The Common Grounds is a combination of Bookstore and Coffee House. The setting suggests a mixture of 'come and hang out' as well as 'get your supplies here'. It's sort of a 'Cheers' location where most people who show up with any regularity are going to run into each other and, hopefully, meet new people.
The front of the shop is where people can socialize and relax while they drink their beverage of choice. The back, up on the small riser, is where the books and merchandise is kept. For some, the back of the shop is an area where people generally don't go - they're in and out with their coffee to go. Others, however, would spend hours curled up scanning through the books or picking up bits of this or that.
The books start on your right before you even step up onto the riser. These are the 'hot sellers' that would grab people's attention as they get their drinks. Once you step up onto the riser, it's only a small step but it's more of a mental transition from one part of the shop to the other.
The pentagonal table in the back is a great place to plan, plot and read. The long, library table is more for those who want to either study or sort through the books they've found and decide on what they want to buy. Right behind the Pentagonal table and in a corner set between two sets of shelves is a stone bust upon a marble column. Next to it is a book shelf that's been set upon a door to approximate a secret door. Once you take a good look at the shelves it's easy to see the door knob nestled among the books; an inventive way to hide a service door.
The back section of the bookstore is covered with paperback and 'real' books. Shelves are stuffed to busting with them as the owner has gone to every old bookstore in California, it would seem, and bought them out.
In an age where most people have some form of electronic text / book device like a Kindle, analog bookstores are rare. They are able to stay in business mostly due to people's reluctance to give up everything from the old world.
Aside from books, the shop carries a wide array of occult merchandise ranging from herbal teas, candles of various type and color, all manner of jewelry, blank journals with large, golden pentacles upon the cover, etc.
The front of the coffee house has a mixture of furniture in varying degrees of comfort and style.
The great big, blue couch is awesome for flopping and reading.
The Pimp Purple couch is a favorite of the ladies who want to spread out or catch up on their best friend's news.
A black cat named simply 'cat' has claimed the bookstore / coffee house as his own. The humans have yet to realize the change in ownership.
No one's really sure if its a male or a female - it likes to maintain its privacy and, like any other cat, doesn't give secrets away for free. There's no reason to ensure that the cat doesn't wander off - that would require it caring about the outside world. Within the Grounds, it is lord.
Staff
Ana is one of the two women who the owner has hired to help him run the Coffee house during the morning rush. Ana is a local to the town and is very friendly with the customers. She's knows all the latest news, has heard all the good gossip and is willing and able to tell anyone who wants to listen.
Tasha, however, don't give a damn. She doesn't give a damn about you, your coffee, your pastries or how many marsh mellows in your hot chocolate. She is, however, an old friend of the owners - one he met when he was passing through Atlanta. When she ended up out in town he set her up with a place and a job. She's grateful for the help but is SO not a morning person.
The 'Widdershins' is a signature late that is served at the grounds makes that has three shots of espresso and a bit of mocha to sweeten it.
Widdershins is a popular choice in the morning for those people who sprawl out to start their day.
Never was originally named Nevel and from Ohio but his parents moved to Las Vegas when he was 14. It was a new town. A place of bright lights, big money and lots of ways to get into trouble. When his friends were sneaking into bars and such - he was never able to get in because he always looked too young. When they were breaking into places to steal something for some extra cash, he was never invited along because he was so thin they thought he couldn't pull his weight. His parents constantly fought over money and things and he was routinely reminded that he would Never amount to anything, never get into a good school, etc. etc. etc. Over and over again, he was told that he would Never be anything. After a while the name stuck.
One weekend during his senior year, he decided to do something that people told him he would never be able to do. He snuck into a club. It was one of the darker bars off the strip in Vegas. There he met a guy who looked to be in his mid-twenties. The guy, Joey, said he was a bouncer and that Never needed to get out of the club. Never refused but the guy was stupidly strong for his size. There was something to the guy's voice that said he wasn't trying to be a dick but was actually trying to help him out. Joey asked who he was, what he was doing at the bar and what he wanted. Never explained by giving his 'new name' and saying that he never wanted to end up like everyone around him. He never wanted to grow old, never wanted to die, or be one of those lifeless, grey people he always saw around the city. No life in them at all. Joey told him to be careful what he wished for.
The fire stopped anyone from leaving through the front, and the spray of bullets peppered anyone who was near the door. While the two of them were helping people out the back door, the sabbat had made the circle around the block and were now tossing firebombs to close the exit. When fire blocked the door, it was Never who grabbed a bucket of ice from behind the bar to douse them and clear a path. And for his act of bravery he was shot twice through the chest by one of the gunmen as they drove by. He fell to the ground as though someone cut his strings and everything seemed to go black.
Never's first memory since the embrace has been the first memory he can recall; waking up in what felt like a cool blanket and then realized he was covered in dirt. He was only buried a few inches below the surface but it was enough to freak him out a little. He spent only three nights with his sire - enough to get him past the shaky first few steps and then Joey vanished. Joey called his cellphone to tell him that Vegas wasn't safe for either of them and that he was going to try and get rid of the people who were after him. His sire recommended that he had to California and that he would be in touch when he could.
The great big, blue couch is awesome for flopping and reading.
A black cat named simply 'cat' has claimed the bookstore / coffee house as his own. The humans have yet to realize the change in ownership.
Ana is one of the two women who the owner has hired to help him run the Coffee house during the morning rush. Ana is a local to the town and is very friendly with the customers. She's knows all the latest news, has heard all the good gossip and is willing and able to tell anyone who wants to listen.
The 'Widdershins' is a signature late that is served at the grounds makes that has three shots of espresso and a bit of mocha to sweeten it.
