“I’ll head off once we eat then,” I said and we all glanced around in hopes of seeing Darius returning with a huge tray of food for us, but instead found Geraldine striding into the room in a tight red and blue jumpsuit with ‘A.S.S. Forever’ printed over her tits. She was holding an enormous plate piled high with buttery bagels and another filled with every kind of topping anyone might ever dream of putting on one.
“Make way for the breakfast of the true queens!” she cried, striding towards us and making my damn stomach grumble as the scent of those delicious creations wafted over us.
“Oh fuck yes,” Seth groaned, pushing to his feet as Geraldine swerved us and placed her bounty down on the table next to ours.
She set to work decorating the table the way I had our couch, creating two chairs large enough to arguably be called thrones and setting them at either end of the long stone table she’d selected then covering the table in flowers and laying the food out on top of them.
Several other A.S.S. clubbers hurried over with a pitcher of orange juice and a large cafetière filled with fresh coffee before placing plates, mugs and glasses down too.
“How come the Vegas get table service?” Seth whined, dismissing the silencing bubble that surrounded us so that Geraldine could hear him.
“Do you mean to ask why the true and glorious monarchs of our fair and noble land deserve the mightiest of breakfasts to sup upon before the start of their day of training in the quest to conquer the dastardly Dragoon?” Geraldine scoffed loudly. “I think the answer to that most foolish of questions is more than clear, even to a lowly mutt, a bothersome barracuda and a sharp toothed Sally such as you rapscallions.”
“Come on, Gerry, give us a couple of those bagels,” Max tried, getting up and moving towards her. “You know the Vegas can’t possibly eat all of-”
“Avast!” Geraldine cried, flinging her arm out and damn near smacking Max in the face as she pointed across the room to the tunnel which Darcy and Tory were emerging from, appearing less than thrilled at the fact that everyone was now looking at them. Darcy was dressed in a white shirt and a pair of faded blue jeans, but Tory had just thrown on one of Darius’s shirts and a pair of thick socks, looking pretty pissed about being the centre of attention. “What’s this? Two shining stars come down to grace us with their beauty? Two flawless gems, blessing us with their attendance? Two most beauteous-”
“Stop, Geraldine,” Tory begged, slipping through the crowd with her sister. “I’ll go on a fucking hunger strike if I’m forced to endure this kind of welcome every time I come looking for food.”
“You heard my lady!” Geraldine roared. “Avert your gazes and return to your business!”
Tory cringed and Darcy blushed furiously as they made it to the table and everyone in the room pointedly looked anywhere but at them.
“Good morrow, fine ladies!” Hamish called as he bustled his way across the room with a bowl of fresh fruit in his arms and my stomach rumbled as I looked at the fucking feast that had been laid out for the Vegas. “How are you on this wondrous day-ahhh!”
His greeting turned to a cry of horror as Orion shot into the room and dropped into the chair beside Darcy just as she took her seat in one of the thrones Geraldine had created for them and our former Cardinal Magic professor scowled back at him.
“My lady, are you certain you wish to dine with a Power Shamed cretin such as…such as…”
Hamish seemed to gag over the idea of speaking Orion’s name and I couldn’t help but bark a laugh at his expense.
“I want him here,” Darcy said firmly. “He’s my boyfriend.”
Hamish paled at that and Seth bounced up and down in his seat as Tory grinned at them. Orion glanced at Darcy with some objection in his eyes as Hamish broke out in a sweat.
“Thanks to me,” Seth said excitedly.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Orion demanded, narrowing his gaze on him, his hand straying towards a pineapple in a fruit bowl on the table.
Seth mimed zipping his lips and throwing away the key as Orion’s hand closed around the pineapple in a threat. Darcy laid a hand on his arm, drawing it away from his weapon of choice and Orion’s eyes slowly slid to her instead, the death threat in them melting.
“This conversation isn’t over,” Orion warned Seth, but he just shrugged and I tried to catch his eye, unsure what his game was and why I wasn’t in on it.
“Remember how I said it’s best if we keep our relationship between the people we know, considering my position in society,” Orion said to Darcy in a low growl.