A small snort escaped at the idea of buying anything for Zephyr, even with his own card. If anything she figured she'd buy a bunch of useless junk the next time he made her angry, which would probably happen sooner than he realized the card was missing. Ghost probably wouldn't approve, though. Would she rat Isabel out if she thought the card was stolen? "It's for emergencies," she offered, hoping to make it sound like it had been given to her.

She took the card back with a rather smug smirk and let the kid take care of the bag. Hearing Zephyr referred to as Simon was still odd enough that she nearly missed the question. "He's just some jerk I got stuck with somehow and can't seem to get rid of," she replied, pocketing the card and finally following the kid out of the godawful store. "Bet he wouldn't mind buying lunch, though."

Oh. Emergencies. That made sense in a Simon kind of way.

Who was Simon?

"He's my-"
> "He's just some jerk I got stuck with somehow and can't seem to get rid of,"
"-brother."

Maya shrugged apologetically to Abbigail and Isabel both.

"They're together. Or dated? Dating?" Maya chanced a peek to see if any of the murderous murderess was still in there. Zephyr was trying. Right? If she had his card for emergencies that meant she was trusted enough to share his finances. That was a good sign. A maybe soon-to-be-sister sign.

The air was infinitely better outside of the shop. Maya hadn't realized how she'd acclimated to the smell until it was gone. She stretched and then rummaged around until she dug out the car keys. Lunch was proposed and accepted. Good. They should wash the taste of that place from their palettes.

"Uhm. I see a cafe and a cart on the corner. Unless you want to go somewhere fancier?" Maya checked that Abbigail still had the bag and that both were safe and accounted for. "Your choice, Abbigail. But maybe Cafas' treat this time." They wouldn't deny her twice would they?

Abby blinked at the strange description of Simon. Who was apparently related to Maya and... sorta dating Isabel. Adults were weird if that was how they stated they were dating someone. Or maybe Isabel was just weird. That could be it.

>>"Uhm. I see a cafe and a cart on the corner. Unless you want to go somewhere fancier? Your choice, Abbigail. But maybe Cafas' treat this time."

"Ummmmm, some place we sit and don't have to get back up for food?" she offered. The little blonde was pretty sure that you had to get up to get food at cafes and there wasn't really any place to sit with a cart. But she wasn't sure she wanted to go someplace fancy either. "Can I put the bag in the car before we eat?"

Right, Zephyr was Ghost's brother. Was it wrong to refer to him as a jerk while she was around and not drunk? It probably wasn't very nice at the very least. But maybe if she kept calling him names it might discourage the relationship nonsense. Would that be a thing that worked? She hoped that would be a thing that worked because Ghost seemed to be really set on the idea that dating was happening and it absolutely was not.

"No, we're not- We've never- It's complicated." Definitely not dating, but Isabel couldn't really say exactly what kind of relationship they actually had. And even if she wanted to she hardly thought Ghost would appreciate her new friend essentially being held captive by her brother's promises. The dynamic between the three of them was awkward enough already.

The food from a cart wasn't great, but Isabel still would have preferred it to a nicer sit-down meal. At least cart food meant they could keep moving and then she could break away from the group that much sooner. But she supposed sitting at a restaurant was still infinitely better than where they had just been. She could put up with her odd company for a bit longer.

"Definitely put the bag in the car." The last thing they needed was a building full of people seeing what kind of place they had just come from.

Yes. Isabel was such a good girl now. Maya had baited her and hoped to not get stabbed and then she didn't get stabbed. Isabel hadn't even lunged. Granted, Ghost had mostly only seen Isabel in big all-out fights. She'd been spidery and breaking things. But no one had done any of that in years. Years. Maybe they'd all grown up a bit.

"Oh, he's totally a jerk. But no one is better at handling him than Isabel. She's a pro." Maya had actually seen the handling going both ways and even just remembering that made her desperate to grasp on to something else to think/talk about/do.

"Yes! An actual restaurant. Okay. I know just the place!" She unlocked the car and while Abbigail was putting the bag away, Maya was planning a route. 1.2 miles. On foot? They were all young, strong, independent ladies. No problem.

"Let's walk! It's not far."

It wasn't far. She hadn't worn the best shoes for it, but it had been do-able even if it wasn't the best. Because the restaurant was the best. It'd been used to a TV setting once or twice (because it was perfect). Groups for friends who were girls often flocked there for drinks and talking (again. the reason was obvious).

Petit Fours. Tea. Quiche. Everything was frilly and lacey and perfectly feminine. Brioche rolls. Honey butter. And little cupcakes. "They have little tiny cupcakes, guys!"

Abby blinked at the... teasing? between the two women. The little blonde hadn't spent a lot of time with multiple women before. Was this normal? Teasing seemed like it was. But how did you know what was fun and what wasn't? She'd have to ask Cafas when they got back.

The walk was longer than Abby thought it would be. She didn't know distance really well, but she thought they went far from where they left the car. Her legs were a little heavy, but she ignored it. Once they got inside she could sit. Standing on her toes, she could see over the lacy half curtain into the restaurant. It looked really pretty! Almost like a fancy tea party place!

Gasping, Abby turned to Maya. "Are we gonna have a tea party?" She tried to keep her excitement down, but her face showed her joy at the idea. Aunt Teresa never let her have a tea party, even if it had only been her toys that would join. And she didn't have a lot of girl friends at school. A tea party! A real, adult tea party!

Walking never bothered Isabel. She'd never bothered to get a driver's license so she was accustomed to getting places on foot, be they normal or spidery ones. She'd driven a few times but even when ignoring the rules of traffic she still found it to be too confining. Traveling as a passenger might have been worse.

So when Ghost suggested they leave the car behind she offered no resistance. It was a bit of an annoyance having to move slower for the part of the trio with such short legs, but at least they were moving away from the racy shop, so in the end it was all the same to her.

Seeing the kind of place they were headed gave her pause, though. It was filled to the brim with lace and frills, covered in little flowers and pastel colors. She made a face at the sight of it. Not Isabel's kind of place at all. The idea of a tea party didn't exactly warm her up to the shop any further. Mini cupcakes were only a little better.

Isabel let the other two enter before her, a tiny bell jingling when the door was opened. There were noticeably more women occupying the place than there were men, but that wasn't exactly surprising.

"Pick a table, kid," she prompted, wanting at to at least try to blend a little bit by sitting among the crowd. A couple of people were already starting to turn their heads and murmur to each other behind their hands. She hoped the other two could eat quickly. This was not a good look for her.

"Tea party!" Was Maya's exuberant confirmation. There may have been more than a little bouncing that could fast devolve into holding Abby's fingers and jumping up and down.

Isabel prodded them to do the pragmatic thing and take a seat. But there were flowers! And sugar crystal stirrers! And-! And-! Maya sighed and tried to reign her excitement in.

"No, you're right. Let's find a booth." There was one in the back that was open, probably because of its proximity to the restroom, but it had high backs to the booth benches and a window with lacy wafty curtains.

Maya slid in first and plucked at the curtains. They were stiffer than she'd imagined they would be. The wood top of the table was shined to a reflective polish and there were fresh flowers... could it get any more perfecter?

"Hello!" The waitress that greeted them was quietly exuberant and had a fluffy grey poof with a smashed face on her shoulder. Yes. It could get perfecter. "Would you like to find a friend? We have several kittens that just came in today!"

"Would it be okay to pet them?" Kittens gamboled in the waitress' apron pockets. So tiny and small!

"You can take one of these, sure! The cats that are loose in the cafe are okay to pet as well. Some like to be picked up and pet, but some might be more skittish so please respect the claws. They're all rescue cats and all up for adoption!"

"I would like to hold one, please. Abbigail?" Maya held out her hands for one of the small floofs.

The little blonde bounced on her toes as the trio entered the cafe. Tea party! This was going to be so much fun! It looked like a princess cafe as she looked around. She caught a few glimpses of cats roaming around but didn't really understand until they were seated and the waitress was talking to them. She really should have paid more attention but once she saw the kittens with the waitress, the teens attention was focused on the cute baby cats.

There was a tortoise shell kitten hiding in the corner of the apron. Half it's face was the lighter brown color of the coat. Bright green eyes peered around it's siblings at Abby. A single paw with a stripe of white in the middle of the top of the paw escaped the top of the apron and waved at the girl.

As their waitress mentioned adoption Abby recalled the school's rules on pets. She got away with her fish tank since it wasn't like her fish could go walk around, but a kitten or puppy probably wouldn't be allowed. She still wasn't sure how Adder got his kitten.

>>"I would like to hold one, please. Abbigail?"

Abby turned to look at Maya in wonder. "I can hold one?"

The woman standing in front of their table laughed. "Course you can, Hun. Looks like little Drizzle here's taken a liking to you. Wanna hold her?" Nodding quickly, Abby bounced a little as the waitress handed over the kitten. "I'm a little shocked, honestly. She's been pretty shy since she and her litter-mates got here."

Green eyes stared into equally green as the kitten and girl watched each other. Abby was the first to blink. In her triumph, the kitten climbed onto the girl's shoulder and laid there. Abby didn't really pay much attention to the adults. She was too enamored with her kitten.

There was excited squealing and hand grabbing and bouncing and this was going to be a very long lunch. At least they'd picked a table in the back away from most of the other patrons and any prying eyes. The curtains across the windows were a help, too, but only from people passing on the street. They were still horrible in and of themselves, covered in flowers and frills as they were.

Isabel slid into the seat opposite Ghost, hardly paying any mind to the waitress that made her way to them, instead busying herself with one of the over-decorated menus sitting on the table. Up until the other girls' too-high voices began gushing again and drew her attention toward what had captured their focus.

Cats. The woman was covered in cats. How had she not noticed the cats gamboling all over the damn place? And they were being invited right to their table. She watched in near-horror as first Ghost eagerly accepted a small bundle of fur and then Abby followed close behind, each of them regarding the wiggly hairballs as if they were something precious. She didn't see it.

The waitress turned to the last at the table and Isabel could see her smile falter before she plastered it back on just a little too wide, too forced. "Would you like to, uhm," she started, one hand rising to rest on the shoulder-cat with the weird face. It was clear she was uncertain about handing one of the furballs over.

"Absolutely not," was the reply, saving the woman the trouble of struggling through the rest of her offer. A flicker of relief before the waitress rummaged in a pocket for some paper and a pen to take their orders. "Well, in that case what can I get you ladies?"

Isabel wasn't much of a tea drinker, so most of what was listed seemed all the same to her, but ultimately she settled for something with honey and lemon in it. She hoped the people in the kitchen would be able to keep all the fur out of the cup.

Hehe. "Drizzle." Maya said the cat's name as if the "i" would have had a heart over it. She checked her own little grey floof's name which was written in sharpie on its safety collar. "Lemon Nation?" Maya tapped the bell to hear it jiggle and the cat did his best to wriggle free. Some people had the strangest naming schemes.

Maya upgraded Isabel's single cup order to a full teapot so they could all share in the friendship ritual of sharing a teapot. Lemon tea with Lemon Nation. "I would like a lemon poppyseed scone and maybe a salad?" Yes. A garden salad. With a FANCY fork! Lemon Nation squirted out from between Maya's fingers and was climbing the curtains in no time.

"Ehm. Is that..." Maya pointed to the cat, a half-formed question if the cat was allowed to do that.

"Happens all the time! Just don't let him fall okay?"

"Anything sound good to you Abbigail?" And Isabel. She hadn't actually ordered any food which was the point. "You don't want a baby cupcake? I think I saw one with a chubby giraffe on it."

"There's a croissant shaped like a chubby baby cygnet too." Maya pointed at the lady as if to say See? She knows what's up and then had to rush to catch Lemon Nation from falling as he ripped a shred in the lacy curtain.

Abby giggled as Maya's kitty started climbing the curtain. Lemon tea was interesting. Abby took a look at the menu to see if anything caught her eye. The baby cupcake Maya recommended was yummy looking.

>>"There's a croissant shaped like a chubby baby cygnet too."

She didn't know what a cygnet was, but a croissant sounded yummy. "Can I have both? And some of the little sandwiches?" she asked, pointing to the picture of a plate of assorted sandwiches.

"You got it, Hun. Anything else I can get you ladies?" Once she got her response, the waitress smiled and turned to put in their order. "If you need anything just ask, alright?"

Turning to Isabel, Abby decided to ask a question that had popped into her head. "Do you not like cats, Miss Isabel?"

Sweets shape like baby animals seemed excessive, but then again everything else about the place was excessive already. It was weird, but judging from the rest of the atmosphere Isabel couldn't honestly be surprised by the suggestions offered.

"Alright, I'll have the fat cupcake and the croissant, then," she conceded, worried about how much fatter and more obscure their animal themed goodies could become. It wasn't so much the food itself that worried her, but the reactions they could illicit. Any more squealing from the other two could sent the cats into a surprised panic and then they'd all have to deal with fur and claws all over the place.

Isabel was watching the climbing cat warily, her body starting to lean away from the curtains when the smallest in the group addressed her. She nearly laughed at the question, but managed to stifle it to a small snort. "No, I don't like cats. They're sneaky and conniving and I don't trust them." She wasn't fooled by the big eyes and the purring. Any one of them could be a boy in disguise, just waiting for an opportunity to climb through the underwear drawers of their newest adoptive home.

Really? Isabel didn't like cats? How could anyone not like cats?

"Cats are creative and wonderful little floo-ow!" He bit her! Maya picked up the kitty and wrinkled her nose at Lemon Nation's nose. He put his paw at the tip of her nose. What even was a Lemon Nation!? "You just need more attention, don't you?"

From there Maya set the kitty down and got a spoon to wiggle underneath the cover of a napkin. By the time the waitress was back with the tea, Maya's spoon had been claimed by kitten-kind and she was trying to tempt him with a butter knife instead of her fingers.

"Can you pour the tea, Abbigail?" Maya's hands were full of dagger tipped fluffiness. "I gotta tire him out." And she was just stubborn enough to do it too.

Abby blinked at Isabel's response to her question. "Do you like dogs instead?" she asked. Usually people who liked one didn't like the other. At least that's what she thought. Abby herself liked both. Adder was a wolf and she liked kitties too.

Drizzle was content to sit on her shoulder and purr. The low rumbling had Abby reaching to scratch a bit on her head. She giggled as Maya looked at her kitten after he bit her.

"Here you go, ladies." The waitress spotted the battle going on at the other side of the table. "I'll be back with some more silverware and your food in a bit."

>>"Can you pour the tea, Abbigail? I gotta tire him out."

"Sure," she smiled before carefully reaching for the pot and beginning to pour each of them a cup. She took her time to make sure she didn't spill any, and to keep her shoulder kitten. Once finished she beamed at Isabel, who wasn't occupied with a kitten.