Council meeting

Some of Dakota’s nervousness has rubbed off on you by the time Rachel leads you to the office of the council. Despite her assurances, this feels like a turning point, a big deal. Meanwhile, Mazzy is as unfazed as can be, happily bouncing along beside you. With Ellie it’s hard to say, although she does grip your hand tightly as Rachel opens the door.

When you walk inside, it’s much less grandiose than you expected. Three people sit behind a simple table, two men and a woman, and all three smile as you approach. The two men appear human, one older and one younger, though the younger one is covered in runic tattoos. The woman, however, is decidedly not human. With green skin, and with leaves seemingly interwoven in her green hair, she is clearly some kind of monster girl, a dryad would be your guess.

The older man, seated in the middle, is first to speak. “Don’t look so nervous, please! I am Trevor, head of the council. This is Marcus, our magical advisor, and this is Bree, monster girl representative.”

Mazzy steps forward, smiling. “Hi! Thanks for listening to our idea!”

Trevor chuckles. “You must be Mazzy. Yes, Rachel told us all about it, and we liked the idea, but we wanted to speak with you first. We have some requirements if the AWIO is going to support you.”

Mazzy nods. “Ok! What do we need to do?”

Bree shakes her head. “It’s more like a set of rules, dear. We have to keep this organization looking good, or the people will shut us down, and that would be a disaster.”

Trevor waves his hand dismissively. “But that’s not important. First of all, we will provide you with what is essentially a loan. We’ll cover the cost of any construction, and startup costs.”

Dakota speaks up. “That’s really generous, but it sounds like there’s a catch.”

Marcus laughs. “That’s not how I’d put it! But yes. Until the loan is paid back, we split profits evenly. I think that’s pretty fair, considering the investment.”

You nod. “And what happens when we pay it off?”

Trevor shrugs. “Then it’s your business, although we will continue to hold you to the other requirements. The only thing you will pay us is a fair rent on the building.”

Mazzy bounces excitedly. “Ok! So what else?”

Marcus chuckles. “You’re awfully excited. The main requirement is obvious. You can only hire monster girls and boys to work there. The only exception is that sponsors are allowed to work with their sponsored monster. Obviously, we’re allowing Dakota as well, even though she’s technically not a sponsor.”

Dakota nods. “Makes sense. Wouldn’t be a monster girl cafe if there’s a bunch of humans working.”

Bree smiles. “Yes, and the whole reason we’re aiding in this is to help fight the prejudice against monster girls.”

Trevor nods, folding his hands in the table. “Which leads to our next requirement, in a way. Keep it family friendly. That means no sex in the back room, no skimpy waitresses outfits, none of that. We don’t want to start rumors that this is some kind of brothel, there’s plenty of that kind of rumor already.”

Bree sighs. “So many humans are so uptight about that sort of thing.”

Mazzy nods. “We were already thinking the same thing.”

Trevor smiles. “Good. Next, we want to have an AWIO representative on site at all times during business hours. Both to keep an eye on things, and to answer questions should they arise.”

Dakota shrugs. “These all seem super reasonable. Anything else?”

Trevor smiles again. “One last thing. We want to pick the location. It important that it be close to this office, for easier transport, and a few other reasons.”

You nod. “Again, seems reasonable. And that’s it?”

Trevor shrugs. “That’s it. It’ll take some time, but as soon as we’re ready to begin, we’ll contact you. Congratulations.”

He turns to Rachel. “After you lead them out, please come back here. We have things to discuss.”

Rachel nods, and then leads you back out. Mazzy and Dakota buzzing with excitement, and as soon as you’re back in the lobby, they nearly tackle you with a hug. Even Ellie joins in, smiling as wide as you’ve ever seen. The excitement is infectious, it seems. Once you seperate, Rachel shakes each of your hands.

“Congratulations. I wish you the best of luck! I know you can do this.”

You thank her, and she heads back into the office area. You turn to the girls, all still smiling widely, and laugh. “Well, that went incredibly well! You all ready to head home?”

Mazzy giggles, nodding.