Easter was typically a quiet time of year for most businesses, often because of the fact that most Americans were Christian and thus the holiday was something that got many businesses to close for the day. Some stayed open because they had to, but they also often had either reduced hours or shifted the hours for the day to give their workers some time to enjoy the day with their families. The Dino Dome, however, was one of those sites that did close down for Easter Sunday, and it gave Mister M some time off. It let him keep track of things at home and enjoy the time off. He liked the gym classes he taught, and even the Human customers from Glen Rose were fun to work with and in some ways, he felt he might get all of them into far better shape than they've ever been, even without becoming Animalians of some kind. But there were always cases where having some time off was a good thing.
The church service wasn't bad and he then returned home for a lunch of hard boiled eggs and handling other things around his house. He'd just taken a bite when there came a knock at his front door. Mister M blinked at that, as he didn't expect anyone, but it could be someone important or someone participating in the "Easter Egg" hunt being sponsored by Glen Rose and Dino City. He made his way to the door and found that it was ultimately none of these things, but rather six old friends, Ulysses Quinn, Quintus Reach, Victor Wile, Selena Tile, Stella Bomb, and Paula Pin.
"Hey, M!" Ulysses spoke with small smile looking good.
"Probably big, too," Stella added looking up to Mr. M's waist.
"You're all here..." Mister M responded with some surprise in his voice.
He'd talked to them over the phone and over teleconferences that shared ideas on stories, acts, and other things that were wanted, at least regarding "adult entertainment" in Dino City. It was something that those running the Meat Market really wanted and had been pushing for. Recently they'd gotten minor victories in that Dino City might allow the sale of videos to adults with the obvious point that they're only viewed in private and would allow for transport to Animalia for "filming" if it was also something that couldn't be filmed in private, but a lot of that was really something that Dino City was technically already allowing. Mister M also knew that these friends didn't mind it and were also looking for some way to get back in the game, possibly because of some of the "reviews" that came out of the Meat Market on Tyra and Andrew's performances there before Dino City was founded.
"Yeah," Victor nodded, "got apartments set up and everything. A lot of stuff is likely to be fun."
"We went by Horizon, too, but I think they're closed for Easter," Paula added, "so... we thought we'd come by and catch up with you. Since we can't go in for our conversions until tomorrow."
Mister M stepped back and held the door open. He was wanting to finish his lunch, but these were friends from his internet days and if this was coming after moving, it probably would be rude to reject their visit. He ushered them in and lead them toward the kitchen/dining room where he'd been eating when they arrived. This of course led to all sorts of comments on the size of the furniture and other things. It then left Mister M with a small chuckle.
"As I said on the phone... Carcharodontosaurus is larger than Tyrannosaurus," Mister M chuckled, "I kind of needed bigger furniture to fit my new size. And unless you've all decided to become a Dinotopian based on a smaller Dinosaur... you might need bigger furniture."
That earned a few blinks which raised Mister M's curiosity a bit.
"Can I ask what kind of Dinotopian you want to become?" Mister M asked.
"I was actually looking toward Apatosaurus," Quintus said slowly, "not the largest... but still large and robust for a relative of Diplodocus."
"Triceratops," Victor spoke.
"Edmontosaurus," Paula commented, her voice sounding a bit nervous.
"Spinosaurus," Ulysses said slowly.
"Allosaurus," Stella spoke.
"I think I may end up being left out of something here," Selena commented, "as I've gone with Compsognathus... the only one of any of us that is small."
"Any particular reason?" Paula wondered.
"I actually think the Compys were rather cute in "the Lost World," that's all," Selena said.
"We do have one male here in Dino City," Mister M commented, "though, he doesn't look like what they made for Jurassic Park. Though, with the exception of Selena, all of you would probably need new furniture."
"That'll end up being costly," Ulysses said slowly.
"Potentially," Mister M nodded, "but a lot of it also works in that a lot of the furniture, particularly those in the public areas are adjustable to fit anyone, Human, Animalian, or Dinotopian of any size. That ability to adjust things can add to the cost, but is necessary."
"Well, that'll be good," Ulysses commented, "though... with those of us becoming something bigger... we might have to sell some things, like beds, tables, and chairs."
"You might be able to get a good trade in value for them," Mr. M stated and took the last bite of his egg.
"All the same, things will be interesting," Stella commented, "and fun in a way. A way to get back in the swing of things and enjoy some fun."
"Yeah, one of the guys from Lyre/Animalia's PR department were all hyped on some of the stories for entertainment and talking about a casino..." Paula commented.
"The latter part won't happen," Mister M cut her off.
"What?" Paula asked.
"The casino thing," Mister M said, "that WON'T happen. Texas's state constitution and law FORBIDS something like a casino. We could gather here and play poker and bet on those hands that way but they won't allow something like what you see in Las Vegas. No casinos or businesses that profit off of gambling is permitted under state law."
"What about the "Indian casinos?" There's at least one of them in the state," Ulysses wondered.
"From my understanding, that's come to a recognition of their reservation being in a position that is in some ways separate from the Texas state government and thus able to set their own rules," Mister M answered, "an accordance the governor and state legislature has stated they have no intention of granting Dino City anything close to it. Thus, those guys from the Meat Market, who've been the ones requesting it are going to have to learn Texas' STATE laws and understand that what they want is NOT legally possible under those laws."
"They sound like a bunch of killjoys," Victor grumbled.
"Maybe," Mister M commented, "but even if that wasn't the case, Dino City is fairly built up now and more people have moved in, while also getting their businesses set up. There isn't the room to BUILD a casino. To the south is a specialized sanctuary, which is privately owned and was unlikely to sell and to the north is the state park, which won't be sold at all. There's thus no room to grow the city anyway. Which comes as a price for building buildings to a Dinotopian scale."