Safe and Sane

Reminder e-mails had gone out earlier in the week and everything was ready. Peter had finally got there after getting stuck in traffic jams outside of Denver and Danielle and he were standing at the entrance of the warehouse, greeting the first guests.

The warehouse was divided into several sections which could be wandered in, each of them devoted to a different sort of BDSM toy, furniture, or even atmosphere. Here cuffs, there swings, here everything leather, and there everything metal. There was even a section of antique furniture at the back of the warehouse. On both sides, more or less private rooms could be used to test anything before buying it.

At the front of the warehouse, a table lined with hors d'oeuvres and different drinks, and a few waiters and waitresses to serve them. They'd gone all out, but the atmosphere was far from formal: warm, friendly, and accepting.

The cafe was already gearing up for Independence Day. Flags, bunting and patriotism were the order of the day. Besides the obligatory apple pie, the sweets on offer seemed to be themed around red, white and blue. Strawberries, cream, ice cream and blueberries featured heavily.

In honor of the heat, iced tea and coffee were available alongside the hot varieties.

Wednesday again, and another munch night. The cafe was increasingly quiet as layoffs took effect on household finances, and the board behind the counter was scattered with offers.

Quite why anyone would want to buy two coffees and get a third free, or whether it was a good idea for the majority of munch attendees, was anyone's guess.

Memorial Day weekend meant that most people had three days off and intended to spend it either in sloth or trying to cross off as many things as they could from their "to do" list. The club was prepared for both cases.

They'd cleaned and restocked all the rooms, put up some new decorations and made sure everything was bright and shiny.

They'd also stocked up on burgers, dogs, and other picnic essentials and put grills and tables in the back parking lot. There was a threat of rain but if that happened, everything could be hauled indoors to one of the fire-safe play rooms. (Of course, that hadn't stopped some wit from putting an "in case of fire" sign on the inflatable kiddie pool.)

The main lounge had tables stocked with drinks and finger foods for those who didn't do meat or simply weren't the picnic type. Friday afternoon rolled around and everything was set.

Auri was exhausted but beaming, cradling the baby against her chest when Maddie was allowed into the room. The infant was sleeping, tiny and delicate against Auri. She smiled when Maddie came in, looking up at her, "Hey."

I'm at the hospital. Baby's on the way.

Maddie had done something she hadn't done in awhile: She'd gone out shopping. It wasn't as much of a spree as she used to do, but still, it felt nice to have some money to spend again. Maybe even better because she'd earned it. It was hers to do with as she wanted.

She put on her first outfit and went to find Auri.

"Aaauuuuriii..." she called.

Someone at the cafe had gotten creative with Google and discovered that March 11th was Johnny Appleseed Day. They hadn't gone all out and insisted on planting, but the counter was offering a selection of apple-based delicacies, cakes, juices and hot cider along with their usual selection.

There was also a rather suggestive print of Eve (looking very like one of the serving staff) proffering an apple, tacked to the wall behind the till.

Dinner had been Italian, out and comfortable. They'd gone back to Auri's home after, Auri taking the opportunity to change into comfortable sleep pants and a tee shirt.m She yawned, climbing onto the couch and half wrapping around Maddie. "You smell lovely today."

Wednesday again, and a happier Wednesday than the previous one. The weather seemed to have warmed up especially for the inauguration, and the evening was mild enough that the cafe had tables set outside for more than just the smokers. A general air of celebration lingered from the previous day, and the cafe owner had decided to celebrate by offering free upgrades to larger sizes of coffee, or free muffins with the smallest ones.

Sugar and caffeine highs all around.

The day had been relatively mild - as long as you classed above freezing as mild. Christmas decorations in the cafe had all been taken down, and the Christmas snacks and drinks had all disappeared from the menu, along with the plastic holly and mistletoe. It all looked rather bleak, reflected in the faces of the staff. Still, the cafe was warm, and the coffee machine was working, and a large slow cooker on the counter offered spiced winter vegetable soup to help with staying warm while keeping an eye out for more snow.

Maddie had invited Auri over to her house for a early holiday celebration. She'd spent most of the previous day cleaning and decorating and even tried her hand at baking cookies. She'd been partly successful but at least the house smelled good.

When the doorbell rang, she hurried to the door, stopped to check her hair and then opened it and smiled.

"Hi!"

Normally a quiet evening would find Scott grading papers. But since he wasn't starting to teach until January it found him editing a book by a friend. Very old fashionedly, each page printed out and gone over slowly by Scott and his big red pen.

Edmund was flushed, eyes wide open and happy looking, hair ruffled as he laughingly stumbled into the club. He had snow in his hair and he was fairly soaked. He had a snowball shaped mark on his chest.

Auri was prowling through the club, predatory and careful with each step, heels clicking on the wooden floor. She was still in her work suit, a tailored suit with long wide legs and a fitted jacket over her stomach. She wasn't showing yet. She found Maddie in the lounge, stopping in front of her and smiling, slowly. She offered Maddie a hand up, hair still immaculately pulled back, no tendrils escaping at the bend.

Edmund was at the club late, following a dinner out with a colleague. He'd drunk his half the bottle of wine with Ian, so he'd gone to the club to settle before driving. He had a cup of coffee at his elbow and a newspaper on his lap. He smiled at the only other person in the lounge, "Good evening."

Wednesday night again. Fall past, and winter setting in with a vengeance. The outside tables had been cleared away, and the cafe was doing a brisk trade in hot chocolate, hot soup, and hot tea.

Only one problem.

The coffee maker was broken.

For one night only (because the repair man had been threatened, on pain of pain, to get the damn thing up and running again before opening time the next morning) the cafe was a coffee-free zone, and the staff were already looking stressed.

There were balloons and streamers still up from the party the cafe had thrown the previous night. The staff though, the staff were still enthused, still bouncy, wandering through their jobs in Obama tee shirts, pins, big sparkly hats.

California's proposition 8 had put a dint in everyone's enthusiasm, but. Not much. They had freedom fries on offer in the cafe in a completely non ironic way for the first time ever.

It was a party. It was a costume party. There was food, there were traditional Halloween games- bobbing for apples, a place to carve jack o' lanterns and way, way too much candy and junk food. A place to dance. There were also a few open play rooms, set up for groups or exhibitionism, but that wasn't the focus of the night.


There were awards for the best costume, for the scariest, the funniest, the most creative, the sexiest.

There were pumpkins. Mulled cider. Pie. Sweet, scary treats. Long suffering cafe employees dressed in costumes.