Current Events > Teen Titans CYOA: Romance Resurrected Part 13

(+) Yeah! (+)

reposting because of some idiot posting "500" to end the last topic

A

"A soft serve machine."

"Really?" Raven asks. "Soft serve ice cream is your dream?"

"I wouldn't say it's my dream," you chuckle. "But I would love to have one as part of our dessert menu. Soft serve is such a great invention for ice cream. No scooping too big or too small, because the machine will pour at the same rate. We can have the waffle cones, chocolate and vanilla, maybe even one with a mixed dispenser."

"Well alright," Raven chuckles. "Soft serve is pretty nice."

"Exactly," you say. "It'll be a big hit, especially with the younger customers."

The waitress returns and sets down glasses in front of you.

"Customers?" she asks. "Y'all're entree-pawn-yours?"

"No, no," you chuckle. "But I am strongly considering opening a restaurant."

"Ohhh~!" the waitress says. "Is it going to be all fancy?"

"No, no, it'll be more of a blended establishment," you say. "We'll have a good variety of items on the menu for lunch and dinner."

"Oh, hopefully you won't steal any ideas then," she teases. "Alright, I'll be right back with your meals."

She walks away again while you and Raven stick straws in your drinks. The two of you sip at the same time, and you both realize you have the cola and she has the root beer. You take your straws out and switch glasses to take another sip.

"Well, I am curious what exactly you'll have on the menu," Raven says. "Would you have burgers?"

"Well of course I'd have burgers," you say. "Burgers are very popular."

"How complex would you get on those?" she asks.

"I'd like to offer a Build Your Own type menu," you say. "We'd have a list of available ingredients to add to the basic patty and buns."

"Well then, similar to before," Raven says. "What wouldn't you put on a burger?"

"Well, we can't have the list be too long," you say. "We can't account for someone wanting something out of the box."

"But there has to be something," she says. "Would you do a vegan burger?"

A) Yes
B) No

I already know Mega voted A and Alakazam voted B
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A

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D, gimme the D
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A)
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A

"Yes, of course," you chuckle. "I wouldn't want to turn away customers like that. But it is still a niche category so I don't know how much we'd actually have on hand."

"Would it be tofu or that new 'impossible meat' stuff?"

"Impossible meat?"

"Yeah, it's made out of vegetables, but it's supposed to taste exactly like meat."

"I know we live in a world with superpowers and magic, but I'd still have to verify that for myself."

"What else is there to the menu?" Raven asks. "We covered the kids' menu, the dessert menu, some basic lunch and dinner stuff. Oh, duh! Beverages."

"Right, right," you say as she sips hers. "Well, obviously we'd have some juices, milk, perhaps a deal with a certain soft drink group. Though, I don't think I can buy alcohol, even if it's for the restaurant."

"Would you have that on your menu?" she asks. "Like, basically a bar?"

"Not a bar, but perhaps just some wine. Wine is very fancy, and a great money maker."

"I suppose so," Raven shrugs. "I'm not sure the legality of it, either."

"We'll worry about it once we actually make this real," you say.

A) Start working on an exact menu
B) Leave the rest of this talk for later
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a
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B

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B
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B
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B

For now, you move on from that subject and quietly wait for the food. The waitress returns a few minutes later with your Texas Bacon Cheesesteak Melt and Raven's grilled cheese on toast. Your hashbrowns are on the same plate while Raven's fries get a whole plate to themselves.

"Ketchup?" the waitress asks.

"Yes, thank you," Raven says.

The waitress takes a ketchup bottle from another table that already has it, and puts it on your table. You stifle a laugh as hard as you ever have.

"Let me know if y'all need something else," the waitress says before walking away.

Raven squirts ketchup on the dish beside her fries and dips. You use a fork to chop a piece off the hashbrowns and pop them in your mouth. Hot, crisp and savory, with a healthy level of salt, very well done.

You go to your Texas Melt and see an even toasting on the Texas toast bread, can smell the grilled onions, melty cheese and sizzling diced steak, and can see how it all works together layered inside the bread: cheese, steak, bacon and cheese again from bottom to top. And it is sliced down the middle diagonally for wonderful triangles. It is very close to the picture taken, so that is good.

You pick one triangle up and take a big bite from a corner. The bread is crisp and crunchy on the outside, and yet soft and buttery on the inside.

The cheese, steak and bacon are great together, too. The cheese is gooey, the steak definitely feels like medium well, and the bacon is a good, crisp crunch among the rest of it.

Raven takes her grilled cheese, and it has a very similar look. The Texas toast is evenly toasted, the cheese is perfectly melted yet doesn't ooze out too far from the bread. She seems to enjoy the crunch of the toast and the gooey softness of the cheese.

The two of you eat up and down it all with your drinks.

"So I take it you enjoyed it?" the waitress asks as she returns.

"Yes, we did," you say. "Thank you."

"Would you like anything for dessert?" she asks. "Maybe some pie? We have pecan and triple chocolate."

A) Yes
B) No
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B
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A)
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Bump
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COIN TOSS

A

"Yes, please," you say. "A peca-"

You see Raven frown.

"A couple pieces of triple chocolate, please," you switch.

Raven smiles.

"Alright then," the waitress smiles. "I'll bring you a couple pieces, and the check."

"Thank you," you say.

The waitress goes to the kitchen and you prepare your wallet. She returns rather soon and sets the pies down before handing you the bill directly.

Texas Bacon Cheesesteak Melt w. Hashbrowns ....... $6.50
Grilled Cheese Sandwich on Texas Toast w. Fries .... $4.00
Two Pies, Regular Slices ........................................ $3.00
Two Soft Drinks ...................................................... $2.00

tax: 4%

TOTAL: .................................................... $16.12

That seems rather reasonable for an entire meal for two. You add 20% tip and put down an extra $3 with your exact change.

"Thank you," the waitress says as she takes the bill back.

You and Raven dig into the pies, and it looks delicious. You pop the pieces into your mouth, and it tastes delicious, too. The two of you eat the slices all up and say thank you and good-bye as you leave the Waffle House.

The two of you head on the road again, feeling satisfied from being full of food. Your journey continues towards Orange Beach, Alabama.

A) Get dinner on the road
B) Wait until you're at a motel/hotel
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B
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B
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B

You drive on as the sun sets, and still further on. You turn on Shadowfax's light and drive further into Alabama. The signs keep you posted on how far you are from Orange Beach, but your stomachs are rumbling.

"Just hold a little longer," you tell yourself as much as you tell Raven. "We'll get checked in somewhere before eating."

You ride into Orange Beach and the night life is still going, it's just not that much of a night life to begin with. You find a Motel 6 by the shore, the actual beach of Orange Beach, and park. Raven helps you with the bags as you have Shadowfax stand. The two of you enter the lobby and look for someone at the front desk, but there isn't anyone.

"Hello?" you say.

You hear someone or something make noise below the front desk. They seem to bump their head on the underside, and then slowly stand up. It is a human, with messy hair and messier shirt.

"Oh, uh, hey there," he says as he sees you. "Checking out or checking in?"

"Umm, in," you say.

"Then Room 202 is all yours," he says as he turns to look at the keys on the wall.

He pulls down 202 and hands it to you.

"That'll be $47 for the night," he says.

You give him two $20 bills and a $10, he gives you back $3. He may be a mess that can't stay awake but he knows how to do math.

"Thank you," you say.

You and Raven find 202 upstairs, enter the room and put your things away, and then while Raven settles in, you drive out to find...

A) Pizza
B) Tacos
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A
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A
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A

You drive around, but many pizzeria are already closed at this point at night. You go to a fast food pizza chain, and see they're still open! You look at their schedule on the big window, and it says, "Closes at 10PM," and you're confused.

But then you realize the time zone changed! You're now in Central now! You thought you'd arrive just before 11, but you get an hour back! You park and hurry inside while there's still time.

"Hello," you say as you hurry to the counter. "Please tell me you can still make a pizza, or have something at the ready."

"Well, yes, I think we do," the young lady at the counter says, sounding a little annoyed. "What would you like?"

"Just a pepperoni pizza is fine," you say. "Medium if you have one?"

"Um, we might have more larges than anything," she shrugs.

"Alright, large pepperoni."

She goes to the back and talks with someone back there. You hear something being boxed up, and then the cashier returns with a box for a large pizza.

"That'll be $8.25," she says.

You give exact change and then quickly take the box to Shadowfax. The employees start shutting the restaurant down while you head back to the motel.

You arrive smoothly enough and park in the motel lot. You head up top and return to your room. You knock and Raven opens the door, already in a black tee and little shorts.

"Well don't you look comfortable," you smirk as you enter inside.

She giggles as she gives you room to enter. You put the pizza down on a table and finally open it up. Thankfully, it is pepperoni.

"Oh, I didn't get drinks..." you say.

"I think there was a vending machine," Raven says.

"Then I will go get them," you say.

You go back outside and down the stairs to see the vending machines off in a corner. You go up to the one with drinks, but there are labels saying the Cola and lemon-lime are empty. You go with two...

A) Root Beers
B) Orange Sodas
C) Cherry Sodas
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B
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B
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B

You put in a couple dollars at a time and press the button for orange soda. You get a can for yourself and a can for Raven, and hurry back upstairs. You open the door yourself this time and Raven is sitting on the one bed there is in the room, eating pizza.

"Sorry I didn't wait for you," she says. "Also we don't have plates."

"Oh, yes, that's true," you say. "I rushed out of the place, they were very close to closing."

"That's okay," she says. "There's tissues for napkins at least."

"Well that's good, at least," you say.

You hand Raven a can and then sit down with yours. You pop your orange soda can open and sip while thinking ahead.

"The drive from Orange Beach to Clarksdale is another six hours," you say.

"Mm-hmm," Raven says while sipping soda.

"And we'd obviously be spending some time trying to find the said 'Devil of the Delta Crossroads,'" you say.

"Mm-hmm," Raven says again. "So were you thinking of something we'd do along the way?"

A) Take a more scenic route to take your time
B) Tour around Clarksdale for the day
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A
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A
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A

"We could take a scenic route on the way there," you say. "Take our time getting to Clarksdale, see what there is along the way. Surely a spectre like this 'Delta Crossroad Devil' won't come out until it gets dark again, so we might as well use our daytime for ourselves."

"Yes, that's a good point," Raven says. "We're not exactly in any hurry. I don't think the Delta Crossroads or its devil are going anyway."

"Yes, highly unlikely," you chuckle. "But for tonight, let's... Actually, we should probably just go right to sleep after this. We were on the road so long and we'll be on the road just as long tomorrow."

"That sounds good to me," she says. "Are you okay with the side of the bed you're on?"

"Oh, yes, this is fine."

The two of you eat your fill of pizza, then you manage to store the remaining slices in plastic wrap. You and Raven take turns in the bathroom and then she rests on top of the covers as she lets herself drift off to sleep.

A) Actually go to sleep
B) Pretend to sleep to work on engagement plans
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A)
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B
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COIN TOSS

B

You lie down to play along, and wait for Raven to truly be asleep. She looks lovely being so peaceful. But then you carefully slip off the bed and go to your things.

You pull out your traveling schedule and the list of your remaining destinations.

Delta Crossroads, Mississippi to New Orleans, Louisiana to Natchez to Jackson Mississippi to Arlington Hotel, Arkansas to Fort Washita, Oklahoma to Denver, Colorado (baseball) to Four Corners to Grand Canyon to Yuma, Arizona to Mexico to Las Vegas, Nevada to Mt. Hood, Oregon to Shaniko, Oregon to California

Well, if it comes to proposing, or at least officially presenting the ring to her, you wouldn't mind making it somewhere romantic. Though, out of what's on the list, Vegas ends up the most romantic by default because of all the night life opportunities. At the same time, a traditional view of romance isn't really what Raven is about. After all, a large portion of your trip is about her choice destinations, so perhaps you can plan it for one of those locations?

A) Arlington Hotel in Arkansas
B) Stanley Hotel in Colorado
C) Timberline Lodge in Oregon
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C
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C
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c
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C

You'll wait until the Timberline Lodge. That is the film version of The Shining's hotel, and it is one of the last destinations before returning to California. It will be perfect for a proposal to Raven. And with so much left before then, you can get as much romance and good fun out of the trip to make her as accepting as humanly possible.

In which case, New Orleans should be more than just their Museum of Death. Raven will surely want a hop over to the voodoo alley, so you can try for that. Four Corners and Grand Canyon are great natural locations, so perhaps you can have a lovely time at the canyon. And of course, Vegas still has plenty of traditional romantic options for you to have fun with.

A) Plan more for New Orleans
B) Plan more for Las Vegas
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A.

Let the voodoo speak to you
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A
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A

You'll prioritize New Orleans, that's much, much closer.

Chances are, you'll arrive in New Orleans during the day. You will want to get somewhere to stay first, and then have a meal. Well, no, if you visit the Museum of Death, you yourself might want to eat after so you don't get sick to your stomach.

There are quite a variety of good places for food in New Orleans, and you would love to visit a Cajun restaurant, get some inspiration for your own.

You'll have to be cautious interacting with the voodoo practitioners. They can be tricksters, for one. You might need to prepare something against their curses and hexes.

A) Do that now
B) Do that tomorrow
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A)
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bump
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A
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A.
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Cartridge88 posted...

New Orleans

I've kinfolk living near there.

On-Topic: A
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A

You go to your things and quietly look through your magical supplies. For a voodoo hex, you'll need to weave in some wildvine inside one of your scarves.

You rummage through your bag and find you still have a chunk of vine left. You take that and a whittling knife out, and you of course use the knife to carefully slice a thin sliver off the vine. You make sure the sliver has great flexibility before you go to your luggage.

You keep your eyes on Raven as you kneel by your luggage. You carefully unzip your luggage to open it. She doesn't stir, so you start looking for a scarf. You go with your pure black scarf and bring that over to your magical items.

You bring out a needle and manage to thread the wildvine. You take the needle and vine to your scarf, and stick the needle in. The vine gives some resistance but you get it between the fabric. You get four repetitions to get the length of the sliver inside your scarf, and leave it at that. You finish it off with a dusting of moon dust to bind and activate the charm.

There could be any number of other things a voodoo practitioner could use, so you won't worry about preparing for something you might not even encounter. The problem would be preparing Raven's wardrobe. A part of you doesn't really want to give away that you'd be looking for the voodoo district, you want Raven to be pleasantly surprised. But then how do you protect her from hexes?

A) Sneak a thread into a robe
B) Sneak a charm onto her belt
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B
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B.
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B
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B
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B

You carefully go over to her things, and glance between her and her luggage while looking for her belts.

As you go, you end up rummaging through her swimsuits and underwear. You blush a little before putting those back where they belong. Then you finally find her belt, the one with the gemstones you put in it. You bring that out and carefully go back to your things.

You decide that you will apply something on the back of one of the links of the belt. You'll make sure it isn't obvious so that she'll get suspicious.

You go to your things, and consider your options. Wildvine and other plant based charms won't weave into this belt, so that's out. You could still embed or engrave something on one of these. You decide to combine a few things here: you mix a little vial of fire oil with a dash of stardust rather than moon dust, and then dip a silver etchnig rod into the resulting solution.

You take the silver rod to the back of the Precise Ruby's link. You draw a small circle, then a perfect right angle going from top left to top right. You can't be sure if you actually did it perfectly, though. It will be put to the test when Raven puts her belt back on and faces off against basic voodoo spells.

A) Turn in for the night
B) Work on other charms and enchantments
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B.
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B
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B)
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