Current Events > Teen Titans CYOA: Romance Resurrected Part 12

(+) Yeah! (+)

Malcrasternus posted...

Cartridge88 posted...

A) Sure

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scubasteve42 posted...

Malcrasternus posted...

Cartridge88 posted...

A) Sure

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A

"Well alright," you say.

Raven pulls the other two ribs apart and she hands it to you. You look it over and see this is just as meaty as the one Raven was chewing on. You take a big bite and enjoy that tangy, savory, smoky meat.

The two of you enjoy your meal, though you do try to hear to the football game. It's still more a din, but the group watching it are very excited either way. You wonder which team they're cheering for.

You take a bite of the corn bread, and it's rather dry, almost crumby. But the flavor is still there, at least.

A) Eat the corn bread quickly
B) Leave the corn bread for later
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Cartridge88 posted...

B) Leave the corn bread for later

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Malcrasternus posted...

Cartridge88 posted...

B) Leave the corn bread for later

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Alakazamtrainer posted...

Malcrasternus posted...

Cartridge88 posted...

B) Leave the corn bread for later

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B

"Let's leave these for later," you say. "They're just going to fall apart on us right now, anyway."

"Yeah, I'm thinking that's a good idea," Raven says as she wipes corn bread crumbs from her fingers. "We'll ask for a box."

Raven waves to your waitress and she walks over.

"Could we have a box?" Raven asks. "Just for the corn bread."

"Sure," the waitress says. "And should I also get the check?"

"Yes, thank you," you say.

The waitress nods and walks away. You wash down the corn bread with soda, then finish off your pulled pork sandwich. You also finish off the rib Raven gave you, while Raven finishes the other. The french fries are divided between the two of you, though you do pick out the bigger and longer ones.

You go back to your phone and look at the route between here in Sanford and to Daytona Beach.

A) Drive to the northside
B) Drive to the southside
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A.
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B
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A
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A

You plot a course with your phone's map to the north side of Daytona Beach. It's a little further so hopefully it won't be as crowded, even for a Sunday.

The waitress returns with the box and bill. Raven loads the box while you check the bill.

4 corn bread: $2
Fries: $2
1/4 ribs: $8
6 oz. pulled pork: $7
2 medium soda: $5

before tax: $24
tax: $1.44
TOTAL: $25.44

And with a nice 15% tip based on that $24, that's just a little over $29. You go ahead and make it $30.44, the $5 extra being the waitress' tip.

Raven calls the others while you give the bill to the waitress.

"Oh, h-hey, Raven," Robin says as he answers again.

"GO GO GO GO GO GO!" Cyborg and Beast Boy can be heard shouting.

"I assume that means Jump City is doing well," Raven says.

"YES!" the three guys shout.

"Sorry, we just got another touchdown," Robin says. "But actually, yes, Jump City's doing great! We're up, 20 to 17! And... The kick is good! 21 to 17!"

"Well that's great," you say. "We'll check in with you again in a little while, we're going to be on the road. We'll be going to the beach."

"Cool," Robin says. "Have fun!"

"Thanks," Raven says. "Talk to you soon."

Raven hangs up and carries the box of corn bread while you lead the way to the door.

"Thank you, come again," the waitress says.

"Thank you," you say as you hold the door open for Raven.

You and Raven go back to Shadowfax, and she sticks the corn bread in the knapsack before you head out.

It takes just under an hour to reach Daytona Beach, and then a little longer to make your way across the Halifax River to reach the strip of land with the actual beaches. You continue North and pull up to the Daytona Beach Main Street Pier. There's a parking lot just before the pier, so you park Shadowfax there, and then find a place for you and Raven to change into your swim wear. From there, you walk the pier and go to the sandy beach itself.

A) Soak up some sun
B) Splash around in the water
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A)
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B
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Cartridge88 posted...

A) Soak up some sun

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A

You and Raven decide to rest a little longer and simply soak up some sun first.

You put out the towels on the sand and each of you lie back, toes pointed at the water, but still far from the waves.

"Could you help me with some sunscreen?" Raven asks you as she lies on her stomach.

"Gladly," you say.

You take the bottle and squirt some on your right hand to then rub on Raven's bare back. You go across her shoulder blades and up to her neck. She smiles as she rests her head on her arms and watches you over her shoulder.

"Do you need me to get your sides?" you ask, taking a look for yourself.

"They'll be fine," she smirks. "But thanks for the help."

"You're welcome," you say as put a bit of the sunscreen on yourself.

After you protect your chest, stomach, shoulders and arms, you recline back and watch the waves roll in.

You relax for about half an hour, as you start feeling the heat of the Florida sun. You get up and shake your towel out before putting it away. Raven follows suit and the two of you jog into the water.

A) Stay knee deep
B) Swim further out
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B.
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B
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bump of life~
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B

(Don't wait for me, please continue on)
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B

"Let's get into the deep water," you say. "Work off some of that delicious barbecue we just had."

"Alright," Raven chuckles. "Not sure how fast I can go, those ribs were really good."

The two of you wade out into the waves, and start swimming out. You aim for the end of the pier as you paddle and kick. You keep an eye on Raven as you go, and she keeps a good pace, just not as fast as yours. You slow down and she catches up, and the two of you continue towards one of the pier's wooden posts.

"Oh, careful of that," you say as you pull up. "It's covered in barnacles. Those can be rather sharp and jagged."

"And pretty gross," Raven says as she sees them for herself.

The two of you paddle around the post and get under the shadow cast by the pier. You stay close to Raven as you simply tread water and float with the waves.

You take a deep breath, and let it out in a satisfied sigh.

"What great fresh air," you say. "The salt of the sea, and the wet wood, it's a good combination."

"I suppose," Raven says as she drifts a little closer.

"You know, Raven," you say as you also drift closer. "While there's a lot of time on our road trip back to California, I do feel we need to start thinking about some things, maybe talk them out."

"What's that?" Raven asks, sounding a little concerned.

"About the future," you say.

A) Talk about a house in Jump City
B) Talk about the "Magic Melting Pot" restaurant
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Cartridge88 posted...

B) Talk about the "Magic Melting Pot" restaurant

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Malcrasternus posted...

Cartridge88 posted...

B) Talk about the "Magic Melting Pot" restaurant

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scubasteve42 posted...

Malcrasternus posted...

Cartridge88 posted...

B) Talk about the "Magic Melting Pot" restaurant

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B

"That idea for the restaurant," you continue. "The Magic Melting Pot."

"Oh, okay," she says. "But like what specifically? The name's for the menu of all the different cultural influences."

"Right," you say, "but what I'm wondering is how it should look. If I'm going to offer meals that run the gambit, the restaurant should reflect that, without being clashing and disorienting."

"Oh, okay," she says. "Yeah, that's true. You can't just have a place like the Fuel BBQ shoved inside Splendidamente from Jump City."

"No," you chuckle. "Perhaps there's a style of decor that is a balance between casual and classy."

"I'm picturing an Olive Garden for some reason," Raven says.

"Well, Olive Garden is nice to be in," you say. "I suppose that's not a bad parallel in aesthetics."

"But you'd have a much better menu, right?" Raven smirks.

"Oh of course," you say.

The two of you laugh a little, then paddle out a little further as the waves have pushed you back.

"Would you have a staff?" Raven asks. "You can do a lot yourself, but you'd need lots of chefs and wait staff to operate even from lunch to dinner."

"Yes, that's definitely something to worry about," you say. "Getting wait staff is easy enough, anyone who volunteers and is competent can wait tables. The same goes for things like bus boys and a janitor or two. The question would be the cooking staff, if they could replicate the more complex recipes that I've learned."

"And you wouldn't be able to cheat and use magic, huh?" Raven says. "People would wonder who is in the kitchen with you, and there'd be no normal way for you to make meals for everyone all at once."

"Yes, that would bring suspicion," you say. "Well I'm sure there are great chefs out there in the world hoping for a chance. I'll have to ask around once things get in motion."

"What exactly would your interior look like?" Raven asks. "We said it'd parallel Olive Garden, but how? They obviously have a sort of 'garden' thing, I think they have like vine plants and stuff all over."

"Well I suppose I could try and meld cultures together," you say. "Maybe some items here and there to suggest these are the places I've been. Perhaps a particular focus on..."

A) The UK
B) The US
C) Europe and Asia
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Cartridge88 posted...

A) The UK

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Malcrasternus posted...

Cartridge88 posted...

A) The UK

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scubasteve42 posted...

Malcrasternus posted...

Cartridge88 posted...

A) The UK

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A

"The UK."

"Well yeah," Raven says. "It's where you're from, so it'd make a lot of sense to have that most of all."

"Yes, but I want to be careful not to make everyone think it's a restaurant that focus on UK and British cuisine."

"Well, have the UK stuff be central," Raven says. "Decorate the area by the kitchen with it, but then sprinkle the international stuff around the rest of the dining area."

"I suppose that will work," you say. "We could have a shelf that we display all the international items. Though I wouldn't want it to look tacky."

"I think just putting up the flags of those countries would be fine," Raven says. "It doesn't really need to have trinkets and knickknacks."

"Alright, so," you say, trying to picture it. "The American and United Kingdom flags can be over the kitchen, and we spread out from there with things like the flags of Europe and Asia."

"Now what about the menus?" Raven asks. "Will there be like a kids' menu? Smaller portion meals?"

"Of course," you say. "I'm confident American children will appreciate the..."

A) Karaage Chicken Nuggets
B) Omuraisu
C) Rainbow Terrine
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Cartridge88 posted...

A) Karaage Chicken Nuggets

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Malcrasternus posted...

Cartridge88 posted...

A) Karaage Chicken Nuggets

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A
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A

"Karaage chicken nuggets."

"Oh yeah, the Xenos kids really loved those," Raven says. "And they were really good."

"Yes, those will definitely work as a step up from normal breaded and deep-fried chicken nuggets you would get from a fast food or even a family restaurant chain. For one, children love easy to handle foods, and even slightly messy foods, so the karaage nuggets will be truly finger licking good. And obviously, we can have French fries or even curly fries as a kid friendly side.

"We should probably also have vegetables for the kids, since I'm sure there will be parents that will insist on something healthier for their children."

"Right, so things like apple slices or carrots," Raven says.

"Well we can get a little creative with veggies," you say. "We can make tomates farcies, which is simply cutting open and hallowing out a tomato to then stuff it with other vegetables, or even meats. The tomato therefore serves as an edible bowl that the children can easily hold."

"Alright," Raven says. "So what would be next? Lunch and dinner menus."

"I'd do my best to hit essentials from all cuisine genres," you say. "Casual things like pizza, burgers, steaks, stews, but also fancier things like what we had at home in England."

"Like that stuffed quail?" she says.

"That might be too fancy," you say. "Make that a limited time dinner special for when quail is in season. Which is another thing, I'll have to make sure we keep track of what is in season and what isn't."

"Jump City is on the coast, maybe you can highlight some seafood dishes," Raven says.

"Yes, yes, that would be good," you say. "Saumon Confit Flamme, the lobster clam chowder, maybe try..."

A) Zuppa di Pesce
B) Peppered Mackerel
C) Pacific Saury Carpaccio
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B.
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C
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B)
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B

"Peppered mackerel."

"Ooh, that sounds nice," Raven says. "And the Saumon Confit Flamme should be a great hit, too. It was so delicious with the caramelizing."

"Yes, but we'll have to buy an actual Salamander oven," you say. "For my normal, non-magical chefs."

"Those aren't too expensive, are they?" Raven asks.

"Not for my family, they're not," you smirk.

Raven laughs as she paddles backward a little.

"Okay, so you'll have a casual interior but a really fancy kitchen," she says. "Sounds like a great place."

"Thank you," you say. "I hope we can get other ovens and items so that we can be prepared to make just about anything."

"Is there something you wouldn't make?" Raven asks.

A) Yes
B) No
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A.
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A
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A
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A

"Yes," you say. "No strange or exotic animals. No shark fin soup, no turtle soup, no bear meat-"

"Bear meat?" she says. "That's a thing?"

"Yes, but as a meat goes, bear meat has an awful smell, and subsequently not the best flavor, so it takes so much work just to make it appealing. I highly doubt anyone in the United States would ask for such niche meals as those, but I would never consider it, no matter where we were."

"Yeah, I doubt the normal customer would want something like a bear burger or a snake steak."

You two chuckle before you start heading back to shore.

After making it back to the sandy beach, you fetch your towels for the both of you and dry off while sitting at a bench.

You plan ahead for dinner, and decide to

A) Get something at Daytona Beach
B) Get something on the way back
C) Get something in Orlando
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B
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B
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C.
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Stop this I'm tired of seeing it
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B

You go to a drive-thru back in Sanford to get your dinner. You already had barbecue and fries, so you don't go with burgers. The barbecue was also rather filling, so you go with just a 10-piece chicken nuggets for the both of you, and then a couple salads. Raven holds tight to those as you continue back to the hotel.

You make good time returning to Orlando, and pull back into the hotel parking lot while there is still sunlight. You and Raven return to your room and enjoy your light dinner while watching

A) Sports
B) News
C) Movies
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C
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Cartridge88 posted...

C) Movies

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C
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C

You go with a movie that's just starting on one of the cable channels.

"Jurassic World?" Raven says. "When did that happen?"

"A few years ago, actually," you say. "I'm pretty sure they've had a sequel, too."

"So they revived the Jurassic Park franchise?"

"Basically," you say. "It's a direct sequel to the original Jurassic Park trilogy, just with new cast."

"Why did they continue? I thought dinosaurs were played out."

"Dinosaurs will never be played out," you say. "Just like magic or space travel, the normal person is marveled by the fantasy because they don't think it's possible. Having dinosaurs back again, everyone loves the idea that it could be possible, even though it might never be."

"Right, yeah," Raven says, sounding a little nervous. "There totally aren't dinosaurs out there."

"Are you... saying there are dinosaurs in the world?" you ask as you look over at her.

"No..." she says, still nervous.

"That sounds more like 'yes'," you say.

"Well, let's just say it's like you said," she says. "The everyday, normal person thinks it's all fiction."

"Wow... When did you come across this real-life Land That Time Forgot?"

"We were stopping Dr. Light in the Arctic Circle," she says. "He was going to take the Northern Lights and make them an energy source for weapons. We stopped him, only to fall through the ice and into, as you said, a land time forgot. Somehow, it was the right climate for dinosaurs of all kinds to survive. And down there was a caveman, and a girl who was either from another planet, or another time herself."

"A real-life caveman," you say in wonder. "Incredible."

"It was, actually," she says. "Just the fact it was under the ice is a scientific phenomenon."

A) Plan a trip there
B) Don't play a trip there
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A
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