Phineas lost himself in the steak, using his dirty hands to pick it up and chomp into it directly. It was a strange flavour, this burnt meat, but it was very good. If anyone was going to overeat, it was probably going to be him. And while he was at it, he got his toga a little more dirty. Just in case there was any doubt that he needed to change.

[[LOL, Phinney knows exactly what to do XD

P.S. I will be writing very slowly because I'm working on a school project >w< ;

Moo, don't tempt me! D8;; ]]

Shan ate slowly, keeping a close eye on Phineas, who was absolutely determined to not only devour his steak at light speed, but also to stain every inch of what was left of his clothing. He had quite the powerful appetite.

((ALLLLLMOST done with final project #1!!!! Just gotta bus to campus and print it. XD))

Phineas had calmed his inner dragon. He put down what was left of the mauled steak and took his time chewing. He swallowed and turned to Shan. His brain was finally ticking away at the previous conversation they'd been having.
"Why are people not whole at the edge of the town? Is the dream not strong there?" He paused. "Is this a dream?" He looked at his steak, suspicious. Then decided that if it was a dream, he should enjoy it while he could. He took another chomp out of it.

[[Congrats! I still need to type a good chunk of mine D8; ]]

"It's not that the dream is not strong at the edge of the town," Shan began. "It would be more accurate to say that whoever created this dream spent much more time at the center of town than at the edges, and so he or she remembers the central members more clearly. The dream is not weak, but the memory is. This could all be based on a very real town. Although, I would hate to think about what kind of place has someone like the waitress."

Phineas chewed and swallowed. "So if the dreamer never saw someone, he would not be here, yes?" He thought about it. "Sad," he pronounced, and bit into the steak again.

"Is the dreamer in this world?" Ari asked as he paused for a moment. "No wonder that waitress was so lively then... she must've really annoyed the heck out of him..." His last words faded to nothing as he pondered over Shan's words. "And how would this dream end?"

And it was then that another question hit the boy. He took sometime to phrase it, as he chumped away merrily on his pheasant and potatoes - hey, there's always the possibility that this might disappear at any moment. "Is the land itself constantly changing, as it is shaped by so many people's dreams?"

Ani listened intently as she took a sip of the cranberry juice. She picked a fork and began eating the chickpea salad. She was saving the spinach wraps for after. It was heavenly. Just the right taste, strong and not light, so that flavor was heavy and she wasnt missing anything it. She took another eager bite, before slowing herself down. She always lived off of fruits and veggies out in the wild, but she still loved a wholesome meal.

The cranberry juice reminded Phineas of the rest of his meal. He reached for the goblet of blood and peered into it. His reflection, thick and red, looked back at him. He sniffed it, closed his eyes, and took a giant swig of the blood, throwing his head back and staying that way, appearing frozen.

[[Finally done with the powerpoint!.. 50 slides.. 45 if I only count the ones with content XD;

Sorry I disappeared for the night, but that was pretty much why XD
Hopefully the presentation will go smoothly. One thing I can get off my chest~ ]]

Shan looked at Phineas, wondering what blood was like for a Dragon. He'd probably eaten a human before, but she couldn't blame him. She had tasted blood plenty of times, and this included her own, but she did not posses the refined taste of a Dragon. Even when the blood rain went into her tightly pursed lips, she had not truly tasted the blood, she had shunned it. She did not want any blood but her own.

Phineas lowered his head, his face frozen solid in a very neutral expression. He tilted the goblet to his face, and, in a very organized manner, spit the blood back out into it.
He put the cup down and pushed it away from himself, his expression still dead-pan.
He looked around at the others at the table.
"Why did not you tell me, that you do not drink blood?" he asked, frowning slightly.
It tasted completely different to the human tongue it's texture thick and greasy. It left a scuzz on all the surfaces of his mouth, the flavour metallic and flat. This was very dead blood, he could at least tell that, and he would never be able to enjoy it again without remembering the mouthful of awful.

Kira took another bite of her salad before reaching for some cranberry juice. She looked at Phineas, wondering if he still liked blood as a human. It probably was a completely different experience, but she didn't really know, having never tried blood before. She then wondered about Ari's question, having never thought of it. It would make sense though considering it was the dream world and how unstable the Dreamweaver was.

Shan had taken some time to think about Ari's question, but she did have an answer. "The land is constatnly changing. More and more things appear, and more dreams take over the dream world. Nothing moves, but there is more and more dreams, and more and more nightmares." Shan then turned her attention to Phineas, who looked very displeased. "I'm sorry," she told him. "I thought that mabye you had aquired a taste for it, like some people have." The look she gave him was that of worry. How many things had he lost when he was forced into this form?

((Sorry I haven't been on. I had too much school stuff and stuff. >w<))

Demitra had just been staying quiet and following the group this whole time. Though she did make a face or two at the psycho lady that wouldn't stop smiling. She cut off a piece of the extra steak and put it on her plate. She listened to the others as she took small bites of it. She scratched her head before she asked, "So, are we really safe here?"

[[I completely understand XD

*hug*]]

"The only assurance I can offer you is that we'll be safer here than anywhere else. The Waitress is crazy, but not dangerous. She's quite scary, though," Shan said as she continued eating. Layla had a knack for doing things no one should really be able to do, especially at night, but she'd never actually hurt anyone. At least, not anyone who was sleeping here.

"That's reassuring," Ari muttered, a very slight sarcastic edge to his tone. He chewed on his own pheasant thoughtfully, and then look at Phineas to continue Shan's answer. "To each of his, or her, own. You are, were, a dragon - we, or at least, I, did not expect you to have the same ... diet, as humans. And didn't you guzzle some front the rain before?" He inquired, not quite remembering. "Does it taste differently to you now, the blood?"

For a moment he looked at Phineas, wondering just how much had changed exactly since his transformation from dragon to human occurred. Does it matter, really? Doing a light shrug to himself, the young man once again dug into his meal with fervor. He was a growing boy after all.

"So Ani, how good are you with the sword?" He casually struck up conversation as he gulped down more of his water. He found room on the table to put down his half-empty glass and looked at the woman. She had mentioned battles before, and clearly, she was much older than she appeared, but Ari was curious. "I figured that we might as well keep our skills sharp - though I imagine that mine are far less honed than yours - while we travel. Would you be interested in sparring with me before turning into bed, if you're not too exhausted from the day's travel?"

"It's as reassuring as it will get," Shan stated casually. She still needed to talk to Ani. She pondered on whether she should do it before or after her sparring session. Ani was certainly a level-headed woman, but Shan worried that what she asked her and told her could affect her adversely.

Ani had just started on the spinach wrap, not really paying attention to the conversation, but thinking all on her own. She was, for some reason to startled to her name called. She blinked once before looking at Ari and processing his question, "I would think Im pretty good." She said to him with a slight smile. "But as youve said Ive had more than enough time for practice and more than enough times for execution." She said nodding. "This was tailored for my hands by the spirit." She said looking at him again before taking a bite of her food. "As well as it is enchanted like my daggers, except this is enchanted with poison." Her daggers, once throw grew thick vine like stems from them, and crawls to the nearest alive creature. She thought for a moment before nodding, "We'll do that." Ani said to the sparring question.

"I thought it was bad because it was a nightmare." he said, grudgingly, "but it is just all bad." He wiped his tongue off on a napkin and went back to his steak, listening to the rest of the conversation.

Shan sighed. "Sometimes you'll find that, for Humans, there are many things that are just bad no matter where they come from. Of course, I can't say that for humans who eat other humans..." She trailed off, wondering exactly how the mind of a cannibal worked. She had not studied many cultures except her own.

((Yesterday was a slow day O_O))

"Oh." said Phineas. He was saddened by the loss of his taste for blood, but it was more than made up for by the newfound flavours of buns and steaks that he'd now discovered.
He was interested in Ani and Ari's new training arrangement. He wondered how he could help in a battle. His adventure with Micheal showed him that he wouldn't be of very much use on his own.

[[Oh YES. No wan was posting anywhere, and I was incredibly braindead, too DX]]

"What are you thinking about now, Phineas?" Shan asked, almost finished with her salad. There were things on her mind too, but she wanted to distract herself, so she asked about the thoughts of others instead.

"How can I help if we find people to battle?" he asked. "I can not... sword and move. Even if I knows how to sword."

"Well, you need something that you can carry, and that you can swing with one hand," Shan began. "I could probably make you something within the next few days. Heaven's weapons tend to be very light, but powerful."

"Weapons, for me?" Phineas thought hard. He smiled. "I would like that. Very much so." He finished off the first steak and reached for the other one that the creepy innskeeper had brought for him.

Ani slowly ate the second Spinach wrap. For some reason or another this one seemed much more blander than they other, not at all tasty. After one bite she put it down and sat back, refilling her cup with the pitcher of cranberry juice, she sipped at it as she watched the others.