Welcome to Gaia! ::

Richard stood in front of the carnivore side of the buffet, frozen with indecision her eyes fixated on something, that had kicked her salivary glands into over drive. Previously, perhaps because Richard tended to come to the cafe after "normal" meal times the raw section of the carnivore bar was presented cold or maybe room temperature. In that unappetizing state they were easy enough for Richard to ignore, allowing Richard to pretend that the rare steaks were superior to raw meat. It was a small piece of her humanity that Richard clung to, she didn't eat raw meat.

Humanity however had an expiration date on the Island and it appeared Richard was going to lose another piece of hers tonight. Some inventive kitchen staff member had put so of the rare meat on a hot plate, warming the meat to just above 100 degrees, not enough to cook it but it filled the cafeiteria with a smell that to Richard might as well have been heaven. She stared at it, her tail lashing behind her as her will to resist faded away. It was only a piece of meat after all. What harm would it do?

While she was losing this internal battle, the outside world had faded from her awareness.

It just smelled to good, Richard snatched both of the raw steaks with her claws and on to her plate with a wet smack. Licking the blood from her fingertips, feeling a little guilty, she surveyed the cafe. She spied a rather old looking woman sitting alone. She didn't recognize the lady, and normally she would pay her no mind but it had been awhile since Richard had held a conversation that wasn't about whispered meetings and rebellion. She hungered for a normal conversation, especially after giving in and taking the raw meat. The old woman looked pleasant enough, changed just enough to know what's going on.

Richard was wearing a pair of black capris with a white T shirt, both looked a bit worm from spending days wandering the jungle. She carried her tray with the smaller pair of arms while one hand paw carried a large glass of ice water. A tight lipped smile was flashed at the old woman as Richard approached. "Good evening," she spoke as she threaded her tail through the back of the seat with practiced ease and sat across from Barbra.

Richard picked up one of the steaks with her handpaw, the blood squeezing out among her sausage sized fingers and tore off a hunk with her teeth. Her eyes widened as the she chewed once, twice, then swallowed. She blinked, entirely taken back by the sheer explosion of meaty goodness that her tastebuds were reporting.
She shook her head to clear it and trying to find a coversation topic that wouldn't be to stressfull for the woman.

She observed the teeth trouble Barbra was having and blurted, "On the upside, you'll probably get a new set of teeth." She paused and extended one of her smaller hands, "I'm Richard."

Barbra seemed understandably depressed. That was fine with Richard, it was the way of the island. You get depressed or you get angry, usually some combination of both. Richard tore another piece of steak off, the taste setting off vibration sdeep within her chest. She gulped down an additional chunk before speaking in a conversational tone. "What they tell you this place was? A hospital or a vacation spot?" Richard examined Barbra with her in human eyes, the woman looked even older the Richard was. Were they testing the limits of the serum?

Richard's ears drooped in an attempt to flatten against her head. Her lips peeled back to reveal her enlarged teeth as she tightened her grip on the slab of meat. Richard felt indignant at her objection, "You try cutting meat with the butter knives they give us. " Richard finished off her steak with a few angry chomps as her tentacles, previously hidden behind her back, rose to their striking positions, hovering over each shoulder. "There its gone. Happy?"

"Respect?" Richard snorted, feeling confrontational. "You just looked like you could use some company. Respect has nothing to do with it, Barbra." Richard did not liked being talked to with Barbra's tone but she reminded herself to be civil. She was after all trying to act human today. And Barbra seemed a bit out of sorts, had she just changed?

Richard gave up suppressing the snarl that rose from her throat like bitter bile. Just who did this woman think she was? "Don't you dare judge me, you close minded hag! In a few months you'll probably be exactly where I am. We'll see what your table manners are like once that muzzle of yours grows in." Richard wished she could identify exactly what Barbra was turning into, could be any sort of reptile at this point. It looked vaguely predatory but who could tell? So Richard was forced to keep her comments vague.

"Thats right." She growled, "Go hide, as if it will make any difference at all." With a final, feline huff and upturning of her nose, Richard began to lick her paws clean. She could use a napkin like a civilized person but doing so would a surrender to his old hag's demands.