open!

Helping other people was not something Will ever did for free. As the manager of a local pizza restaurant, he knew that both time and food were money and found the idea of a soup kitchen frankly ridiculous. The homeless and hungry should have put in the same amount of effort that he had and pulled themselves up by their bootstraps.

He stood in line and looked over the offerings and those waiting to eat, rubbing his beard with the back of his hands thoughtfully. He frowned. It was a miserable offering, and the fact that there were animals everywhere only made it worse. From where he was standing it looked like there were two problems that could be solved at once here, budget animal meat and hungry humans.

Somehow he ended up shepherded behind the counter, offered the opportunity to assist the needy. He shook his head hurriedly. "No," he said. "No, I don't think I'm going to work for nothing. I do enough of that thanks to my lazy and good-for-nothing employees."

When he was asked why he'd stopped by if he didn't intend to help, he wasn't entirely sure.

"I was looking for someone," he said. "Someone who at this point is probably a homeless wreck. I wanted to see if they'd changed their mind on an offer I made them a long time ago."

1. You step up to help and are overwhelmed by all that needs to be done and nope out of there pretty quickly.

F.S. gave a small scratch of his head as he watched the chaos unfolding around him. "I suppose I could help!" He offered, though once he was helping he realized he was ill equipped for the job. After a few minutes he shook his head, "Sorry mates, I have to dip out."

2. There's some crankiness around you as you step up, but within a short time all the grumbles are quieted and everyone around you is in a better mood. Phew!

It's clear that this single booth functioning as two is in utter chaos, but Fermented Plum couldn't be happier to step in. The chaos was what had drawn her in, the need to help organize and get everything running smoothly too hard to ignore. She gave the man a nod and a little smile before stepping in, deciding to help with the soup side of things. The animals could be taken care of by the others that were there and the line for the food was getting longer. Hungry people were not happy people as the muttering and noises of irritation were evidence of.

"All right," she said, clapping her hands together as she stepped behind the booth counter. "Let's pick up the pace a little here, people. Can we make a little assembly line, please? You, focus on serving the soup into the bowls, and you, take them from her and hand them to the guests. I'll wash my hands and jump in." The two that were already working paused for a moment at being told what to do, but they eventually did as Plum asked while she washed her hands. A few moments later and she was there, nudging the man who was pouring the soup into bowls aside so she could take over and speed up the process.

"There we go, why don't you go get the one that's in the heater ready? I think we're going to need it," she said with a smile. Though she had taken charge, she had gone about it in a gentle way. In a few minutes the three of them were working like a well oiled machine, serving out soup in record time. The line dwindled down to nothing and in a lull of activity, Plum high fived her two impromptu co-workers.

"Awesome job, guys! We got this."

5. Some of the people have started a food fight, oh no! Time to step up and stop them before no one gets any food!

Rise to the Challenge had stepped in when he'd noticed how much help the booth runner needed, not wanting to see them flounder. He couldn't help but wonder who would try to run two completely different services out of it at the same time, but he wasn't here to judge. Too much. He was just here to help.

He was scrubbing a soup pot behind the booth when a cry rang out in the line. A moment later and more shouts - some of glee and some of anger - reached his ears. He lifted his head and glared out into the common space outside of the stall and saw a group of teenagers tossing food at one another. Thankfully none of it was soup, but it was clearly things from other booths that they had previously purchased. It was getting out of hand fast, so he left the pot for a moment to put a stop to the chaos before it got to be too much.

"Hey!" he barked as he stepped out from the stall, his imposing height and stature making the group instantly stop. "That's enough! People worked hard to make that food and you're throwing it around like snowballs? Disgraceful. You're literally throwing your money away." His tone was sharp and disapproving, enough to make most of the group cower. One of the teenagers puffed up their chest as if to say something back to him, but Rise turned on them and gave them his full attention which was terrifying, to say the least.

"If you want to waste your money, do it somewhere else. I'll not have a food fight start in my line. Now get out of it." The teen held their ground a moment longer before deflating, deciding it wasn't worth the fight. The group shuffled off, cowed by Rise's lecture. Once they were far enough away and no longer tossing food around, Rise returned to his task behind the counter.

4. Some of the animals have gotten loose and need caught! Write or doodle what you're catching and how you catch it!

Roaming Free was always fond of helping. Usually, he much preferred helping with people, but as he noticed the animals running loose, he found himself moving away from the people and off to help with herding the four-legged (and three-legged, he'd spotted) ones back where they belonged. It didn't matter how much work, or not, it required, he'd do it because he was just that kind of person, in the end.

8. Write your own scenario for either area!

Smoldering Ember acknowledges the request of the man in the camouflage shirt and looks around to find where his help will be more needed.
It's a good thing Ember decided to wear a plain black muscle shirt and dark brown pants under his winter coat for this volunteer job. This might be a dirty job after all, and istening to advice form the more senior members of the organization paid off.

He sees that the people waiting in line are getting cranky, and some people are starting to argue when some individuals decide to cut the line. It's not a usual thing for Ember to be confrontational, but seeing as he didn't exactly get specific instructions as to what to do, and keeping people calm and at least civil while they wait in line would be a good thing for everyone overall, he figures a little tough love needs to be applied.

Ember approaches one of the line cutters and speaks to the crowd more than the specific individual, "Alright folks, I know we're all cold and hungry. Everyone will be able to get food eventually, we have more than enough for everyone. Let's be kind to each other and not cheat our spot in line." He shoots a look at the line cutter, "We have elderly and children in the line too, and they're all patiently waiting their turn. Imagine if that were one of your loved ones and someone cut in front of them while they were cold and hungry. Please, if you just got here, go to the back of the line. You will get food, I promise."

A few people in the line walk out and to the back of it, some quietly, some grumbling. Some people even let the elderly and children behind them go in front of them in line. Ember exhales, the tension he's been holding in his gut easing as this course of action seems to have worked out. People nod at him in appreciation and he nods back as he makes his way inside the soup kitchen to see where else he can offer his help.

1. You step up to help and are overwhelmed by all that needs to be done and nope out of there pretty quickly.

Normally, Roaming Free thrives on being able to help everyone (and usually make a bit more of a mess than was necessary), but on this particular day, as he stepped up to offer his help, he noticed just how many people were waiting and just how much needed done, and instead of stepping up as usual, he turned on right around, telling himself that he'd come back tomorrow and make up for it then.

8. Write your own scenario for either area!

Scenario: The crowd surrounds you, everyone demanding help... Time to get to work!


Roses in the Deep blinked at the request to help out, her golden eyes following the man. After a long moment, Roses sighed and nodded, then headed over to start helping hand out food, and as she got to work she heard "She's the one, go ask her for food!" from someone else, someone sounding panicky and overwhelmed.

She barely had time to look up when she was suddenly surrounded by people who had gotten frustrated by the slow pace, and she stared in nervousness for a long moment. Then she began to hand out food, give people food and meals, her hands working as fast as she could. It seemed like time took forever, but also was going far too fast, and by the time she had gotten the crowd down, she was exhausted, but also proud of herself for managing to stick to it.

3. There's a funky smell coming from somewhere and you're afraid to investigate the source and are very happy you're called away to help in the other area!

Roam brushed his hair out of his face for probably the hundredth time for the day. The massive soup pot beside him bubbled nicely, filling the room with an amazing aroma of chicken and vegetables. He dipped the large, wooden spoon back into the mixture and stirred gently. As a customer approached, he smiled happily and reached for a bowl. He confirmed how much they'd like and grabbed for the larger bowl.

As he ladled in the soup, a strange smell wafted past him from the back of the kitchen. He narrowed his eyes, but kept ladling. While handing the bowl to the person in front of him, the smell changed. Roam glanced over his shoulder with concern, knowing the smell well now. What was burning? Who else was back there? He was not sure if there were spare hands there to help with whatever that was while he looked after the soup. Before he could figure it out, he heard someone calling for him in the other room, needing help with a large dog.

The large man exhaled with relief. "I'll be right back," he declared to the few customers in line on his side of the building. Brushing his hands off and setting his gloves aside, he quickly moved through the doors and to the other side. Someone else would have to find the burning stuff!

7. Somehow you end up with one of the animals in your arms...thanks...?

Sparkling Sunrise was standing at a counter, filling out some paperwork for the animal side of the building. There were so many things to keep track of. Who was up for adoption still, who had been adopted, their information, if they ate today, etc etc. Endless paperwork. Her pen scratched away at all the boxes while she hummed happily to herself.

After a few minutes, she felt a scratching at her leg. She figured it was just one of the free run animals brushing by her and went about her business. If she turned around and it turned out to be that scary cat, she wasn't sure what she was going to do. Best to just carry on. The scratching did not stop, and eventually she felt something grab hold of her pant leg and begin to climb up. The young woman stood rigid for a second, startled, but then realized it was one of the lizards. With the initial shock over, a silly thought came to mind. How far would this little creature go?

Sparkling Sunrise kept on with her paperwork, staying still and feeling the little creature climb and climb. Eventually, it worked its way around and over her hip, across her shirt, and before she knew it, the lizard was bumping her pen out of her hand. "Oh, do you need attention that badly?" she giggled, obliging the reptile and setting her pen down. The very round bearded dragon wiggled into her hands and settled, content. She couldn't help but laugh at the ridiculousness of the little creature.

time to roll a week 1 winner!

Spoiler

AstoriaFallen wrote: ↑Sun Nov 26, 2023 3:12 pm

Please pick your choice of prizes from the ones below!






pastel teadragon, shattered rainbow tea dragon, gold and blue tea dragon, purple tea dragon, flower cheetah