[PRP] Blue Plate Special [King Cock + Scrambled + Country Kitchen]

[Gl!tch~]

King knew how to feed himself and how to feed chickens, but feeding foals elduded him a little bit. Babbens were supposed to eat a lot of nutrients to get big and strong. Or something.

Maybe he failed to eat enough greens? Was that why he was shorter than the average pegasus?
A thought for another time, maybe.

If anything, he knew Scrambled needed to eat more than worms and birdseed. Based on how he found her, she could probably do with a heartier meal than he usually could put on the table.

So today he decided on an excursion to the Country Diner. Good old fashioned hearty cooking, and at breakfast time he was hoping to avoid a menu full of cooked chicken-centric options. Anyway, hash browns counted as a vegetable! He could pat himself on the back already.

He took a moment to hold the door for Scrambled on the way into the establishment. "Go see where we can sit, kiddo, and I'll be right behind ya."

[Ruriska]

Ever since King Cock had plucked Scrambled up out of the dirt, brushed her off and fed her something more than bugs and random garbage, the little pink dead-eyed chicken had been head over heels. He was her papa, her father, the big rooster that watched over the flock. Where he led, she followed.

She was never far from his side, skittering along, always in danger of getting stepped on as she tried to poke her head between his legs or duck underneath him as a shortcut instead of just walking around.

All the while making a constant low 'bok bok bok' sound.

Today they were on an outing! A very exciting outing and King Cock had promised food (her favourite!). She'd never been inside a proper establishment before. But it seemed the diner was surprisingly suitable for chickens and chicken adjacent phonies as her dear father opened the door wide to let her in.

She scrambled inside.

Go see where we can sit.

She poked around. All the booths and chairs looked high. There was a stray long dusty looking golden thing under one of the tables. A worm? She snapped it up. Crunchy worm? Wow! What a wonderful place!

[Byagane319]

Kit happily pranced around his kitchen, checking the food prep and ensuring he had enough supplies.  The big morning rush had passed so it was the calmer time for the diner which meant he could restock and make some more ingredients.  Looking up he heard the jingle of the bell over the door.  His normal waitress had stepped outside to have a quick sit down so he knew he should help out other than cooking!

The large draft stallion walked out, smiling at the pegasus and the smaller phoal.  "Howdy!  Welcome to Country's Kitchen!  I'm Country Kitchen!" he chuckled, "But everyone just calls me Kit."  His accent was rather thick but he had kind eyes under his hat.  He glanced down as he saw the little one gobble up a fallen fry from the floor, "Woah thar littlin.  No need eatin off the floor, I can make you some fries!"

His voice wasn't loud our mad sounding, in fact he seemed amused by it.  His mother often told him she had issues keeping her large son from eating everything he could see.  "Here, lemme get you a kid seat."  He picked up a booster seat so Scrambled could see up at the table before he turned to King Cock.  "Maw always told me I ate everything I could see too," he chuckled and nodded to the menus on the table, "Just take a gander and yer waitress will be by shortly."

[Gl!tch~]

The stallion felt some kind of warmth in his chest seeing the fleshy-pink babben investigate the space. Maybe there was some joy to leading her out beyond a haven where she could pretend to be a chicken forever. Perhaps introducing her to more of Phonyland and its wonders brought out some kind of paternal pride? And hope that she would have more places she would want to go and maybe even have more interest in socializing with other phonies?

While Scrambled was tasked with finding a seat (and struggling; he forgot how difficult it was to navigate without wings), a new voice and tall, pale visage caught his attention.

"Well hey there, cowpoke!" King greeted. This place really went all-out with the buttered-and-fried rancher vibes, right down to even the staff. Charming.
He also couldn't help but notice that Country Kitchen had a very nice mane and tail. And he wasn't too bulky for a draft horse, either. Not that it mattered.

So taken was he in the moment, he didn't notice that Scrambled end up under a table. But, you know, it was fine. Kids do that, and she probably could use some exploration- oh, wait. There was food still on the floor and-

"Honey, don't-"

And it was in the babben's mouth.

King sighed. Secondhand embarrassment set in. He could, perhaps, bother to be upset that the diner wasn't cleaner. But he had enough of a head on his shoulders to understand that a place could only be so spotless. He could also be upset at Scrambled, but she didn't know any better. He could only work so hard to curb her worm-eating habits at home (read: he mostly left her to her devices when she was outside, especially when she was on her own. He was a busy pegasus and also had faith that if worm-pecking was a habit to be kicked, she would get there on her own).

He rubbed his face with a hoof, then just had to chuckle. The other stallion's patience went a long way to ease his weary thoughts. "She's definitely a li'l scavenger, uh-huh. Thanks for the booster seat, and I'm sure she would love some fresh fries. Right, sweetheart?"

That was another thing he wanted to work on- getting her to talk more. If that meant a cluck or words, either seemed like progress as far as he was concerned.

He also nodded in thanks regarding the menus, and was ready to sit and look things over once he was sure Scrambled was comfortable.

Although...

Wait.

Could she read?

Note to self: remind child that hot food is hot and needs to cool

[Ruriska]

At first she stared only blankly at the stranger that had appeared to lightly admonish her for eating the crunchy floor worm. Did he not want to share? It was true that the floor was otherwise fairly clean and thus not much available but she'd already spotted some sort of crumbs under the other table and had intended on that being her next destination.

After a pause, she scampered out from under the table and back to King Cock, her safety zone, and watched the tall not-cock place down the booster and menus. Fries. Was that the delicious crunchy worm? Yes, she wanted more!

She chirped her agreement.

With the hopes of receiving more food, Scrambled willingly clambered up onto the booth and the booster chair until she was perched on top of the world, with the whole table spread out in front of her. There was a flat object with pictures and scribbles.

She studied the menu.

Her head tilted one way and then the other.

It was incomprehensible to her.

In all ways but physical, she was a chicken.

So, no, she couldn't read.

But she did see a picture showing a delicious bowl of crunchy worms that she started to peck at with all the fervour of a hungry chick.



@Byagane319
@Gl!tch~