The day had mostly been quiet, either because many had not come in due to the fear that dictated citizens hide in the wake of Liari’s destruction, or because they were just so out of the way. Their clients were mostly regulars that knew of the bakery, told their friends and family, and thus had their clientele of ‘Heresay’ customers continue the cycle. For Sandra, it was a slow day and she could catch up on some new creations she’d been given the green-light to experiment on. Flavors that not many could boast in their own, likely mainstream, bakeries were the goal of the Maker’s Bakers to keep the cash flow going while their boss managed to finish the final touches on her plans. If the conversation she shared with the rest of her comrades were correct, the time was almost upon them.

Lost in the reverie of her work, Sandra’s attention was soon pulled by the ring of the door and (was this dejavu?) the arrival of an absolutely titanous woman ducking in through the doorway. Sandra’s eyes widened, her heart pounding in her chest at the breathtaking view of the new arrival. The moment they had spoken and mentioned the rumor of them being able to make very large portions for Saiyans, Sandra had given a nod and discreetly pressed a small panic button beneath the counter. It wasn’t meant to alert the police, however - a force that would be directly detrimental to their operation here. “You’d be right about that, Sugar! We pride ourselves in the challenge of satisfying any customer of any ethnic background!”

In the brief time Sandra had taken Zak’s order and had the other two hard at work to fulfill the request for one of each kind, the other request to their boss would blink back green to show that it was received.

Zak’s question a short time later inquiring about the service time would be answered by Sandra as she was icing her portion of Zaks’ order, “Shouldn’t take long! We’ve got state of the art machines to help speed up the baking process!” And it would be only a few seconds after her answer came that the door to the Bakery would ring again to announce a new arrival. Or, rather to say, an old one.

Zerori looked around, having received the panic alert and very quickly eyed the rather intimidating individual that towered over most even as she sat down. Clearly, by the familiar scent of power they exuded this was another Saiyan that was clearly of demonic heritage. To what extent, Zerori didn’t know but she was starting to think that these Demons really really around. “Well, hey there,” She greeted the feminine titan before she looked back at Sandra, “You need any help with that order?”

With a dismissive wave, Sandra shook her head, “Just play the role of hostess, M’amm!” Which elicited an amused chortle before Zerori casually waved back before joining Zaks at her table.

“So,” Zerori started, leaning back in the chair as she tilted her head curiously to regard Zaks, “How’d you hear about us?”

After Zerori had taken a seat and her guest had made their own greeting, already making it clear they weren’t really from Earth, the barely visible sight of a child from the adjacent table actually managed to pull a genuine snort from her as she watched him try and grab at the woman’s tail. While generally impressed that the child didn’t hold any fear for such an incredibly tall (and beautiful) woman, she was even more impressed that she was willing to allow such a dangerous game with a child. She must have trained her tail to be so confident, Zerori noted, her own tail not exactly ‘trained’ per say but she lacked the Saiyan ability to transform at the sight of a full moon. Which was fine by her since she generally liked being able to gaze at the great satellite from the comfort of her apartment loft without fear of losing her mind (or control of her body).

The answer she received her question actually had her laugh a little harder than she intended to, “Well, that’s one way of getting answers from the locals! Still, I’m glad it led you to me!” She’d brought up an interesting tidbit about the coming with some Saiyans (which checked out last she talked to a man named Yangcong) and how there were currently talks happening at this moment. Did that mean he was telling the truth about there not being an invasion? If so, great but there was something… that felt off about that. Thankfully, Zerori didn’t wait long for Zak’s to introduce herself.

Zerori got up at the same time Zak’s did, reaching her own hand out with her name on the tip of her tongue before she flinched a bit in surprise at Zak’s yelp. Blinking a couple of times in confusion, Zerori looked around before giving a wince at the grip the child had on Zak’s tail. “Oh… Oof, that’s gotta-” Wait, didn’t that mean-?!

With a clatter of the table falling to one side, it became apparent to Zerori that Zaks had, in fact, not trained her tail to potentially getting grabbed, “Shit, fuck,” Zerori hissed, ignoring the mess of utensils and table side items that fell to the floor and moving gently to a the child that stared in shock at the giant woman on the floor with her tail still in their hands. “Hey, tiny goblin,” Zerori gently cooed in her own way before she reached for the tail in their grip and carefully pried it away. Their mother had already come around frantically crying about how sorry they were for what had happened.

With Zak’s safely rescued from the toddler’s clutches, Zerori looked back at the woman with a wry grin - still sitting on the floor with her. “‘Dear Luna’, indeed! Hahaha, names Zerori, by the way. Gotta say… showing off your weakness is a first for me when it comes to ice breakers. Well-” She tapped on the wood of the table pointedly as it was clear the wood splintered a bit upon hitting the floor, “-Table breakers, in this case. Don’t worry about the damages, these were donated.” Already, she liked this one. Looking around, Zerori stood up before leaning down to offer a hand up, “Need some help or you need a moment to get your bearings?”

The woman of the child wasn’t the only one shocked by the informative announcement of Zaks’ age, said mercenary blinking a couple times in awe that someone could be so old and yet so young. When they were left to their (albeit broken) table, and Zaks accepted her hand up, Zerori would be pleased to note that even as tall as she was, Zerori had no issues getting her back to her feet. She laughed at Zak’s jest, “Oh yeah? Well, don’t worry about it; I’m sure the table could use a little TLC after how long it’s been here,” Hell, she was pretty sure this table (along with the others) had never been fixed or even repainted properly since they got here.

Briefly, as the TV bought for the patrons had moved on to a rather noisy and pressing bit of news, Zerori would pass a glance at it before returning her attention back to her guest. She, too, was paying attention to the background noise. Her multitasking skills were nothing to scoff at, especially when she got serious about it. Zaks had asked her a question nearly the same time that the Saiyan Queen had been described and not too shortly after her question had been asked, Janet and the two others in the kitchen had announced that they needed help getting the order out to the table.

That would be her cue, of course. “Hold that thought!” Zerori called over her shoulder as she turned away, a curious glint in her eye that would have no doubt spelt trouble. With about three or four tables still free due to their lack of patrons, Zerori would quickly begin to pull them together and closer to where Zak’s was. As for the broken one, the mercenary would very easily begin to pull it apart - snapping the legs off one by one like a lumberjack with the powers of a god - before she pushed open the door with the tinkle of the bell and threw it all off to the side. She dusted off her hands with a smirk, “I’ll incinerate that later,” and then came the good part.

With all four tables arranged, there was actually a spot left open for Zaks to sit at and Zerori had done this on purpose. Janet and Sandra had already begun getting some of the baked goods out and had noticed their boss’ strange table set up. Each gave their own groan, knowing what was coming next and had even gotten the attention of the other few patrons.

“Don’t stare too hard, guys!” Zerori warned before she put both hands together, gave them an over dramatic rub and then snapped her fingers on both hands. And, like literal magic, an intricate table that looked FAR stronger than the other two would materialize into existence piece by piece until it finally completed the rather long table. The cherry on top, however, would be the rather smug grin Zerori would give before finishing, “There we have it! A new table… fit for a Queen,” And while it was a common statement, the wink that followed would make it clear that Zerori had put the pieces together.

As the girls finished putting the confections on the table, Zerori would finally address that question, “As for the empire, your guess is probably a lot better than mine. While I’ve kept on news here, I’ve kept my nose out of the Saiyan Empire… for the most part. Last I heard, there was dissent about how things were run and some people sought out Earth. As long as they didn’t cause trouble, I really didn’t give a shit,” As she casually stated her piece, Zerori would distractingly look over each plate before finally pointing out one in particular, “That’s great to start with. Got that golden crust and everything.”

Now wasn’t THAT a thought; too bad Zerori didn’t tend to keep recordings of things like that. While she was sure such a thing might have been useful in the future, Zerori had no interest in attempting to blackmail the Queen. No, the memory of her not being able to control what happened to her if someone got a hold of her tail would be good enough for her. This was a moment for her to just enjoy, learn and see what could come of a simple (and discrete) interaction. Clearly, Zaks wasn’t some kind of maniacal leader with a God complex and - given how she responded to children - didn’t seem like the Queen from a long line of rulers, either. As Zaks enjoyed her recommended pick of the baked goods, Zerori had been thinking through possibility after possibility while watching Zaks with a grin.

While she typically got lost in her own thoughts easily, whether it be trying to guess why Zaks was here or why she was on Earth of all places, the sudden use of magic had Zerori’s eyes curiously taking in the conjured brew. A drink Zaks didn’t hesitate to explain was from a berry only found in some ‘Lunar’ caverns. While she was sure Zaks had explained it’s potency in liquor as a warning that it might be too much for Zerori to consume - the grin on her face was all the evidence needed to show that this alcoholic was intrigued. “I’ll take that challenge!” And with a laugh, held out a hand in question to try the drink that Zaks spoke so highly of.

If she’d been given the drink, she would take a brief sip before blinking rapidly at the sweet but GUT-PUNCHING toxicity of the wine before she handed it back, “Holy fuck, you weren’t kidding. Remind me to take a trip back home just for that!” She laughed, assuming the Lunar Caverns were a feature on Vegeta that she just didn’t know about before.

Back to business, in a sense, Zaks had expressed to Zerori that the talks had been about the conflicting nature of the USD and the Saiyans. Given Zerori had been shipped to Earth at such a young age because of the USD, she’d done her own homework on them during her time spent in school and participating in small-time crime. They were, for the lack of a better word, a fucking thorn in her side. Still, they seemed to care for keeping some modicum of peace amongst all the races. “Well, good luck on that front. I haven’t been to Vegeta since I was, like… seven - eight, maybe?” She didn’t think the USD would take to such a thing sitting down but that wasn’t Zerori’s business anyway.

Baking, and the secret behind that, was. Zerori laughed at the question, “Actually, that’s a good question. If I’m honest? I just love somethin’ sweet. I got into it as a hobby during College when I needed a quick fix and things were getting a bit, ah… stressful,” She’d keep the process of Pot Brownies a secret for the sake of Saiyan Queen’s sanity. She looked over some of the breads and donuts, recalling the times she’d gone to the bakery back in East City every week to sate her sweet tooth (and her flirtatious nature) before the memory of an old crush came to mind.

Zerori tried not to let her mind wander to Anastasia, feeding Zaks a filler line “I, uh… eventually wanted to make my own goods after seeing how good the business was. Turns out people REALLY like cake!”

And they did. In addition to a side helping of clandestine reconnaissance. Zerori looked back up at Zaks with that famous flirtatious gleam in her eye, “Also - You think I’m powerful? Bold of you to say so when I haven’t even shown off my best moves,” She laughed. “I’m flattered, thank you.” And she really was, charmed by the authority figure that was more humble than most lower-classed Saiyans. She hoped she wasn't stepping over the line by being so candid with the Queen.

Ending by mutual consent.

Zaks TWC 3789
Zerori TWC 2473