welcome home feast!

[lasthugs]

WHO: OPEN MINGLE
WHERE: Xavier School Dining Hall
WHEN: January 29, 30; all day both days
WHAT: Cass and Callaghan opened up the school's dining hall for ALL imPorts, -- prisoners, diplomats, military, rescuers, even people who were uninvolved and just want the food -- to come in and recover from the ordeal with warm, free food, blankets gathered from god knows where, and each other.
WARNINGS: This should be relatively tame! But please mark your own warnings in the necessary places.

As announced here, Cass and Callaghan have opened up Xavier School to offer food and a resting place to ALL imPorts! The room is kept warm, and there's food and drinks -- non alcoholic! -- and enough space for a bunch of people to sit around and fill their stomachs. The buffet line is stocked with all sorts of food, and Cass is keeping pots of coffee ready for the people who would prefer that, too. There's no junk food, but she stress baked enough to feed a small country while everyone was gone, so there's plenty of pastries and bread to go around as well.

Comments

OTA

[pushtheboundaries]

[when Cass had pitched the idea to him, he wondered, not for the first time, why she had never found someone to marry. with a heart that big- but then, maybe she simply wasn't the sort to promise it away. either way, he hadn't asked, and after so much frustrating work getting him nowhere, even he could see that what he needed was a distraction.

and with the good news that they'd recovered those kidnapped, it seemed a good enough reason to celebrate. the fact that his school was the canvas for it - well, he could hardly say no.

nonetheless, he keeps himself occupied mostly by helping Cass to ensure the food is stocked. though he'll more than certainly make a few detours to find a few specific people, but...that doesn't mean he can't keep an eye that things run smoothly, anyway.]

[maglevflash]

[Cass had encouraged Gogo to thank Cal personally for helping out with this, so Gogo makes a beeline for the Professor as soon as she sees him. She's clearly favoring her ribs as she moves, but compared to yesterday she feels immensely better.

She has something to ask him, too, though she thinks maybe that can wait until another day.]

Professor!

[lasthugs]

[The two of them had probably been polite, sometimes friendly, but mostly respectful of each other's personal space for a while. Cass didn't want to make him feel cornered or pressured, even if she never stopped contacting him. But he had agreed so willingly -- and even helped out! -- to her desperate need to do something. And she couldn't be more grateful.

Which is why before he goes on a brief break from manning the kitchen with her to check on the people who're returning, Cass reaches out and tugs on his sleeve and without thinking, not thinking at all, throws her arms around him in a super tight hug.]

Thank you so much.

[akito]

[ akito wakes up from (another) impromptu nap, groggy, hungry, and confused by the noise coming from downstairs. benji all but forces him out of their room and down the stairs, dragging him to one of the exits to be let out for a pee. akito obliges, of course, murmuring for his dog to be good and not cause trouble or poo where he isn't allowed.

normally he would accompany benji outside for some fresh air and a walk, but right now he is hungry and groggy and confused by how noisy it is and how many unfamiliar scents are lingering. needless to say, when he spots the busy buffet and all of the people (mostly strangers) he's startled at best. frightened at worse. it wasn't something he had prepared for, and so he finds himself searching for callaghan.

once he locates the old man he grabs on to the hem of his shirt with one hand so as not to lose him, rubbing the sleep out of his eye with the other before blearily trying to piece together what's going on. all the while hiding behind his old man shield. ]

[itistolaugh]

[ Callaghan has about two seconds after being spotted to make his escape. ]

Hey nerd, where's my "welcome back" hug?

OTA

[maglevflash]

[Thank all the gods for modern plumbing, hot water, painkillers, and the grace of Aunt Cass.

She's later than she would have otherwise liked, her ribs not allowing her to do more than move slowly, but she's clean, and warm, and able to walk more than ten feet in any direction. She just wants to see her friends right now, and eat something that isn't dried or made for long trips with no resources.

Gingerly picking her way towards the food, Gogo keeps her eyes open for anyone she knows.]

[lasthugs]

[She sees you walking there, Gogo, and Cass' first move is to slide in next to her and pick up a tray.]

Hey, sweetie. Good to see you. Let me help -- you don't look like you should be straining yourself much.

[whitequeens]

[And Euphemia's been looking for her for quite some time. She's still got her jacket, after all.]

--Gogo! Ah!

I've been looking everywhere for you.

[orions_shadow]

[Food is good. Warm is also good.

Having finally morphed from his cumbersome human form into his leoine one, a tedious and uncomfortable transformation given the drastically different bone configuration, all he wants to do is eat and sleep, just like nature had intended. If he explores the halls of the school at all, it won't be long before he finds a comfortable place to curl up and fall asleep again.

Oddly enough, he doesn't seem as sociable as he usually does. He's more reserved, giving people their space while he tries to deflate the staticy ball of stress that he was right now.]

[flyfishing]

Hey! Shadow! [A familiar face pulls up next to him, a plate full of food in his hands.] There you are! Haven't seen ya since everyone got back. Some party, huh?

[As always, Fly was super cheery despite what everyone just went through. It was almost like it never happened, even though he had been apart of it.]

[After standing next to his friend, it doesn't take long for him to realize Shadow has yet to get eats for himself. Or so it seemed.]

Want my plate? I haven't touched it yet so you can have it if you want. [He holds it out to offer it to his friend, that smile of his practically lighting the room.] I promise there's no fish germs on it!

OTA

[rassera]

[Kaneda's exhausted, certainly. The whole trip had taken a lot out of him, and he's probably burned up more calories than his body would want to even count. Sleep was important, but after living on energy bars and chocolate packed by a 12-year-old, you miss actual food. He didn't care what it was.

So there he is, with probably his second plate by now, sitting off somewhere and digging into some pancakes, strawberries on top and sided with eggs, a bowl of ramen not too far away. some pastries were on a little plate next to that, completing the triangle of Kaneda's eating area.

Could he eat all of this? Definitely, and right now, his body needed it. He could feel how low his blood sugar had gotten on the mission, and just one bite of the pancakes was enough to get the glassy look out of his eyes. If anything, he wanted something warm, and that ramen would do just the trick.

He'd get to that in a minute. Right now he feels like pancakes.

Feel free to sit across from him, he certainly could use the company.]

[lasthugs]

[Cass isn't sitting -- don't expect her to do any sitting for a good while -- but she does stand next to Kaneda once she spots him, all smiles and eyes sparkling as she watches him eat. Good. That's what she wanted.

But there's one more thing she wants, too.]

Ka, ne, da!

[Look over to your side, buddy. What will you do when you see her holding her arms out like that?]

ota

[112ounces]

[ Carl's wiped. Not wiped enough to get downstairs and try to mingle, but he is exhausted. But the food pantry up in his and Rick's apartment is nowhere never as full as this place.

Besides, it saves up the time for Carl to try to cook.

He looks at a table full of food. Salads, sandwiches, all sorts of finger food . . . it's food Carl honestly thought he might not see again. He picks out a salad and several chicken fingers - his preferences is rather basic - and sits down to eat.

Approach him, but expect him to talk with his mouth open. ]

[resipiscent]

[He can tell who this is, even though they've never met. He's spoken to Rick enough times now that he can recognize his kid, who looks enough like him. Blood relatives always smell kinda similar, too. He's just wandering around with a coffee at this point of the evening, and tilts his head at Carl from across the table.]

You mind if I sit here?

OTA

[rathercommon]

[ This is Kitty's first time setting foot in Xavier's. Truth be told, she doesn't like the place, or trust it. The thought of a place designed to educate people segregated from the people without power makes her truly nervous; it seems like a way to foster elitism, a sense of separation, which will lay the groundwork for strife down the road. But...

But she doesn't want to cook for herself. She's tired and jet-lagged. And frankly, she's a little furious, too, at the whole situation, at the identification of people as weapons. At the government's non-response, their refusal to really help. Their eagerness to just turn it into another opportunity for propaganda, to feed the war machine. The anger's going to fade, sooner rather than later, but for perhaps the first time she rather thinks the company of her fellow imPorts seems a more attractive prospect than spending time with locals.

And so she slips in and grabs a sweet bun and gnaws at it, eyeing the buffet line and wondering if she ought to help out. Tired and jet-lagged, yeah, but she never isn't on the lookout for a job to do. ]

[inmyothertights]

[Billy has sort of been mysteriously non-present from rescue to finish, so this is the first time he's actually gotten to sit down and talk to Kitty, if sitting down and talking to Kitty is how someone would describe Billy Kaplan ambling up, looking exhausted still from the whole affair, and taking a sweet bun for himself.]

I swear, Jones, if you're thinking of going back there and serving food then I will set you on fire.

[He sits heavily on a nearby chair. He does not like Xavier's almost at all, but that's got little to do with anything except the weird family connotations he gets from being here.]

OTA

[dendarii]

[ Miles probably shouldn't be up and about yet, but dammit he wants something normal, and getting food so that Gregor doesn't have to cook seems a worthy reason. He's tired, though, hollow-eyed and with a truly epic set of stitches across his face in addition to the hard cast on his left wrist. That will take multiple healing sessions to correct completely, given that he's completely shattered it.

But he brightens at the spread, and cheerily helps himself. Look at him, being normal and happy and very, very glad not to be on a Russian submarine. That last part needs no exaggeration to be true. ]

What an excellent idea this is.

[amadaman]

...

...

[Ken definitely recognizes this person that he sees while walking past one of the tables. And sure, he thought he'd be taller -- he doesn't quite understand what having brittle bones could do to a person -- but what shocks him more is that he's injured. It's not surprising, but it still makes his stomach drop anyway, whenever he sees someone looking that injured.]

... Miles-san?

OTA

[akito]

[ more awake now - and understanding what's going on - akito has ditched callaghan in favor of wandering around. he keeps his distance from most, though even from afar it's fairly self-explanatory that he lives at the school; he's wearing a sleep-rumpled shirt that reaches nearly to his knees (a cute design bore proudly across the chest), and nothing else. it's his home after all, so in his rush to grab a quick snack to sate his hunger he didn't bother with his socks or slippers.

his hair is still fly-away from his rest, the curls at the ends more prominent from the disarray, and one of his cheeks has faint ink-smudged lines of complex equations (somebody obviously fell asleep on his homework - oops). it all makes him looks much younger than his fifteen years, and somewhat lost.

normally he would be flitting about energetically in this type of situation, but he lacks the energy or mental preparation to do so and thus watches the action from the sidelines. ]

riku | ota

[resipiscent]

[This has to be the most welcome thing he's ever encountered. He's been here a couple of times, but mostly on some sort of mission, so coming here just to eat is a little weird, but he's totally fine with that. He's found himself a spot in a corner with a modest amount of food, some sort of pasta and a couple of rolls, and he's snagged a full carafe of coffee. For a guy who avoids sleeping, caffeine is essential. He's poking through the network with his free hand as he eats, though if someone were to approach him he's certainly not averse to the company.]

[hands4healing]

[Winry walks up to him, a plate in one hand, a drink in the other. She lightly kicks his shin.]

Shove over, Riku.

Tetsuo | OTA

[iamtetsuo]

[Tetsuo's too hungry to pick at food, but he's eating mechanically, staying as close to Kaneda as seating allows once he gets to the table. Every time someone passes by behind him, he tenses up all over again. Once or twice there's a chance he'll retaliate at being brushed against.

Just because he came along on this stupid mission doesn't mean he's okay being out in the open, once all the adrenaline rush is gone. His head hurts. He'd kill for some painkillers right about now or, barring that, to go collapse back in Nonah.

His plate is entirely made of largely half-eaten dessert items snagged entirely at random and in a half-awake daze. Good, healthy life choices were made today.

So, how does he handle not wanting to move, not wanting the rest of the food he picked up and wishing he could snag a few more pastries he likes? Easy. Stand up to his whole height, try to get a view through the crowds of the buffet table, pick out exactly ONE baked good that sounds appealing, and snag it telekinetically.

Doesn't matter if someone was trying to grab it. Doesn't matter if it zips right in front of someone's face. He's tired, done, and anxious. He clearly needs this more.]

[lasthugs]

[... And there's Cass, walking around helping pick up empty plates from the more injured folks so they don't have to move, when a pastry whizzes right in front of her.]

... Well, that's certainly one way to do it.

[She'll come over to him, looking amused by entirely not upset.]

Want me to clear the rest of those for you?

Fuu Hououji | OTA

[monster_san]

[Fuu counts herself to be very lucky in her involvement with recent events--she wasn't kidnapped, she wasn't injured, and they made it home safely.

But she is far from relieved. Now she's living in a world at war--and not a sorcerer sending out minions, or temperamental princesses with half-baked plans, but a real, genuine, world war that will kill millions.

She doesn't have Hikaru or Umi to talk to... not even her sister. So she meanders around, nibbling at cookies and sipping tea, looking for someone to strike up a quiet conversation with.]

[pushtheboundaries]

[Robert sees her from a distance, at first, and is reminded of some of the shyer students at his school - even if she is a bit young. still, it's only a matter of time before they happen to close that distance, and he's able to give her a friendly smile and nod of the head in greeting]

Enjoying yourself, miss?

Komasan | ota

[monge]

[Although he came with his friends, Komasan opts to sit by himself for now, although he certainly won't complain if someone sat next to him. Maybe it's just old habits kicking in, but sometimes it's fun to just people watch.

Interestingly enough, he hasn't grabbed any food, not yet at least. Instead he holds a cup of coffee in his little paws like it's no big deal. Komainu drink coffee, true facts, look it up. It's a nice drink to unwind with, especially considering how hectic things have been.]

Monge...

[pushtheboundaries]

[okay, who let the d...

...that's not a dog. that's- well, it's not human either. it clearly has some sort of taste, considering its beverage of choice, but this is something Callaghan has to see for himself.

he meanders over, taking a seat and giving the creature a speculative look before half-raising his own mug]

You take it black?

OTA

[goingtogrillbys]

[Honestly, all this hullabaloo had gone over Sans' head, for the most part. As much as it seemed unfortunate... he didn't know anyone here. And getting dropped off in this strange and crazy world had been taxing enough.

Still, free food, plus a chance to see more what this world's about outside of a daily grind (a daily grind that he actually has to work for, ugh). So Sans hangs around the buffet line to give people a welcoming nod, but he's not eating. Instead, he's settled for a cup of coffee that he goes to refill every once in a while.]

[pushtheboundaries]

[there's plenty of people around that Callaghan doesn't recognize. he's not about to learn everybody's names, but he is keeping an eye out for those with particular...quirks. those who might need a closer eye.

to be fair, avoiding food isn't necessarily a cause for alarm. but he does manage to be there when Sans refills his coffee next, mainly because he's ready to refill his own. and he can't help but jibe a bit-]

Isn't that something like your fourth cup?

[doesntdomuch]

[Considering that Perry has eaten very little out of spite the entire time he was captured, he incredibly thankful for all this free food. His tray was filled with sandwiches and soups and desserts as he was eating them rather ungracefully, only taking breaks to down his black coffee. God he had missed home cooking so badly.

As he eventually slowed down, Perry found himself just resting his head on the table he was sitting at and sighing contentedly. After being locked up for so long, he just felt so comfortable right now that he could just fall asleep right there. And honestly there's a good chance he might if someone doesn't shake him out of it.

He is also in his human body because as much as he was burnt out by it after being trapped in that body for nine days, he can eat a lot more while he's human.]

i'm actually semi-disappointed he's not a platypus

[pushtheboundaries]

[well, this is almost entertaining. would probably be a bit more so if the circumstances weren't what they were, but - Callaghan comes up from behind, gently touching the man's shoulder to announce himself]

All right, there?

OTA

[cantread]

Option A

[So, guess who showed up? The coolest-looking dude around, that's who!

Sissel is definitely there for free food. Being unable to cook means he kind of relies on others to make him food all the time, so something like this is a good way to get a meal without bothering someone specifically.

Food isn't his only goal, though. He is also here because he figures that everyone would come here after the craziness of that rescue, and he wants to make sure that his friends got out alright. He's happy to see so many people are fine too, he was hoping they could pull off the rescue without too many people getting hurt.

So yeah, Sissel is around, either snagging food or starting conversations with people.]

How are you feeling, after all of that?


Option B: catte boogaloo

[If you would prefer interactions of the fuzzy kind, Sissel will go ahead and transform into his cat form after a few hours. Even as a human, social overstimulation is a thing for him, and he has taken to hiding under one of the tables to relax for a moment. He is not as sneaky as he thinks he is though, his tail is very visible, as it is swishing back and forth and poking out from under the table.]

Both A and B (since they can't really talk otherwise)

[doesntdomuch]

[Even if Sissel doesn't immediately recognize Perry's human body, it shouldn't be hard to pick him out with his starkly teal hair and the fedora. He gives a small smile but rubs the back of his neck as he "speaks".]

< Could be better, but I'm not one for self pitying honestly. And you? >

belatedly ota

[5055034455]

[This, Saul thinks, is a very good idea.

A very good idea that Cass talked him into helping with, because of course she did. He'd helped set up the buffet, and now he's playing chaperone — sort of: keeping watch on those who come and go, making sure no one spikes the punch bowl that doesn't exist, picking up abandoned dirty dishes and passing them off for someone else to wash later.

Mostly, though, he's eating. Cass stress bakes, he stress eats.

...someone might want to tell him he's got some powdered sugar on his jacket. Or just laugh at him. That's fine, too.]

[lasthugs]

[Or hand him a napkin with one hand while she leans her elbow on his shoulder and grins down at him.]

You wanna get that?

OTA

[missleadingquestions]

[Maya feels like she's been floating.

She has been, emotionally-- floating on the vapors left from victory. Something like that happening in her life-- helping to take over a military ship-- had been inconceivable, but it was real. It had really happened. She, like the others, had been a hero.

So it's a hero's appetite she brings to her visits to the dining hall, because there's nothing like Cass's food to get a girl feeling better physically, right? Maya's just as sore and tired as the rest of them, so she's loving not having to cook back home, and she seems just as social as usual. If you know her and pass her, expect her to drag you down to sit and chat for a little!]

[resipiscent]

[That sure is Maya with a spread rivaling Kaneda's. Morbid curiosity convinces him to stop and he sits down opposite her at the table, a coffee mug in one hand and a chocolate cupcake in the other. He has indeed been drowning himself in hot bean water all night.]

Having a good time?