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Pippi opts for subs over fish sticks.

They're better for stuffing in your mouth in case you say something you shouldn't.

Just in case.

Walter grabs a bunch of food, since he's not certain he ate enough yesterday. The previous day's details are still oddly hazy. But at least Pippi isn't someone who makes him uncomfortable for no good reason.

Yes, he should be on his way to work, but he'll just hurry and still get there on time.

"Is this seat taken?"

Pippi is happy to see Walter as per usual.

But there's a slight twinge of something.

Eh. Obviously not important.

"Of course not! Take a load off Walter, how you doing today?"

"I don't know," Walter answered with a shrug. "I'm not feeling myself. Maybe I'm coming down with that cold that Nadia had."

Yeah, because so far he'd been walking around with a knot in his chest as though he was just waiting for the other shoe to drop.

Pippi reached over to feel his forehead with the back of her hand. She wasn't exactly sure what this was supposed to accomplish, but she'd seen Tommy and Annika's mother do it.

"You feel fine to me." she said... "But I think I know what you mean. I been feeling odd all morning."

"It had better not be another one of those plagues like last week. The next thing you know, we'll all be bursting out in song again."

Walter did not pick at his food. He was feeling off, but not that off. Instead he devoured it with his usual gusto and a hint of mayonnaise.

"Other than that, how are you doing?"

Pippi felt like getting her sandwich ready for a huge bite for some reason.

"I'm very well thank you, other then the aforementioned oddness."

She took a huge bite of her sanswich, with the feeling that she'd achieved some sort of victory.

Blearily, Seras scanned the available food items. The smell of the feesh steeks and the subs made her stomach rebel, so she grabbed a salad and coffee. Loooots of coffee.

Her head felt like it had been on loan to a conga group. She eased herself down onto the bench and waved 'good morning'.

"Hi Seras!"

Seras winced at the enthusiastic greeting but managed a smile.

"Hi Pippi. How're you?"

"As to be expected." she said grinning. "And yourself?"

She took a huge bite of her sandwich.

"Honestly? I feel horrid. Like I'm hung over. Only, I don't remember what I did to get this way."

Seras took a swallow of coffee.

Pippi leaned in to Seras. "You probably drank a lot of alcohol." she whispered.

Walter had yet to check his voicemail to be able to confirm that yes, Seras had definitely been drinking.

And for some reason, he felt really bad seeing her, so he ate on in silence.

Seras gave Pippi a baleful look over her coffee mug.

"Genius, Longstocking. What I meant was I don't remember where I went or what I drank or why I decided to get blitzed in the first place."

Seras noticed Walter sitting there chewing. She hadn't seen him in their first aid course. Which maybe was for the best. Because, looking at him, she felt a strange combination of wanting to hurry back to her room and sob and wanting to bash him over the head with her lunch tray.

She compromised by saying "Hey."

Nadia grabbed a bit of everything, but hesitated for a moment before heading to the usual table with the usual crew.

For some reason, she was really mad at Walter.

She must have dreamed something. And it wouldn't be fair to hold a dream against her boyfriend, so she just straightened her shoulders and went over to sit down, anyway.

Possibly between Pippi and Walter. But if so, there was no particular reason for that.

"Hi guys,"

"Good morning!" she said scooting over for Nadia.

Seras waved to Nadia because talking made echoey badness happen in her head.

Walter looked at Nadia and Seras and nodded, "Hey."

Then he went back to eating with a singular focus on "wow, subs."

As Nadia was very carefully not being mad at Walter, she knew she should be concerned at the fact that he wasn't being his usual talkative self.

"Everything okay?"

Walter looked away from his food and nodded carefully. "It seems so. I just woke up feeling a bit out of sorts. How are you?"

"Out of sorts" was a great way to say it. "About the same. I figured I had a dream or something that I wasn't remembering."

See? No reason to be mad at him. None at all.

Dream?

Nadia's mentioning dreams brought something to the forefront of Seras' mind. The taste that she'd had in her mouth when she woke up this morning.

"Sambuca...?" she muttered.

Pippi gave Walter a pat on the head and went back to her sandwich.