting thought the light in an attempt to see who, or what, was coming his way.

Patrik had been out for a drive with Rosabelle that night, showing her just how good the new Porsche Cayman was and how it handled.  After he had dropped her off however he had decided that he wasn’t ready to return to the empty cavern that was his house, especially on a night like this one with little moon to fill it.  As he came across a figure alone on the sidewalk - one who was stopping he too slowed down, rolling down the window.  At first he thought it must have been someone he knew from their reaction, but he quickly realised it was a stranger.  “I thought I knew you for a second - are you lost?”

Now that Monster Jam was said and done Patrik was back to his usual schedule of eating out daily and avoiding having to do washing and dishes (there were a few glasses, they could wait).  He knew already that Theresa wasn’t at L’Atelier and that she had given him an open invitation for visiting.  Which is why he was pulling up in her driveway at two o’clock in the afternoon.  Slipping out of his brand new Porsche Cayman he moved to knock at the front door, waiting for her to answer.  “So I’m really craving those pancakes.  Can we add the chocolate chips again?”

It had happened again.  Patrik was minding his own business when he had heard the patter of feet too late and was flying through the air.  If he was honest he didn’t mind this part of it, it was when gravity inevitably kicked in and he ended up crashing to the ground that he hated.  He was trying to brace himself now though, to prepare for the landing as soon as he was in the air.  He still crashed hard but it was more of a tuck and roll this time.  Climbing to his feet he turned back to call out to Mako who was a hell of a distance away now.  “I didn’t dislocate my shoulder this time!”

No one came to a festival like this to get peace or quiet. This may have been her first year at Monster Jam but it wasn’t the first time Clara had been to a one like it. The major difference was that she could be herself this time around, drinking however much she wanted without fear of revealing her bite so to speak. Finding an empty spot on the grass away from the crowd, she plopped down with her legs stretched out. Her ears picked up someone getting closer so she looked up with a smile pasted on. “Care to join me?” Her hand patted the grass next to her. 

Patrik was decidedly drunk, having visited every drink stall (some more than once) as well as playing a round of beer pong with some visiting supernaturals.  Now he was simply wandering around cradling a cup of... he wasn’t actually sure at this point what it was, but it was doing the job.  He hadn’t even realised he had ventured so close to anyone until he heard the voice and saw the woman patting a spot on the ground next to her.  With a shrug he figured he may as well and plonked himself down.  “Sure, why not.  Are we doing anything exciting?”

“It’s a tie between being tricked into trying a deep fried chocolate bar or when I found a mouldy plate by my kitchen sink.”

“Uh, I mean probably that one time my father took me hunting for ‘deer’. Yeah, it wasn’t deer.”